Sweatfree Communities, a group organizing to pressure governments to use anti-sweatshop procurement policies, has issued a new report finding that the State of Michigan is purchasing uniforms made in sweatshops. The report, titled "Subsidizing Sweatshops: How Our Tax Dollars Fund the Race to the Bottom, and What Cities and States can do" details how governments use tax dollars to support sweatshops and to increase downward pressure on labor rights, wages, and working conditions.

The report--based on person-to-person interviews with workers at twelve factories--details the following government contracts using sweatshop labor in Michigan:

Brand: Lion Apparel

Factory investigated: Alamode in Siquatepeque, Honduras
Vendor: Lion Apparel Inc.
Product: Dept. of Natural Resources uniforms
Contract: 071B4200347 http://michigan.gov/documents/web_contract_12037_7.xls

Conditions found:

* Overtime is forced, unpaid, and undocumented. Regular hourly wages are below minimum wage.

* For union organizing, employees are faced with firings and police repression.

* Workers are afraid to speak with monitors, having been told by managers that they would be fired if they talked with anyone about the working conditions in the factory.

* Women are forced to take a pregnancy test each year, and are fired if found pregnant, even though Honduran law provides paid maternity leave.

* Safety gear is not available. The working environment is hot and unsanitary. Bathrooms are unclean and not supplied with toilet paper. However, when a monitor visits, safety masks appear on workers' faces, toilet paper is in the bathrooms, and the toilets have been cleaned.

Brand: Dickies

Factory investigated: Two factories in Karachi, Pakistan.
Vendor: National Dry Goods Co., K2id (http://www.logofit.com/corporate_main.html)
Product: Dept. of Natural Resources uniforms, clothing
Contract: 071B4200338, 071B6000919
http://michigan.gov/documents/web_contract_12037_7.xls
Contact SweatFree Communities for detailed contract information.

Conditions found:

* Wages are the same as ten years ago (averaging the equivalent of $80-$109 per month) and significantly less than workers' need for basic living expenses. Pay is often received late, and sometimes not at all, and workers are cheated of overtime pay.

* Workdays average 10-13 hours per day, and occasionally workers must work around the clock. Some workers claim schedules that last 30 days straight with no break. These schedules are involuntary; if workers don't agree to the long hours they risk their job.

* Workers are hired and paid through an employment contractor. Workers' rights do not apply to contracted workers.

* Worker organizing is forbidden. If workers are found to be organizing in any way they are fired. Even casual conversation between workers can constitute termination.

* When workers have an opportunity to speak with corporate auditors, management tells them how to respond to the questions.

Brand: Fechheimer

Factory investigated: Hui Yang Charming Garments in Huizhou City, Guangdong, China
Vendor: METROPOLITAN UNIFORM CO
Product: Uniform Shirts and Trousers for the Michigan State Police
Contract: 071B6200245 http://michigan.gov/documents/web_contract_12037_7.xls
Contact SweatFree Communities for detailed contract information.

Conditions found:

* Schedules are sometimes 13 hours of work per day for 30 days straight, which is almost double the legal maximum work hours for a month. Taking a day of rest is not an option for workers, or they will lose three days of wages and bonuses by way of punishment.

* Workers claim that around 20 under-aged workers, as young as 14 years old, are at Charming Garments, violating Chinese labor law.

* Sewing machine operators are paid by piece so when orders are low, wages are very low. When there are big orders, workers must work long hours for no overtime pay.

* Managers prepare fake wage and hour slips to show auditors. Underage workers are hidden from auditors on inspection days by taking a forced "day off."

The report calls on the State of Michigan to join the Sweatfree Consortium to pressure companies to improve their labor practices.