Ordinance: Sweat Free purchasing and membership in the Sweatfree Purchasing Consortium.
I. Introduction:
Over the course of the last few months a “SweatFree Louisville Campaign” has found that the citizens of this community value responsible purchasing, and do not wish for their tax dollars to be spent on goods made in “sweat shop” conditions. This ordinance was written to honor that demand and to effectively make Louisville a more economically responsible city.
Thankfully, Louisville is among many other socially responsible cities who have desired ethical purchasing on behalf of their governments. While many governments have adopted some form of a “Sweat Free Policy”, they lack sufficient mechanisms to ensure policy enforcement and accountability by contractors. Because of this the “Sweatfree Purchasing Consortium” was created.
II. Compliance with this ordinance only has three requirements:
1. That Louisville pledge to not knowingly support sweatshop labor through public procurement.
2. That Louisville become a member of the Sweatfree Purchasing Consortium . The membership fee is $500.
3. That Louisville comply with the regulations regarding contracting outlined in section III of this ordinance.
While the Consortium is still in its formation, joining now will be an important step for our city. As time goes by, more and more governments will continue to join, and as money and information accumulate independent monitoring will take place of select factories manufacturing public goods.
As a city, membership in the Sweatfree Purchasing Consortium will allow us to become a “sweatfree” city without the heavy lifting. The responsibilities of Louisville to the Consortium are minimal and include: membership dues, and a slight adjustment to our agreements with contractors (defined below).
III. A change in contracts:
Upon renewing an existing contract, or acquiring a new one, Louisville must require certain information from the company: Complete physical address of the manufacturing factories, phone numbers, and contact persons.
Louisville will also require a statement from the contractor indicating the following:
1. That they understand their responsibility to ensure that all of their production facilities adhere to a sweatfree code of conduct as defined in section IV of this ordinance.
2. That they understand that that non-compliance with the code of conduct could mean a contract termination.
3. Acknowledgement that they have received the code of conduct, and passed it on to their manufacturing facilities.
4. Acknowledgement and compliance with the fact that their factories may be inspected for compliance with the sweatfree code. The contractor must acknowledge their intent for their factories cooperation if an inspection is to occur.
IV. Requirements of our manufacturers:
Listed below are the standards that companies will be held to when manufacturing goods that are purchased by our city:
a. Legal Requirements: Production Facilities shall comply with all applicable domestic labor, employment, health and safety, environmental, and building laws; the “core” conventions of the International Labor Organization, including those regarding forced and child labor, non-discrimination, and freedom of association and collective bargaining; and other internationally recognized labor rights, including those regarding health and safety, maternity leave, hours of work, wages, and homework.
b. Wages and Benefits. Production Facilities shall pay a non-poverty wage. In the United States, the non-poverty wage is the level of wages required for a full-time worker to produce an annual income equal to or greater than the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ most recent poverty guideline for a family of three plus an additional 20% of the wage level paid either as hourly wage, health benefits, or pension benefits. Outside the United States, a non-poverty wage is a comparable nationwide wage and benefit level, adjusted to reflect the local cost of living, sufficient to raise a family of average size out of poverty.
c. Hours of Work and Overtime. Production Facilities shall not require hourly and quota-based workers to work more than 48 hours per week or the limits on regular hours allowed by the law of the country of manufacture, whichever is lower. In addition, Production Facilities shall provide at least one day off in every seven-day period, as well as holidays and vacations. Production Facilities shall ensure that all hours worked beyond the limits on working hours are voluntary, except as provided for by both national law and a bona fide collective bargaining contract. Required overtime should only be permitted when each of the following conditions exists: a) national law permits mandatory overtime; b) the facility is party to a collectively negotiated contract with a representative labor union and this contract permits mandatory overtime, and; c) mandatory overtime does not exceed the amount allowed by the collective contract. In addition to their compensation for regular hours of work, hourly and quota-based workers shall be compensated for overtime hours at such a premium rate as is legally required in the country of manufacture or, in those locations where such laws do not exist, at a rate at least one-and-one-half their regular hourly compensation rate.
d. Discrimination and Women’s Rights. Production Facilities shall not discriminate in employment - including in hiring, salary, benefits, advancement, discipline, termination, retirement, or any other term or condition of employment or employer practice - on the basis of gender (including pregnancy), race, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, political opinion, or social or ethnic origin. Production Facilities shall not require pregnancy tests as a condition of employment, nor demand pregnancy tests of employees. Women workers shall receive equal remuneration, including equal pay, benefits, treatment, and opportunity to fill positions open to male workers.
e. Harassment and Abuse. Production Facilities shall not harass or abuse workers sexually, psychologically, or verbally, or use corporal punishment.
f. Freedom of Association and Unionization. Production Facilities shall respect workers’ rights to freedom of association, collective bargaining, striking or other concerted protest, and filing of grievances.
V. Violation and resolutions
Should Production Facilities be found to be in violation of Code of Conduct specified above, the city should provide a timeline for remediation. Contract termination with vendors should be seen only as a last resort. The intent of the policy is not to close factories found in violation, rather to provide incentive for improvements. We do not wish for workers to lose their jobs; rather we wish to ensure that their jobs meet Code of Conduct standards.
In the event of an inspection of a Louisville supplier factory, we will receive a report detailing the findings. The Consortium will provide recommendations on remediation for the City to consider in its response. The Consortium will also aid in connecting cities like ours to responsible manufacturers by keeping a running database of the Vendors, Manufacturers, and Production Facilities, which supply apparel, textile, and footwear to member cities and states, along with information on those that have been independently verified as compliant with the Code of Conduct. In addition, the Consortium will promote cooperative purchasing from sweatfree suppliers; buying together with other cities through a cooperative contract may provide an opportunity to save the City money without sacrificing the rights of those who make our goods. To date (12/12/09) members include: Ashland, OR; Austin, TX; Maine; Milwaukee, WI; New York; Olympia, WA; Portland, OR; and San Francisco, CA.
Definitions:
“Production facility, or factory, or manufacturer” means the facility that manufactures (including cutting and assembly by weaving, sewing, knitting or felting), finishes, applies marks, warehouses, launders, or engages in any other processes that contribute significantly to the finished apparel and other products.
“Contractor” “Vendor” or “Supplier” means a person or entity that provides apparel, footwear, or textiles, and/or rental and/or laundering of such goods or services.
“Goods” in this document refers to apparel, textiles, and footwear purchased by this cities government.
“Sweat free, or compliant” means in compliance with the articles of section IV of this document.
