COLUMBUS - A report issued by five universities, including The Ohio State University, details working conditions in a sampling of factories that produce university-licensed apparel. The study was conducted for the Independent University Initiative, a consortium which also includes Harvard University, the University of Notre Dame, the University of California, and the University of Michigan.

Ohio State President William E. Kirwan said the report identifies issues of concern, focusing on compliance with wage, and hour and health and safety regulations, limitations of freedom of association and collective bargaining, employment discrimination and related issues. The consultant team also discussed positive practices that it had identified and local situations which hinder compliance with good working conditions.

Consultants visited a total of 13 factories in Mexico, China/Hong Kong, El Salvador, Thailand, Pakistan, Korea and the United States, and interviewed representatives of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), companies and associations, as well as public officials, trade union representatives and researchers.

Kirwan said now that the report's results are in, the university will begin a conversation with its licensees to determine how best to address the issues raised and develop a workable, long-term plan of action. "We are very concerned about much of the report's contents," he said. "At the same time, it is clear to us that working within the system, rather than outside it, is the best way to approach improving conditions for the workers who produce our licensed products."

Ohio State joined the IUI because university officials sought better knowledge of the conditions under which licensed products are made.

The report is the result of a year-long effort that included compiling and analyzing information about working conditions in the apparel industry in the seven countries; observing working conditions in countries that represent a substantial portion of the university-licensed apparel business; and surveying efforts being undertaken by government, business, labor and independent organizations involved in efforts to improve working conditions.

Based on meetings with stakeholders, factory visits and surveys, the consultants found:

· Sub-par working conditions exist in apparel factories in all of the countries visited, as reported by stakeholders and confirmed by factory visits;

· The diffuse nature of apparel production hinders enforcement of labor standards;

· Effective compliance is hurt by both the proliferation of Codes of Conduct - from companies, universities and individual factories - and the resulting duplication of monitoring efforts, as well as a lack of awareness about the codes on the part of both manufacturers' and their workers;

· Many foreign trade unions and some NGOs are skeptical that monitoring is effective; and

· It is particularly challenging to gather information from workers about the conditions in their factories.

The report also identified positive practices, indicating improvements have occurred since the issue surfaced in the 1990s. Licensees, brands and industry associations were involved in initiatives to support:

· Effective monitoring in all forms - internal, external and independent;

· Transparency and disclosure about factory practices;

· Training of monitors and suppliers;

· Participation in collaborative efforts;

· Ranking and benchmarking of individual factories;

· Worker input into compliance efforts; and

· Industry association efforts to monitor member companies.

Kirwan said he is encouraged by the progress, yet very concerned about the degree to which problems still exist. "Our next step is to engage with our licensees and determine what they intend to do specifically to address the issues the report raises," he said. "Once we have received their plans for corrective action, we will evaluate our continuing business relationships."

The university also will explore an association with internationally respected human rights champion The Rev. Leon Sullivan, who approached officials here about helping him with his effort to develop a new set of economic-based principles. "Dr. Sullivan raised the level of human rights activism through his tenacity in South Africa," said Kirwan, "and we would welcome the opportunity to explore working with him on this issue."

Sullivan, who is spearheading formation of an effort to bring about effective change in manufacturing operations worldwide, gained global recognition as creator of the Sullivan Principles, which helped end apartheid in South Africa. He has been working with world leaders and a number of multinational corporations to devise a new set of principles which address economic, social and political justice to support human rights, and encourage equal opportunity in manufacturing operations around the world.

The IUI report was prepared by the consultant team of the Business for Social Responsibility Education Fund of San Francisco; the Investor Responsibility Research Center of Washington, D.C., and Assistant Professor Dara O'Rourke of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass. Termed the Independent University Initiative because it is unaffiliated with any other inquiry, the initiative began in the summer of 1999. The five participating universities underwrote the study.

The full report is available on the web at:

http://www.osu.edu/osu/newsrel/IUIReport.pdf

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(LO)