Former worker speaks on J. Crew lawsuit

Sweatshop conditions in United States prove unsuitable for employee health, equality

Amy Paterson / senior photographer Chie Abad, a former garment worker in the Phillippines, spoke to students about the unfair labor conditions in U.S. sweatshops.

Showing the harsh conditions some employees were forced to work in, a speaker discussed the prevelance of sweatshops.

In a lecture entitled "Sweatshops, Immigrant Rights, and the Global Economy," a former garment worker from the Philippines, Chie Abad, spoke about the injustices she suffered while working for the Sako Corporation located on the South Pacific island of Saipan. The Sako Corporation makes clothes for corporations including Gap and Levi Strauss.

Abad explained that the Philippines is a U.S. territory, similar in status to Puerto Rico.

"Even [students] are being fooled," Abad said. "The label on your clothes says 'Made in the USA,' which makes you think there are livable working conditions — no."

In 1999, Abad helped bring a $1 billion lawsuit against 26 clothing retailers, including Abercrombie & Fitch, Nordstrom, J. Crew and J.C. Penney's for not adhering to federal laws involving workplace standards.

"We scored a major victory," Abad said. "Twenty million dollars will go back to past and present workers. The laws that the [United States] has have extended to Saipan — health care, codes of conduct, et cetera."

Abad said she and her co-workers worked more than 14 hours a day, seven days a week before the lawsuit victory. The factory required a certain number of products to be produced per hour by each worker and did not pay overtime.

"[The factory] had poor ventilation," Abad said. "We drank rainwater, and there were no safety gadgets. People would sew their fingers or cut their hands with the fabric machine.

"[Workers] had to waive their rights; they had no religious freedom and were not allowed to fall in love," Abad said. "You were fired for pregnancy."

In 1998, after a failed attempt to organize a union, Abad did a special with ABC News, using a hidden camera to expose the realities of her workplace.

Abad and her co-workers have taken drastic measures to get their point across, including stripping in front of an Old Navy store.

"We yelled 'We'd rather wear nothing than wear Gap,' and then threw our clothes to the police," Abad said.

Senior Nadine Wu is the president of Amnesty International, a nonpartisan organization that co-sponsored the International Justice Mission.

"I hope that the next time [students] go shopping, they will think what's behind the shirt; if the person was suffering or sick [when it was made]," Wu said. "I hope they will speak out about it and educate others."