Date of publication: June 19, 2007
Source: AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Author: Kate Alexander
Excerpt from article:
Austin might soon join a growing national campaign to stop using public dollars to buy from companies that use sweatshop labor.
The Austin City Council will consider on Thursday an ordinance requiring companies that provide the city's uniforms to ensure safe and fair working conditions to employees.
The labor standards will be established within the next year by a budding consortium of states, including New York and Pennsylvania, and cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco. More than 170 states, cities, school districts and other governments have adopted similar purchasing requirements, according to the anti-sweatshop coalition, SweatFree Communities, which is organizing the effort...