P.O. Box 124, Berkeley, CA 94701-0124 • 510-558-1014 • garrettbrown2021@gmail.com WHO WE ARE NEW POSTINGS NETWORK RESOURCES GENERAL OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ITS FAILURES BANGLADESH OHS PROJECTS ALTA GRACIA PROJECT — "No Sweat" factory in the DR GLOBAL ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS MEXICO HEALTH & SAFETY PROJECTS ACTIVITIES IN CENTRAL AMERICA ASIA HEALTH & SAFETY PROJECTS GLOBALIZATION ISSUES WHO WE ARE The Maquiladora Health & Safety Support Network is a volunteer network of 300 occupational safety and health professionals who have placed their names on a resource list to provide information, technical assistance and on-site instruction regarding workplace hazards to worker and community organizations in the developing world. Network members, including industrial hygienists, toxicologists, epidemiologists, occupational physicians and nurses, and health educators among others, are donating their time and expertise to create safer and healthier working conditions for workers employed by transnational corporations around the world. Since 1993, the Network has expanded its work from Mexico to include projects in Bangladesh, Central American, China, the Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Our goal has always been to build the capacity of workers and their organizations to understand occupational health and safety issues and to be able to speak and act in their own name to protect their health and to exercise their rights. Our activities have included providing information and trainings to workers, plant-wide health and safety committees, and to community, human rights and professional associations; technical assistance to workers filing complaints under international trade agreements; and technical information for grassroots organizations monitoring the performance of transnational corporations and government health and safety agencies in the global economy. The Support Network is not designed to generate, nor is it intended to create, business opportunities for private consultants or other for-profit enterprises. On the contrary, Network participants will be donating their time and knowledge pro bono to workers, community organizations and professional associations. The Maquiladora Health & Safety Support Network was launched in October 1993 at the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association (APHA). It includes occupational health specialists primarily from Canada, Mexico and the United States who are active in the APHA, American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), American Conference of Government Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH), American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), National Safety Council (NSC) and the 20-plus local grassroots Committees for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) groups in the U.S. and Canada. The Support Network is continuously seeking more health and safety professionals and activists to join the network, as well as looking for more worker and community organizations who can make use of the information and technical assistance offered. Please join us! (back to top) NEW POSTINGS “Fashion’s next trend: Accelerating supply chain transparency in the apparel and footwear industry,” Clean Clothes Campaign and other NGOs, December 2019. “Corporate Human Rights benchmark, 2019 key findings,” Corporate Human Rights Benchmarks, November 2019. “Better Buying Index Report 2019 reveals suppliers in the lowest cost locations are being pressured for even lower prices,” Better Buying, September 2019 “New reports shine spotlight on underlying causes of terrible working conditions in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, September 4, 2019 “Fig leaf for fashion; How social auditing protects brands and fails workers,” Clean Clothes Campaign, September 2019 “OHS Initiative for Workers and Community,” Dhaka, Bangladesh, project update, June 2019 (back to top) NETWORK RESOURCES Key Articles from the Network “New reports shine spotlight on underlying causes of terrible working conditions in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, September 4, 2019 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains, July 2019 edition,” The Pump Handle, August 3, 2019 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains – March 2018 edition,” The Pump Handle, March 13, 2018 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains, September 2017 edition,” The Pump Handle, September 21, 2017 “Keeping track of working conditions and workers’ rights in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, June 20, 2017 “Global supply chains still full of sweatshops,” The Pump Handle, September 21, 2016 "Factory certification schemes pose danger to safety & health profession," Industrial Safety and Hygiene News, May 2013 (PDF – 1.4MB) "Now is the time for us to become the leaders we have been waiting for" presentation by MHSSN Coordinator Garrett Brown at WorkSafe Conference on March 25, 2011, in Emeryville, CA; reprinted in New Solutions, 2011 (PDF) Genuine Worker Participation—An Indipansable Key to Effective Global OH article by Garrett Brown in New Solutions, Vol. 19(3) 2009 (PDF) “Mexico’s daycare fire: not even babies are protected,” Garrett Brown at “The Pump Handle” blog, July 23, 2009 “Why Immigrant Workers Are Coming to the U.S., and How We Can and Need to Work Together" (speech by Garrett Brown to the Immigrant Workers in Construction Conference, Center to Protect Workers Rights, Sacramento, CA, on April 12, 2007) “Immigrant Workers Are Our Allies, Not Our Enemies" (speech by Garrett Brown to the Center to Protect Worker Rights conference in Tijuana, Mexico, on August 15, 2005) “Protecting Workers’ Health and Safety in the Globalizing Economy through International Trade Treaties”  (by Garrett Brown, International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, April–June 2005) (PDF) Why NAFTA Failed and What’s Needed to Protect Workers’ Health and Safety in International Trade Treaties  (by Garrett Brown, December 2004) (PDF) "Speak Out: Portrait of a Failure, NAFTA and Workplace Health and Safety" (by Garrett Brown, The Synergist, August 2004) Key Statements from the Network MHSSN Statement on CSR Monitoring of Global Supply Chain Factories January 2013 MHSSN Statement on Iraq and OH&S April 2003 MHSSN and OHS Professional Associations "MHSSN letter to the National Safety Council's Safety & Health magazine, January 2013." (PDF) AIHA's The Synergist "Honor Roll" column about MHSSN receiving the 2011 "Social Responsibility" award AIHA's The Synergist Blog interview with MHSSN Coordinator Garrett Brown Network Reading and Resource Lists January 2011 Lists August–November 2010 Lists 2009 Lists 2008 and earlier Lists Network Newsletters Newsletters from 1997 to 2012 (back to top) GENERAL OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY International Labor Organization (the United Nations' labor research and educational office)   “International Newsletter on Occupational Health & Safety; Special Issue on Networking,” January 2018 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (research institute for workplace health & safety in the United States) Canadian Centre for Occupational Safety & Health Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organization Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) (regional component of the World Health Organization) New York Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH, New York City) WORKSAFE! (A California Coalition for Worker Occupational Safety & Health Protection) Asbestos Related Information and Support Organizations   Mesothelioma Center Mesothelioma Justice Network Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance "Hazards" magazine (Sheffield, England) Hesperian Health Guides (a non-profit publisher of community-based health care materials) International Chemical Safety Cards (A superb initiative to provide easy-to-read safety information on numerous chemicals from the World Health Organization's International Labor Office - better than MSDSs - and in eight languages) Resource list for gender issues and OHS from the MHSSN, April 2019 Resource list for OHS in agriculture from the MHSSN, April 2019 Report on OHS issues in coffee plantations, March 2019 OHS Resources lists and web links for grassroots-level factory inspectors/investigators from MHSSN, January 2019 Student research papers on global OHS from UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health, Fall 2018 semester (back to top) CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ITS FAILURES Key Website to Monitor Corporate Social Responsibility Reports Business & Human Rights: A Resource Website (online library of key documents)   Portal on “Beyond Social Auditing” issue Blog spot for posts on CSR MHSSN Resource Lists GLU resource List – CSR Failings, April 2019 General CSR Resources, March 2019 CSR Articles and reports, March-June 2019 Selected Articles and Reports on Corporate Social Responsibility, January–February 2019 CSR articles and reports, March - May 2018 CSR articles and reports, December 2017 - March 2018 CSR articles and reports, September - November 2017 CSR Articles and Reports, July-September 2017 “Keeping track of working conditions and workers’ rights in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, June 20, 2017 “Resources and references for standards and code related to child and forced labor in global supply chains,” July 2017 June 2017 – Internet resources and articles (PDF) May 2017 – Internet resources (PDF)  February 2017 – Internet resources (PDF) Selected reports on how corporate business practices create sweatshops in global supply chains “39 percent of RMG exporters supply at a loss, study finds,” The Daily Star (Dhaka), November 8, 2019 “New reports shine spotlight on underlying causes of terrible working conditions in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, September 4, 2019 “Better Buying Index Report 2019 reveals suppliers in the lowest cost locations are being pressured for even lower prices,” Better Buying, September 2019 “The price you pay: How purchasing practices harm Turkey’s garment workers,” Business & Human Rights Resource Center, July 2019 “Predatory purchasing practices in global apparel supply chains and the employment relations squeeze in the Indian garment export industry,” Mark Anner, International Labour Review, Vol 158, No 4, August 2019 “Squeezing workers’ rights in global supply chains: Purchasing practices in the Bangladesh garment export sector in comparative perspective,” Mark Anner, Review of International Political Economy, June 2019 “Paying for a bus ticket and expecting to fly; How apparel brand purchasing practices drive labor abuses,” Human Rights Watch, April 2019 “Workers get $0.54 of an $18.25 polo shirt,” The Daily Star, April 12, 2019 “Can cheap fashion ever be ethical?,” Marc Bain, Quartz, April 27, 2019 “Business models and labour standards: Making the connection,” Juliane Reinecke, et al., Ethical Trading Initiative, March 2019 “Made in poverty; The true price of fashion,” Oxfam Australia, February 2019 “CSR Participation Committees, wildcat strikes and the sourcing squeeze in global supply chains,” Mark Anner, British Journal of Industrial Relations, Vol. 56, No. 1, March 2018 “Binding Power: The sourcing squeeze, workers’ rights, and building safety in Bangladesh since Rana Plaza,” Mark Anner, Penn State University, March 2018 “Confronting root causes: Forced labour in global supply chains,” Genevieve LeBaron, et al., University of Sheffield, January 2018 “Purchasing practices and working conditions in global supply chains: Global survey results,” International Labor Organization, INWORK Issue Brief No. 10, June 2017 Selected reports on how CSR auditing has failed to protect workers in global supply chains “Oversight and accountability in the social auditing industry – The role of social compliance initiatives,” Carolijn Terwindt and Amy Armstrong, International Labour Review, June 2019 “Fig leaf for fashion; How social auditing protects brands and fails workers,” Clean Clothes Campaign, September 2019 “Future of fashion; Worker-led strategies for corporate accountability in the global apparel industry,” International Labor Rights Forum, February 2019 “Social audits in the textile industry: How to control the controllers?,” Carolijn Terwindt and Giesla Burckhardt, February 2019 “Time for a reboot: Monitoring in China’s electronics industry,” ILRF and BHRE, September 2018 “The false promise of certification,” Changing Markets Foundation, May 2018 “Hansae Vietnam garment factory: Latest example of how corporate social responsibility has failed to protect workers,” Garrett Brown, Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, August 2017 “Liability of Social Auditors in the textile industry,” Carolijn Terwindt and Miriam Saage-Maass, European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, December 2016 “Responsibility Outsourced: Social audits, workplace certification, and 20 years of failure to protect worker rights,” AFL-CIO, August 2014 “Deadly secrets; What companies know about dangerous workplaces,” ILRF, December 2012 Key Articles from the Network “New reports shine spotlight on underlying causes of terrible working conditions in global supply chains,” The Pump Handle, September 4, 2019 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains, July 2019 edition,” The Pump Handle, August 3, 2019 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains – March 2019 edition,” The Pump Handle, March 12, 2019 “Global capitalism undermine progress in workplace safety in Bangladesh’s garment industry,” The Daily Star (Dhaka, Bangladesh), June 22, 2018 “Global capitalism undermines progress in workplace safety in Bangladesh’s garment industry,” The Pump Handle, November 2, 2017 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains – March 2018 edition,” The Pump Handle, March 13, 2018 “Latest data on working conditions in global supply chains, September 2017 edition,” The Pump Handle, September 21, 2017 “Hansae Vietnam garment factory: Latest example of how corporate social responsibility has failed to protect workers,” Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, August 2017 “The corporate social responsibility mirage,” Industrial Safety & Hygiene News, May 2017 “Worker Revolt in Myanmar Smashes garment factory and apparel brands’ false promises,” The Pump Handle, April 10, 2017 “Hansae Vietnam: Case study of hazardous working conditions and the failure of corporate social responsibility audits to fix the hazards,’ The Pump Handle, December 13, 2016” More Articles and Reports from the Network “Global supply chains still full of sweatshops,” The Pump Handle, September 21, 2016 "Factory certification schemes pose danger to safety & health profession," Industrial Safety and Hygiene News, May 2013 (PDF – 1.4MB) "Fatal Flaws of Foreign Factory Audits: 'A spectacular failure' to improve conditions" Industrial Safety and Hygiene News, February 2013 (PDF) "MHSSN Statement on CSR Monitoring of Global Supply Chain Factories" January 2013 “Corporate Social Responsibility: The moment of truth arrives,” article by Garrett Brown in the May 2009 Industrial Safety and Hygiene News (also available as a PDF) “Genuine Worker Participation – An Indispensable Key to Effective Global OHS"  a presentation by Garrett Brown, Professional Conference in Industrial Hygiene, AIHA Academy of Industrial Hygiene, November 10, 2008 (PDF) “Perils of a schizoid business model "  article by Garrett Brown, in Industrial Safety & Hygiene News, September 2, 2008 “Corporate Social Responsibility Brings Limited Progress on Workplace Safety in Global Supply Chains" (by Garrett Brown, Occupational Hazards, August 1, 2007) “Why sweatshops won’t go away,” by Garrett Brown, Industrial Safety & Hygiene News, June 1, 2006 “ISO's Social Responsibility guidelines: A small step forward — maybe" (column by Garrett Brown, Industrial Safety and Hygiene News, September 2005) More Articles and Reports on CSR “Fashion’s next trend: Accelerating supply chain transparency in the apparel and footwear industry,” Clean Clothes Campaign and other NGOs, December 2019. “Corporate Human Rights benchmark, 2019 key findings,” Corporate Human Rights Benchmarks, November 2019. “Will US corporations really serve all stakeholders?,” Michael Collins, IndustryWeek, October 22, 2019 “Pakistan’s garment workers need a safety accord,” Clean Clothes Campaign and other NGOs, September 2019. “New safety initiative launched in India today ignores vital lessons from the past,” Christie Miedema, Clean Clothes Campaign, August 22, 2019 “Landmark agreement to combat gender-based violence and harassment in Lesotho’s garment industry,” Worker Rights Consortium, August 19, 2019 “What supply chain transparency really means,” Alexis Bateman and Leonardo Bonanni, Harvard Business Review, August 20, 2019 “Garment supply chains since Rana Plaza: Governance and worker outcomes,” London School of Economics and others, August 2019. “The Global Samsung Unsustainability Report,” Hankyoreh, June 2019 “2019 ITUC Global Rights Index; the world’s worst countries for workers,” International Trade Union Confederation, June 2019. “Tailored wages; The state of pay in the global garment industry,” Clean Clothes Campaign, June 2019 “The state of remedy under the OECD Guidelines,” OECD Watch, June 2019. “What are the legal tools for holding corporations to account globally?” Maria Khan, Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, May 27, 2019: “Profile: Organizing in the garment and textile industry in Ethiopia,” Industriall union, May 2019 “Labour standards in the global supply chain: Workers’ agency and reciprocal exchange perspective,” Dong Hoang, Societies, Vol. 9. No. 38, May 2019. “Open Apparel registry is a powerful new tool shining a light on the garment industry,” Phil Bloomer, Business and Human Rights Resource Center, May 10, 2019 “Corporate commitments to living wages in the garment industry,” Remi Edwards, Tom Hunt and Genevieve LeBaron, University of Sheffield, May 2019. “Made in Ethiopia: Challenges in the garment industry’s new frontier,” Paul Barrett and Dorothee Baumann-Pauley, NYU Stern Center – May 2019. “Revealed: women making clothes for west face sexual abuse,” Kate Hodal, The Guardian (London), April 7, 2019 “Three sectors, three years later: Progress and gaps in the fight against forced labor,” Know the Chain, April 2019. “The benefits of transparency: A business case for the apparel and footwear supply chain transparency pledge,” International Corporate Accountability Roundtable, May 2019. “New buzzword, same problem: how ‘worker voice’ initiatives are perpetuating the shortcomings of traditional social auditing,” Penelope Kyritsis, et al., March 12, 2019 “Comparison of critical elements of WSR vs. CSR and MSIs,” WSR Network, March 2019. “Full Disclosure: Towards better modern slavery reporting,” International Corporate Accountability Roundtable and Focus on Labour Exploitation, March 2019. “White Paper: Realizing the benefits of worker reporting digital tools,” West Principles, March 2019. “Combatting sexual harassment in the garment industry,” Human Rights Watch, February 2019. “Businesses ‘reinventing’ servitude; Understanding the status of female migrant labour from Odisha in the Tamil Nadu garment industry” Partners in Change/READ, February 2019 “No room to bargain’; Unfair and abusive labor practices in Pakistan” Human Rights Watch, January 2019. “‘Work for a brighter future,” ILO – Global Commission on the future of work, January 2019. “‘Ethiopia is a North Star’; Grim conditions and miserable wages guide the apparel brands in their race to the bottom,” Worker Rights Consortium, December 2018. “Future of Fashion; Worker-led Strategies for corporate accountability in the global apparel industry,” International Labor Rights Fund, February 2019 “Combatting sexual harassment in the garment industry,” Human Rights Watch, February 2019 “Work for a brighter future,” International Labor Organization, January 2019 More articles and reports from 2018 More articles and reports from 2017 List of Selected Labor Rights Organizations Asia Monitor Resource Center (Hong Kong) Asian Network for the Rights of Occupational and Environmental Victims (ANROEV) Baptist World Aid, Behind the Barcode (Australia) China Labor Watch (USA) China Labour Bulletin (Hong Kong) Clean Clothes Campaign (Amsterdam) European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (Berlin) European Coalition for Corporate Justice (UK) Fashion Revolution (UK) Good Electronics (Amsterdam) Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights (USA) International Labor Rights Forum (USA) Maquila Solidarity Network (Canada) Worker-Driven Social Responsibility (USA) Maquiladora Health & Safety Support Network (USA) Solidarity Center (USA) Worker Rights Consortium (USA) List of Selected CSR Organizations Association of Professional Social Compliance Auditors (USA) Better Work (ILO and IFC) Business for Social Responsibility (USA) CSR Asia (Hong Kong) Ethical Corporation (UK) Ethical Trading Initiative (UK) Fair Labor Association (USA) Innovation Forum (UK) Verite (USA)   (back to top) BANGLADESH OHS PROJECTS “What does that $14 shirt really cost?” From the archives: "Bangladesh disaster raises tough questions about cheap clothes," Rosemary Westwood, Maclean’s, May 1, 2013 (PDF) List of key media articles and reports on OHS issues in Bangladesh, May 2014 to June 2018 Major articles and reports “Accord to finally pack bags in May; Inspection agency to leave after a seven-year stay,” Refayet Ullah Mirdha, The Daily Star (Dhaka), January 16, 2020 “A year after crackdown in wage protests in Bangladesh, hundreds of workers still face retaliatory charges,” Clean Clothes Campaign, January 14, 2020 “Adopting a gender-sensitive approach to living wages is imperative to women workers’ rights,” Clean Clothes Campaign, January 9, 2020 “Seven years after fatal fire, Bangladesh still provides no financial security for garment workers injured on the job,” Clean Clothes Campaign, November 22, 2019 “Nirapon’s vision for a safer apparel sector in Bangladesh,” Hannah Abdulla, Just-Style website, July 24, 2019 “Six years after the Rana Plaza collapse, are garment workers any safer?,” Michelle Chen, The Nation, July 15, 2019 “The Bangladesh Accord continues to operate but its independence may be at risk,” Clean Clothes Campaign and three other NGOs, June 13, 2019 “How are surviving workers of Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh doing: Quality of life, participation restriction, income and occupation,” Mohammad Morshedul Quadir, et al., Disability and Rehabilitation, June 2019 “Overworked & Exposed: Short term contracts and gender issues in the Myanmar and Cambodian garment industries,” Future in Our Hands and other NGOs, May 2019. “Six years after Bangladesh’s Rana Plaza disaster, garment workers protesting low wages suffer police brutality in return” Chris White, South China Morning Post, May 7, 2019 “Health related quality of life among the Rana Plaza tragedy survivors in the community,” Md. Sahnawaz Sajib, et al., International Journal of Advanced Research, Vol. 7, No. 4, pages 433-444, April 2019 “Forgotten Workers; Improving OHS for workers in small-scale factories in Bangladesh,” Gary Bangs, et al., The Synergist, April 2019 “Calling for Remedy; The Bangladesh complaint mechanism has saved lives,” International Labor Rights Forum, April 2019 “Bangladesh government’s safety agencies not ready to take over Accord’s work,” Clean Clothes Campaign and three other NGOs, April 2019 “Banning hope; Bangladesh garment workers seek a dollar an hour face mass firings, violence and false arrests,” Worker Rights Consortium, April 2019 “Six years after Rana Plaza collapse, an Accord to improve Bangladesh’s worker safety is in jeopardy,” Michelle Chen, In These Times, March 2019 “Beyond factory safety: Labor unions, militant protest, and the accelerated ambitions of the Bangladesh’s export garment industry,” Hasan Ashraf and Rebecca Prentice, Dialectical Anthropology, January 2019 Selected list of 2018 articles and reports Selected list of 2017 articles and reports Selected list of 2016 articles and reports Selected list of 2015 articles and reports Selected list of articles and reports before 2015 News from the OHS Initiative for Workers and Community (Dhaka) OHS Initiative Update, current issue: June 2019 Previous issues “Train the Trainer on enhanced training quality and facilitation skills,” course on September 12-15, 2017 “Train the Trainer on basic occupational safety and health, focus on the readymade garment industries,” course on September 16, 2017 News from the ILO Dhaka Office “Better Work newsletter,” January 2020 “ILO Bangladesh News,” January 21, 2020 “ILO Bangladesh News” July 2, 2019 “The Sustainability Compact for the Bangladesh Ready-Made Garment sector,” European Union and International Labor Organization, January 2019 “Improving working conditions in the Bangladesh Ready-Made Garment sector programme, Phase 2,” International Labor Organization, November 2018 Previous news and newsletters Newsletters of the OSHE Foundation in Dhaka, Bangladesh Current issue: October-December 2018 (PDF) Previous issues Newsletters of the Strategic Sector Cooperation Denmark-Bangladesh Current issue: 4th Quarter 2019 newsletter Previous issues (back to top) ALTA GRACIA PROJECT — "No Sweat" factory in the DR Alta Gracia factory follow-up report, MHSSN health and safety inspection. February 2011 (PDF) “No sweat”: In the Dominican Republic article by Garrett Brown in Industrial Safety and Hyg October 1, 2010 “No-Sweat” Factory in Dominican Republic Focuses on Worker Safety article in the newsletter "Bridges" from COEH (Center for Occupational & Environmental Health), UC Berkeley, Summer 2010 (back to top) GLOBAL ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS Good Electronics  — website and publications “Exploitation by deception in the electronics industry,” Good Electronics, November 2018 “Report of the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes,” United Nations Human Rights Council, August 2018 “The Blind; An untold story behind Samsung and LG cell phones,” Korean non-governmental organizations, May 2017 Global Electronics Factories in Spotlight  article by Garrett Brown in the Occupational Health & Safety Magazine, August 4, 2010 Worker Suicides At Foxconn plant in Shenzhen, China — Supplier for Apple, Dell and Hewlett-Packard June 2010 Dozens of Cancer Deaths At Samsung Electronics Plants in Korea — Young Workers Die In “Cancer Factories” June 2010 Electronics: Poster Child of the 21st Century Sweatshops and Despoiler of the Environment? article by Garrett Brown in EHS Today, September 2009 (PDF) Selected List of Reports on Working Conditions in the Global Electronics Industry (July 2009) Selected List of Organizations and Current Campaign in the Global Electronics Industry (July 2009) (back to top) MEXICO HEALTH & SAFETY PROJECTS MEXICO-RELATED LAW AND GOVERNMENT RESOURCES Mexican Law (ForInt-Law - Mexico, an excellent resource to the Mexican Constitution, and government and laws of Mexico; from Washburn University School of Law Library) National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade (a business-oriented free trade support research center which has useful info) Guide to Mexican Environmental Law "MexRegs" (commercial newsletter and database) "Speak Out: Portrait of a Failure, NAFTA and Workplace Health and Safety" (by Garrett Brown, The Synergist, August 2004) Key NAFTA 10th Anniversary Reports NAFTA’s 10 Year Failure to Protect Mexican Workers’ Health and Safety (by Garrett Brown, December 2004) (PDF) CANANEA COPPER MINE PROJECT Presentation of Ingrid Zubieta of UCLA LOSH on the Cananea mine project at the national meeting of National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) in October 2009 (PDF) Cananea Copper Mine: An International OHS Project  (PDF) article in the January 2009 issue of the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health (IJOEH) “International OHS Through the Looking Glass of the Global Economy" article by Garrett Brown, in Occupational Hazards, January 1, 2008 “Health and Safety Report from Cananea, Mexico, Copper Mine" Final Report (PDF) Versión en Español (PDF) Photographs of workplace health and safety hazards at Grupo Mexico's Cananea copper mine, October 7, 2007. MHSSN response to GM-STPS MHSSN statement on the release of the Final Report HEALTH & SAFETY COMPLAINTS FILED UNDER NAFTA Analysis of the complaint process by Human Rights Watch: 'Trading Away Rights: The Unfilled Promises of the NAFTA Labor Side Agreement (April 2001) www.hrw.org/reports/2001/nafta Complaint by workers at the Autotrim plant in Matamoros and Customtrim/Breed Mexicana plant in Valle Hermoso (June 2000) Text of Network testimony at the U.S. NAO hearing in San Antonio, TX, (December 12, 2000) NIOSH Report on visits to Autotrim and Customtrim plants (March 7, 2001) (PDF) July 6, 2001 letter to the U.S. NAO with proposed remedies November 20, 2001 letter to the U.S. NAO protesting lack of action December 12, 2001 letter to U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao proposing the creation of an "Evaluation Committee of Experts" March 20, 2002 letter to U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao protesting her refusal to convoke an "Evaluation Committee of Experts" CJM Fact Sheet on Customtrim/Autotrim Complaint 35 Members of Congress Write Labor Secretary Chao Demanding Action on Autotrim/Customtrim (May 7, 2002) US-Mexico "Joint Declaration" to close the Autotrim/Customtrim case (June 11, 2002) CJM Statement on the June 11th US-Mexico Joint Declaration (June 19, 2002) UE President Hovis letter to Secretary Chao (July 24, 2002) Senators Kennedy and Wellstone letter to Secretary Chao (August 23, 2002) CJM Letter to Labor Secretaries Chao and Abascal (September 6, 2002) AT/CT Submitters Letter to the 3 NAFTA Labor Secretaries (October 7, 2003) US Department of Labor response to October 2003 letter (December 15, 2003) (PDF) Canada's Labour Ministry response to October 2003 letter (December 18, 2003) (PDF) March 15, 2004 letter to Canada's Labour Minister and US Labor Department Complaint by workers at the Han Young plant in Tijuana (February 1998) Text of Network testimony at the U.S. NAO hearing in San Diego, CA, on February 18, 1998 (back to top) ACTIVITIES IN CENTRAL AMERICA Report on Guatemala Training (December 2004) CAFTA Reports Final Report of Central America Health and Safety Training, September 2003 (back to top) ASIA HEALTH & SAFETY PROJECTS Newsletter of the Asian Network for the Rights of Occupational and Environmental Health Victims (ANROEV) Current issue: OHS Rights newsletter, Asian Network for the Rights of Occupational and Environmental Victims (ANROEV), No. 45, July-December 2019 Previous issues VIETNAM In October 2016, Network Coordinator Garrett Brown and industrial hygienist Enrique Medina were asked by the Workers Rights Consortium in Washington, DC to conduct a site inspection of a Korean-operated garment factory in Vietnam which produces for major international apparel corporations, including Nike. Materials related to the factory audit include the following: “Hansae Vietnam garment factory: Latest example of how corporate social responsibility has failed to protect workers,” Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, August 2017 “Hansae Vietnam: Case study of hazardous working conditions and the failure of corporate social responsibility audits to fix the hazards,’ The Pump Handle, December 13, 2016” “Workers Rights Consortium Factory Assessment, Hansae Vietnam Co., Ltd. (Vietnam); Findings, Recommendation, Status Update,” - Workers Rights Consortium, December 6, 2016 “Report of Occupational Health and Safety Audit at Hansae Vietnam Company Limited,” Maquiladora Health & Safety Support Network and Alliance Consulting International,” October 21, 2016 (PDF) “Working life in the latest corporate supply chain ‘Promised Land’ – Vietnam,” The Pump Handle, October 28, 201 6 (PDF) MYANMAR “Worker Revolt in Myanmar Smashes garment factory and apparel brands’ false promises,” The Pump Handle, April 10, 2017 “The Myanmar Dilemma; Can the garment industry deliver decent jobs for workers in Myanmar?” SOMO, et. al., February 2017     In January 2000, Network Coordinator Garrett Brown and Professor Dara O'Rourke of MIT received a two-year grant from the MacArthur Foundation to conduct capacity-building trainings on occupational safety and health topics with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Asia. The first training occurred in Jakarta, Indonesia, in June 2000 with 32 representatives of 12 NGOs and six trade unions. A follow-up training with these participants and others occurred in February 2002. The second training occured in August 2001 in Dongguan City, China, at a 30,000-worker sports shoe factory. The training involved participants from NGOs in Hong Kong and China, Hong Kong trade unions, labor practices staff of adidas, Reebok and Nike, and production workers and supervisors/managers of three plants in Guangdong Province. INDONESIA Report from LION in Indonesia on MHSSN-funded training in Tangerang in July 2011 (PDF — 7MB) The Asia Health and Safety Training Project—Training Activists in Indonesia June and February 2002: FINAL REPORT (March 19, 2003) Main Report (PDF) Appendix 1: agenda (PDF) Appendix 2: prepost evaluation worksheet (PDF) Appendix 3: follow-up survey (PDF) Appendix 4: teaching agenda (PDF) June 2000 training of NGOs and Union staff and activists in Jakarta, Indonesia Indonesia: Follow-up Training Held in February 2002 CHINA Made in China journal Current issue: "Made in China” journal – Vol. 4, No. 3, July-September 2019 Previous issues “Lean Manufacturing Comes to China" (PDF) article in the July-September 2007 issue of the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health “ISHN Global Watch: China proposes worker protection law” (by Garrett Brown, Industrial Safety & Hygiene News, May 24, 2007) Memorandum of Understanding for July 2001 training of NGO staff, Hong Kong union staff, international brand staff, plant supervisors and workers in Dongguan City, China China: March 2002 Evaluation Visits to Three Giant Footwear Plants Final Report of the Coordinating Committee of the "China Capacity Building Project—Occupational Health and Safety" May 29, 2002 International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, Volume 9, Number 4, October/December 2003 (Special Issue: Occupational Health and Safety in China) (back to top) GLOBALIZATION ISSUES The growth of the maquiladora plants on the U.S.-Mexico border, and increasingly throughout Mexico, is part of the economic "globalization" process which has affected all corners of the world. The issues of workplace and safety in the maquilas is closely linked to the issues of labor practices in the "export processing zones" and "sweatshops" in both developing and developed economies. The following information is offered to help understand the context and challenges facing occupational health professionals in the Mexican maquilas and similar facilities throughout the world. The following references are only a small portion of the websites, organizations and publications that exist on this issue. Codes of Conduct and Monitoring Systems Fair Labor Association (US) Workers Rights Consortium (US) Social Accounting International (US) Clean Clothes Campaign (Holland) Ethical Trading Initiative (UK) International Organization Codes of Conduct “Resources and references for standards and code related to child and forced labor in global supply chains,” July 2017 “OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector,” Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, February 2017 International Labor Organization (ILO): ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998) Organization for Cooperation and Economic Development (OCED): OCED Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (2000) United Nations (UN): The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women Selected Articles and Reports “Free on-line course on ‘decent work in global supply chains’ offered by the Global Labour University,” The Pump Handle, November 29, 2016 PCIH 2008 Resource Flyer  (Genuine Worker Participation in Plant OHS Programs — Selected Resources) “Genuine Worker Participation – An Indispensable Key to Effective Global OHS"  a presentation by Garrett Brown, Professional Conference in Industrial Hygiene, AIHA Academy of Industrial Hygiene, November 10, 2008 (PDF) "The Global Threats to Workers' Health and Safety on the Job" by Garrett Brown, Social Justice, Vol. 29, No.3 Ethical Performance (British newsletter on corporate responsibility worldwide) (back to top) [END OF HOMEPAGE]  This site was last revised January 2020 Please send comments to: Garrett Brown, the Network coordinator, at "garrettdbrown@comcast.net" Heather Block, the webmaster, at "hblockdesign@gmail.com"