In this alert:
1. Nike Workers in Mexico Fighting Against Sweatshop Conditions and for an Independent Union
2. Letter From a Kuk Dong Worker

{This alert was prepared by the US/LEAP based upon sources from Mexico. See for updates. January 12th, 2001}

Nike Workers in Mexico Fighting Against Sweatshop Conditions and for an Independent Union - Immediate Action Needed!--Tell Nike to be sure their Compliance Officer in the factory talks to the protesting workers!

All 800 workers at the Kuk Dong factory, which produces for Nike and many U.S. universities, have been staging a work stoppage to protest labor abuses since 8:00 am, Tuesday the 9th.

A Nike code of conduct compliance officer is currently on the factory premises. The union deserves to meet with the Nike compliance officer to let their voices be heard. Nike needs to know that workers say Nike's code of conduct is being violated!

Reportedly, the immediate cause of the strike was the firing of 20 workers who had complained about rotten food in the cafeteria and low wages ($30 for a 45-hour week). The workers also complain of forced overtime (including 14 to 16 year old workers who are legally required to work no more than 6 hours a day and are instead working 10), verbal abuse, and failure to give legally mandated benefits like maternity leave. Finally, workers say the factory has a union which is said to be in bed with the company. The workers want to exercise their right to freedom of association and create a new independent union in its place. Negotiations were set for Thursday the 11th, but were canceled at the last minute.

The workers demand that:

1) All workers return to work, including the fired workers.

2) The company agrees not to fire or take reprisals against anyone for having participated in the stoppage or other protests

3) The company recognizes the Kuk Dong Workers' Coalition as the legitimate representative of the workers and agrees to deal with them as such, pending a legal process that will take some time to conclude.

Workers plan to continue the stoppage until the company meets the demands. Already they have been harassed with anonymous threatening notes and there is some fear that the police or union thugs might attack them. The workers are supported by their parents (most of the workers are young women from rural villages surrounding Atlixco) and the UNT (National Workers Union), an independent and democratic union federation. Many workers are single parents and are the sole wage earners for their families, which makes the wage issues especially pertinent.

Kuk Dong International is a Korean-based Nike producer with large factories in Indonesia, Brazil and Mexico. Reports indicate that there have been repeated labor disputes at Kuk Dong's Indonesian factory, most recently over the failure to pay a minimum wage.

Suggested Actions:

1) Contact Nike ASAP! Let the company know that you are aware of the events at the Kuk Dong factory in Mexico and that the company has a code of conduct compliance officer on the premises. Request that this officer meet with the Kuk Dong workers, document their complaints, and that the company support the workers' demands to rehire the fired workers, not take any action or reprisals against workers who have participated in the protests, and recognize the Kuk Dong Workers' Coalition as the legitimate representative of the workers. Be sure to tell Nike not to "cut and run" from this labor dispute and warn them that to do so would tarnish their reputation.

Contact: Philip H. Knight, Chairman and CEO NIKE, Inc. One Bowerman Drive, Beaverton, OR 97003-6433 Fax: (503) 671-6300

2) Send letters of solidarity (preferably in Spanish) to the workers at the following e-mail address: librado@gofairtrade.net

LETTER FROM A KUK DONG WORKER

Brothers and Sisters:

We are workers at the Kuk Dong Internacional SA de CV factory. We make sweatshirts for Nike, some with university logos.

We have been working for a year and month, during which we have suffered mistreatment from the Korean supervisors. Some talk to us in their language, and though we do not understand them at the moment, after researching the words, we know that what they call us the most means "trash".

We write you to ask for your support and solidarity with the work stoppage we have begun. We don't want to hurt the company, we just want to remove the union, since we were forced to join it and threatened with being fired if we did not. People who started work in the factory were made to sign their affiliation without knowing what they were signing. The union gained power, but this power was not to help the workers, but to serve the union's and the company's interests. Therefore we were forced to stop work to show our disagreement, and to be heard.

We thank you for your attention,

Sincerely,

Josefina Hernandez Ponce