The
Sweatshop Project
As a result of CIR's groundbreaking sweatshop report
issued in November 1999, documenting the high prevalence
of sweatshop conditions in the Chicago metropolitan
area, the U.S. Department of Labor created the Chicago
Area Workers' Rights Initiative Task Force. The
Task Force is the first integrated effort by the
U.S. and Illinois government agencies working collaboratively
with community-based organizations to identify and
eliminate sweatshop worksites. The project includes
policy research assessing the effectiveness of the
community interventions to educate workers and employers
about workplace laws, regulations and rights, as
well as a newly developed "worker-friendly"
enforcement process for responding to employers
who will not comply with the law. Based on the large
number of complaints received from food industry
workers, the Task Force is undertaking an initiative
targeting this industry (food production, packing,
and retail sales) in Cook County. This initiative
encompasses a range of activities, including community
organizing, education, outreach, and enforcement.
For further information, contact Rebekah Levin
at rlevin@impactresearch.org.
Project
Publications
Sweatshops
in Chicago: A Survey of Working Conditions in
Low-income and Immigrant Communities
2/00
A survey of the prevalence of sweatshop conditions
in the Chicago Metropolitan area.
Executive
Summary
Full
Report
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