Take Action Against Sweatshops

Make Your School or Community Sweat-free

Join the growing movement on campuses to end sweatshops. Check out United Students Against Sweatshops. Anti-sweatshop groups are working to persuade local retailers, religious congregations, cities, counties, states and school districts to adopt sweatfree purchasing policies. Learn more from SweatFree Communities.

Support the Unionization of Workers

With union contracts, workers can bargain collectively for a living wage, benefits, better working conditions, and job security. Learn about unionizing campaigns by UNITE HERE.

Support Fair Trade & Protect Worker Rights

Global Exchange's brand-new Action Pack: How to Stop the Central America Free Trade Agreement is now available for download . For the last two years, government negotiators and industry representatives from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, and the United States have been working to create a new “free trade” agreement that would dramatically impact the lives of the citizens of those nations. The U.S.-Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been negotiated behind closed doors— without citizen input but with plenty of influence from corporate interests— as yet another example of the kind of free-market fundamentalism that has created a global race to the bottom that erodes environmental protection, workers’ livelihoods, and human rights.

The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) will bind 34 nations in North, Central, and South America into one free trade agreement. Fashioned after NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), an agreement that has failed to live up to its promises and has had devastating effects in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, the FTAA will likely continue the downward spiral towards the 'race to the bottom'. Workers will be pitted against each other as nations compete with one another to offer the lowest wages and least amount of environmental and labor protections. Protect garment workers, as well as other low-wage workers and union workers alike, by opposing unfair trade policies such as the FTAA. Visit Global Trade Watch for more information.

Other Resources

Order a No Sweatshop Information and Action Kit

Design your own sweatshop fashion show

Responsible Shopper : Find the truth behind the products you buy

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