From:?Mike Rhodes
[SMTP:[email protected]]Sent:?Sunday, August 03, 1997 9:16 PM
To:?CLR e-mail alert list
Subject:?Nike/Vietnam: phony pay raise
Labor Alerts/Labor News
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[The following alert, slightly edited by Campaign for Labor Rights, was provided by Thuyen Nguyen of the Vietnam Labor Watch, [email protected]. On October 18, there will be an international mobilization in support of the rights of Nike production workers. So far, activists in the following countries have announced plans to participate: Canada, the United States, Australia, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and England. To receive a Nike action packet, contact Campaign for Labor Rights at [email protected] or (541) 344-5410. The packet is free via email and $5 in hard copy. Also, please note an important new resource: "Behind the Swoosh: The Struggle of Indonesians Making Nike Shoes," a 224-page book written by Jeff Ballinger and Claes Olsson. Send $12.50 (includes shipping costs) to Press for Change, P.O. Box 161, Alpine, NJ 07620. Not for casual readers, this book is a must for anyone who seeks in-depth understanding of the labor issues surrounding Nike production in Indonesia. "Behind the Swoosh" adds greatly to the credibility of the Nike campaign. The careful research represented here is a strong rebuttal the glib public relations manouvers of Nike spokespeople.]
Nike/Vietnam "pay raise": more smoke and mirrors
Vietnam Labor Watch received a new stack of paystubs today from Vietnam. Nike workers there did get a 5% wage increase. They are now getting $47 per month, an increase of $2. Not all is good news, however.
1.?Deductions were found on many paystubs 15,000 VND - 20,0000 ($1.4 - $1.8). Supposedly, salaries are deducted for mistakes made by workers. "Mistakes" however are defined by the companies i.e. "breaking needle," talking to other workers, leaving factory grounds for lunch. We received several hundred paystubs in 1996 and only a few of them include deductions. Now we have received 15 new paystubs and 7 of them had deductions. It is obvious that the Nike contractors are taking with one hand what they give with the other.
2.?Paystubs no longer include the number of hours or days worked by a worker. Vietnam Labor Watch believes that this change is a direct response to the pressure from the US. Before, it was easy for us to add up the number of days and overtime hours and we could see whether a workers were being paid correctly, whether there were violations of Vietnamese overtime law, etc. Now, the paystubs include only the amount paid to the workers. It is going to be hard to figure out whether a worker has worked a lot of overtime hours.
Obviously, Nike contractors are adjusting to make it more difficult for us to get accurate information from Vietnam. Vietnam Labor Watch will try to confirm whether Nike knows about this new change in paystubs. If they knew about this, then the whole thing about making changes to help the workers is obvioulsy just PR.
3.?Nike factory management did apologize to workers for violating Vietnamese laws. The VNGCL (labor union) has definitely forced the companies to make changes. There are going to be full time doctors at the plant. The companies are paying a fine for violating labor laws in 1997 (not 1996).
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