[CTC] Please Sign this Open Letter to Ivanka Trump on Labor Rights Violations and Her Brand

[Arthur Stamoulis]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Melinda St. Louis" <mstlouis at citizen.org>
Subject: Please Sign this Open Letter to Ivanka Trump on Labor Rights Violations and Her Brand
Date: September 15, 2017 at 12:39:11 PM EDT
To: "arthur at citizenstrade.org" <arthur at citizenstrade.org>

Arthur – can you please circulate this to CTC list?
 
*apologies for cross-postings*
Dear colleague:
As you may have seen, Ivanka’s Trump’s brand has been associated with multiple allegations of abusive treatment <https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/politics/ivanka-trump-overseas/?tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.09018aad92fe> of workers at footwear and garment factories in China and Indonesia where workers make Trump-branded apparel and shoes. 
Investigators from China Labor Watch found grave abuses <http://www.chinalaborwatch.org/newscast/625> this spring at two factories that made Ivanka Trump-branded shoes in China. The investigators were then detained on criminal charges for a month before being released on bail pending trial <http://www.chinalaborwatch.org/newscast/626>.  At the same time, similar abuses appear to be prevalent at an Indonesian factory <https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jun/13/revealed-reality-of-a-life-working-in-an-ivanka-trump-clothing-factory> making clothes for the Ivanka Trump label.

Ivanka Trump holds a powerful position in the White House, while also profiting from her clothing lines and the increased prominence of your personal brand, and therefore has a responsibility to use her position to raise standards for workers who toil in factories producing that brand.
China Labor Watch, International Labor Rights Fund, and Public Citizen urge your organization to sign on to an open letter to Ms. Trump <http://bit.ly/IvankaLetter>, calling on her to do the following:
·         Publicly demand that the Chinese government not pursue criminal prosecution of the three China Labor Watch investigators. 
·         Work to ensure labor rights and fair treatment of the workers who make Ivanka Trump-branded products, irrespective of whether they are direct employees or employed by suppliers.
·         Conduct an audit of factory conditions in all factories making Ivanka Trump-branded products and share the results publicly.
·         Allow independent workers’ rights organizations to monitor working conditions and talk to workers about their labor rights.
·         Publicly disclose the names and addresses of factories making Ivanka Trump-branded products. 
·         Sign the 2018-2021 Bangladesh Accord on Building and Fire Safety, to ensure that workers producing Ivanka Trump-branded apparel in Bangladesh can be sure the factories where they work are not deathtraps.

With workers’ and labor rights advocates’ safety hanging in the balance, please join us in sending a strong message to Ivanka Trump that she cannot dodge her responsibility.

Please read the full letter and sign on your organization at: bit.ly/IvankaLetter <http://bit.ly/IvankaLetter>.

If you have any questions about the letter, please contact Sarah Newell at sarah at ilrf.org <mailto:sarah at ilrf.org> or Melinda St. Louis at mstlouis at citizen.org <mailto:mstlouis at citizen.org>.

 
______________________________________________
Melinda St. Louis | International Campaigns Director
Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch
215 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003
TEL: (202) 454-5192, EMAIL: mstlouis at citizen.org <mailto:mstlouis at citizen.org>
 
Check out our website: www.tradewatch.org <http://www.tradewatch.org/> 
Visit our blog: www.EyesOnTrade.org <http://www.eyesontrade.org/>
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Twitter: @PCGTW
 
 
 

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