Take Action! Write Dollar General and KKR About Labor Exploitation

January 14, 2010. CLW reported last month on worker exploitation in factories where Dollar General products are made. DG sells sweatshop goods to cash-strapped American consumers while KKR, the investment firm controlling most of DG's shares, profits off of this exploitation. Write DG and KKR today and tell them to respect human rights!

Take Action! Tell Bureau Veritas that Audit Corruption Must End

January 8, 2010. In December, CLW released a report about corruption in the audit process of Paris-based inspection and certification giant, Bureau Veritas. CLW discovered that BV's anti-corruption work failed systematically during a long-term study of audit corruption covering 80 factories. BV conducts audits for many multinational corporations and this corruption seriously damages worker rights. Tell them it must end now!

Wal-Mart: Standards Fail, Workers Suffer- Report Shows Violations in Five Suppliers

November 25, 2009. A new CLW report outlines Wal-Mart's systemic failure to implement basic labor standards. The report focuses on five Wal-Mart supplier factories producing shoes, Christmas lights, tools, curtains and paper boxes. Violations include excessive overtime, safety issues, discriminatory hiring, and audit falsification.

Take Action! Tell Disney, Mattel and McDonald's to Improve Conditions at Merton

November 17, 2009. Since CLW's first Merton Toy Factory investigation in 1999, conditions have changed, particularly after one worker died in a 2006 strike over poor conditions. Read CLW's latest Merton report, where overtime reaches 120 hours/month and is scheduled to avoid paying full overtime wages, and annual leave is denied. Write Disney, Mattel and McDonald's to tell them more change is needed, now!

Wal-Mart Meeting: Factory Remediation Underway, Systemic Challenges Remain

October 7 , 2009. CLW released a report on two Wal-Mart supplier factories in July. CNBC's recent documentary, The New Age of Walmart highlights the CLW report. On Sept 30, CLW met with Wal-Mart on the condition that all dialogue would be public. Read the meeting summary, which shows progress at the two factories and raises questions about systemic change.

Take Action! Write a letter to Disney demanding immediate change at Yiuwah Factory

September 18 , 2009. Following the accidental death of a child laborer, Liu Pan (pictured left) at Disney's supplier Yiuwah Factory in April, Disney pledged to address labor violations. In September, CLW conducted a followup investigation that revealed limited change at Yiuwah, where overtime wages still fail to meet minimum standards and workers are denied their legal right to purchase social insurance. Write Disney and demand real changes be implemented today!

Newspaper Translation: Deadly Fire Kills Five at Regina Miracle Factory

August 31, 2009. CLW extends sympathy to the families of five workers killed in a deadly fire on August 29 at Regina Miracle Co., a women's undergarment factory in Shenzhen. Read CLW's translation of the Sing Tao Daily article about the tragedy, possibly caused by improper machine operations. CLW investigated Regina Miracle in a 2007 report on four textile sweatshops, focusing on long hours and low wages.

Image: Front gate at Regina Miracle from 2007 report

Foxconn Tragedy Underscores Labor Violations, Lack of Respect

July 23, 2009. The recent death of Foxconn Factory worker Sun Danyong has raised police and media suspicions regarding Sun's loss of a new model of Apple's iPhone and the beating of Sun Danyong by security before his death. China Labor Watch has issued the following press statement to call attention to the ongoing tragedy of worker abuse at Foxconn. Read the statement as well as our 2008 Foxconn investigation.

Labor Violations Exacerbate Ethnic Tensions in South China

July 6, 2009. CLW has issued the following press release about the Early Light International factory in Shaoguan and issues affecting Uyghur migrant workers. This statement explains that serious labor violations have plagued both Uyghur and Han factory workers in some export-oriented factories, and includes a report on violations in a different Early Light International factory in Shenzhen.

Li Qiang: Financial Crisis Creates New Difficulties for Export-Oriented Labor

June 24, 2009. CLW Executive Director Li Qiang presented the following speech, which details the impact of the economic crisis on workers in export-oriented industries, before the Fair Labor Association at the end of June. Based on investigations of 27 factories from February-May 2009, the speech describes deteriorating working conditions, increased intensity, and the effects of factory closures on workers' rights.

Investment that creates workers' misery and poverty; Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR)

November 12th, 2008. Report on six factories in China where thousands of workers toil away in sweatshops making products for companies owned by US private equity giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR).