Madison, WI Anti-Sweatshop Apparel Procurement Policy

Type: Ordinance

Status: Adopted on 10/27/05

Source File: http://www.municode.com/resources/gateway.asp?pid=50000&sid=49 (Select "Chapter 4 Finance" and then "4.25 Procurement of Items of Apparel")

Intro Text:

4.25 PROCUREMENT OF ITEMS OF APPAREL.

(1) Purpose. The City of Madison recognizes a public interest in avoiding purchasing from vendors and contractors who obtain goods that originate in sweatshops – places of work where the labor practices are inconsistent with international standards of human rights – and declares the City’s intent to avoid such purchases and allocate its funds in a manner that enhances the rights and well-being of workers world-wide, while acquiring the best quality goods at reasonable cost.

The Common Council finds that contractors can have influence throughout their entire supply chain, and therefore have an obligation to workers in subcontractor and subsidiary factories in addition to their direct obligations to their own employees. The Common Council further finds that the apparel industry is one area where the City can have an impact on the rights and well-being of workers world-wide.

The purpose of this ordinance is to ensure that City procurement of apparel is made from responsible contractors and vendors who agree to adhere to the minimum employment standards required herein and to require their subcontractors and third-party suppliers to do the same, so that all employees involved in the City’s procurement may be afforded the opportunity to a fair, humane work environment as described herein.

The Common Council finds the following labor practices inconsistent with international standards of human rights:

a. below-subsistence wages;

b. excessively long working hours;

c. unhealthy and unsafe working environments;

d. child, indentured, and forced labor;

e. disregard for local and international labor laws and workplace regulations;

f. disregard for fundamental women’s rights;

g. repression of workers’ rights to assemble and bargain collectively.

(2) Applicability –Apparel. This ordinance shall apply to all City procurement of apparel totaling $5,000 or more. For purposes of this ordinance, “procurement” shall include the purchase, rental, lease, laundering or dry cleaning of apparel, whether by contract, purchase order, or other means; and allowance and voucher programs for city employees to make their own purchases, except where a city collective bargaining agreement establishes a clothing allowance or voucher program, in which case the terms of the collective bargainingagreement shall control. This ordinance shall also apply to contracts for the provision of City financial assistance, if $5,000 or more of will be used for procurement of apparel.

(3) Definitions

a) “Apparel” means all garments or items of clothing any part of which is a textile produced by weaving, knitting or felting; and all shoes and other footwear.

(b) “Contractor” or “vendor” means a person or entity from whom the City has a current procurement relationship as that term is used in sub (2) above, or who is bidding or proposing to provide apparel to the City under a procurement arrangement.

(c) “Employee” means any individual who may be required or directed by any employer, in consideration of direct or indirect gain or profit, to engage in any employment, or to go to or work or be at any time in any place of employment. “Employee” includes individuals whose work is permanent or temporary, or on a full-time or part-time basis.

(d) A “fair wage” is the total ‘take home’ or ‘net’ wage, earned during a country’s legal maximum work week, but not more than 48 hours. A fair wage provides for the basic needs (housing, energy, nutrition, clothing, health care, education, potable water, childcare, transportation and savings) of an average family unit of employees in the manufacturing employment sector of the country divided by the average number of adult wage earners in the family unit of employees in the manufacturing employment sector of the country.

(e) “Subcontractor” means a person, partnership, corporation or other entity that enters into a contract with a contractor or vendor for performance of some or all of the City-contracted work. For purposes of this ordinance, “subcontractor” shall include all third-party suppliers or producers from whom the contractor or its contractors obtains or sources goods, parts or supplies for use on the city contract and is intended to include suppliers at all level of the supply chain.

(As this is a long document, refer to source file for remainder of text.)