[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 426 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 426

   Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States should 
support and protect the right of women working in developing countries 
  to safe workplaces, free from gender-based violence, reprisals, and 
                             intimidation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 14, 2016

  Mrs. Murray (for herself, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Markey, and Mr. Brown) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Expressing the sense of the Senate that the United States should 
support and protect the right of women working in developing countries 
  to safe workplaces, free from gender-based violence, reprisals, and 
                             intimidation.

Whereas women in developing countries who join the industrial workforce suffer 
        from, or become increasingly vulnerable to, economic violence, including 
        forced overtime, wage theft, abusive short-term contracts, 
        discrimination, sexual harassment, and violence at work;
Whereas women typically make up the majority of the workforce in industries in 
        which the rights of workers have been restricted, including--

    (1) export manufacturing (including the global apparel industry); and

    (2) other export sectors (including the cut flowers and fresh produce 
industries);

Whereas sexual violence is often used by a male manager as a means of 
        intimidation or punishment when a female worker makes a mistake, fails 
        to meet a production target, asks for leave, or arrives late to work;
Whereas women are particularly vulnerable to violence and intimidation at work 
        due to--

    (1) the frequently disproportionate number of male managers;

    (2) the lack of policing and reporting of sexual harassment; and

    (3) common cultural norms that assert male dominance and place 
disproportionate pressure on women to maintain their income and support 
their children and elders;

Whereas a survey of female garment industry workers in Bangladesh revealed 
        that--

    (1) nearly \1/3\ of respondents had been a recipient of an unwelcome 
sexual overture, inappropriate touching, or a threat of being forced to 
undress; and

    (2) nearly \1/2\ of respondents had been beaten or struck in the face 
by a supervisor;

Whereas some of the most deadly accidents in industrial history have occurred in 
        export processing industries in which female workers predominate, 
        including--

    (1) the fire at Ali Enterprises in Pakistan in 2012, the deadliest 
apparel factory fire in history, in which the lives of 259 workers were 
lost; and

    (2) the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in 2013, in which the lives 
of 1,134 Bangladeshi workers were lost and 2,500 more workers were injured, 
the majority of whom were women;

Whereas these and other industrial accidents have occurred in facilities that 
        were monitored and certified as safe and decent workplaces by private, 
        voluntary corporate social responsibility initiatives invested in by 
        global brands from the United States and Europe;
Whereas female workers are often knowingly exposed to dangerous and life-
        threatening machinery or toxic substances that are no longer used in 
        developed nations due to their reproductive or general health effects, 
        without even simple safety measures like gloves or face masks; and
Whereas research shows that--

    (1) workers who are well-informed about health and safety facilitate 
safer workplaces; and

    (2) legal protections that allow elected labor union representatives of 
workers to raise safety and other concerns without fear of reprisals are 
essential for worker safety: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the United States 
should--
            (1) support policies that create safe and decent jobs in 
        developing countries, which are critical to ensuring peaceful 
        and sustainable economic growth and development in a globalized 
        world;
            (2) support policies that reduce gender-based violence, and 
        other forms of discrimination, at work, and that improve the 
        ability of women workers to speak out in defense of their 
        rights without fear of reprisals;
            (3) encourage the development of an International Labour 
        Conference Convention to address gender-based violence at work;
            (4) promote labor rights in trade agreements and enforce 
        the right of women and other workers to join a labor union to 
        defend their other rights and safety;
            (5) use diplomatic means and international aid--
                    (A) to end violence against women in the workplace; 
                and
                    (B) to empower women and other workers to 
                participate fully in their economies and to protect 
                their safety; and
            (6) encourage United States companies with international 
        supply chains, and Federal agencies involved in procurement, to 
        increase transparency and accountability in order to ensure 
        that products are produced in workplaces that--
                    (A) work aggressively to end gender-based workplace 
                violence; and
                    (B) respect the rights of women workers.
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