[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 57 (Tuesday, May 1, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H1696-H1697]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        ILO CHAMPIONS CAUSE OF WORKERS' RIGHTS AROUND THE WORLD

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bonior) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, this is a quote:

       The failure of any nation to adopt humane conditions of 
     labor is an obstacle in the way of other nations which desire 
     to improve the conditions of their own countries.

                              {time}  1845

  Powerful words, and I wish I could claim that they are mine, but they 
are not. They are from the preamble of the Constitution of the 
International Labor Organization, which was created 82 years ago.
  The United States, of course, was one of the nations which helped 
form the ILO. And, true to its mission, in the years since, the ILO has 
championed the cause of workers' rights around the world: the right to 
organize and bargain collectively; the right to refuse forced labor; 
the right to reject child labor; and the right to work free from 
discrimination.
  In fact, right now the ILO is mounting a global effort to inform 
workers of their rights. Versions of this poster to my right, in a 
variety of languages, are being distributed around the world. You have 
rights to organize and bargain collectively, to refuse forced labor, to 
reject child labor, to work free from discrimination.
  The ILO is living up to the challenge of fighting for workers' 
rights. The question is, are we?
  Last week in Quebec, the President called for expanding NAFTA and 
creating a free trade zone stretching from the Arctic Circle to Tierra 
Del Fuego. We are told it is an opportunity to promote our values and 
democracy throughout the Americas. Imagine what a source of relief that 
must be to workers at Chentex, which is a clothing factory in Las 
Mercedes Free Trade Zone in Nicaragua. Or should I say the ``former 
workers'' of this factory, because after they organized a union in 
1988, the workers at Chentex had the audacity to ask for a wage 
increase.
  One day they staged a 15-minute work stoppage to protest the 
company's intransigence. What was the company's response? They fired 
the leaders of the union. At that point the workers went on strike. 
What was the company's answer, they forced more than 500 workers from 
their jobs and then they blacklisted them so they could not work in the 
free trade zone again.
  If you follow the logic presented to us in Quebec, with a Free Trade 
Area of the Americas, that would not happen. As a result of dealing 
with American companies, employers like Chentex would see the error of 
their ways. They would respect workers' rights and bargain fairly. 
Their managers would stop forcing workers to labor as much as 12 hours 
a day, and they would not monitor their visits to the bathrooms or any 
of the other things that happen frequently.
  There is only one problem with this theory: It is that the Chentex 
factory has been trading with the United States companies for years. In 
fact, they make clothing that is sold today by major U.S. retailers.
  We do not practice what we preach. The theory that the President and 
the so-called free traders advocate has not worked. You do not have to 
go to Nicaragua, you can go to the free trade

[[Page H1697]]

zone along the Mexican-U.S. border. You can go to another 100 places 
like that around the globe. The reality is that too many corporations 
are treating people without human respect. And the ILO, I have a right, 
you have a right, to organize and bargain collectively, to refuse 
forced labor, to reject child labor, to work free from discrimination, 
is an important message to let people know around the world that we 
will not tolerate it, and they can stand up and be respected.
  We have too many children, 8, 9, 10 years of age, working 12 hours in 
factories for less than a nickel an hour, a nickel a day in some 
instances, basically working for nothing. We have too many instances of 
people being discriminated against in the workplace. We have too many 
instances of forced labor, and this needs to stop. I only wish U.S. 
corporations were willing to cooperate with this movement.
  It takes some leadership at the national level here in this country, 
not only from the government but from our corporate leaders. I wish 
someone would stand out and say we are going to set the pattern and 
treat workers abroad with respect and dignity. I think once that wave 
starts, it is pretty hard to stop. What we need to do is continue to 
press. We need to continue to support the ILO and their efforts to 
educate workers around the globe that they have these rights. We as a 
country, as people, as governments, and as corporations ought to stand 
up for those rights.

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