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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-7316
Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman and European Union Commissioner for
Employment and Social Affairs Padraig Flynn today announced plans for a
European symposium on codes of conduct within the context of the U.S. Apparel
Industry Partnership (AIP). The two officials met in Paris on October 14 for
the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Ministerial Meeting
on labor market policies.
Herman, who has made codes of conduct a theme of her first international
trip as Labor Secretary, said, "The Apparel Industry Partnership will help make
the global economy grow in a way that ensures that workers share in the
benefits of that growth."
The European meeting of garment industry representatives will take place
in February 1998, where there will be an exchange of experiences with regard to
establishment of voluntary codes of conduct, such as those addressed by the
AIP.
Herman and Flynn also reaffirmed their commitment to develop further
their cooperation in the field of employment and social policies within the
framework of the Transatlantic Agenda of Action between the European Union (EU)
and the United States. They both agreed to intensify the efforts of their joint
Working Group on Employment and Labor Market issues.
Flynn presented Herman with the draft guidelines on the employment
policies of the Members States of the European Union, which will be presented
at the 1998 European Jobs Summit at Luxembourg. These guidelines are based on
the new provisions of the Amsterdam Treaty adopted last June by the European
Council. "The Amsterdam Treaty was a watershed in linking economic and
employment policies in the same agenda for jobs," said Flynn.
Herman and Flynn also agreed to cooperate on the employment of disabled
persons and on the need to harness all the potential of the new communications
and information technologies to facilitate the effective participation of
disabled persons in the labor market. They confirmed their willingness to
arrange a joint event on this subject in Europe before the summer of 1998, in
close cooperation with organizations representing people with disabilities.
The Apparel Industry Partnership was started in 1996, after President
Clinton brought leaders of the apparel and footwear industry, labor unions,
consumer groups and non-governmental human rights organizations to the White
House to work together in the United States and abroad to ensure that products
are manufactured under decent and humane working conditions and to communicate
with consumers. The partnership recently adopted a code of conduct defining
decent and humane working conditions. The partnership also announced it would
work to establish a not-for-profit association to develop an independent
external monitoring system and appropriate consumer education mechanisms.
Members of the Apparel Industry Partnership include major U.S.
manufacturers/importers, trade unions and human rights groups. Among the
members are: Nike; Reebok; Liz Claiborne; Phillips-Van Heusen; L.L. Bean;
Patagonia; Tweeds; Nicole Miller; Kathy Lee Gifford; UNITE; Retail, Wholesale,
Department Store Union; Business for Social Responsibility; Interfaith Center
on Corporate Responsibility; International Labor Rights Fund; Lawyers Committee
on Human Rights; National Consumers League; and the RFK Memorial Center for
Human Rights.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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