![[home]](/cchd/images/new_usccb_logo.gif){kind=logo}
Many people believe that in the 21st century, sweatshop labor exists only in developing countries. But the experience of Chinese workers in factories in New York City has shown that this is far from the truth. In the 1990s, garment workers at a Chinatown subcontractor for Liberty Apparel, a large clothing company, reportedly worked up to 80 hours a week for less than three dollars an hour. In 1999, the workers were left without their wages when the business closed without notice—and without payment to the women for work completed.
But in 2009, the sweat and tears paid off: Liberty Apparel was ordered to give $600,000 in unpaid wages to the workers. The victory was significant because it set a precedent that companies must be held accountable for the actions of their subcontractors. Its impact was immediate, becoming the basis for similar cases in the construction industry and public sectors.
The victory would not have been achieved without the help of the Chinese Staff and Workers’ Association (CSWA), which began in 1979 as the first workers’ center for Chinese workers in New York City. Assisted by a mix of local and national grants from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the organization has not only made a profound impact on the Chinese but has improved working conditions for all ethnic groups throughout New York City and the tri-state area.
Other CSWA successes over the past 30 years include: over $50 million in backwages awarded to workers; establishment of the first independent restaurant union in the Chinatown neighborhood in New York City; securing the first wage increase in ten years for New York state’s tipped employees; and winning a legal decision prohibiting employers from stealing tips.
Echoing Catholic social teaching’s concern about solidarity and the rights of workers, CSWA’s mission is to promote solidarity with and between workers while advocating for improved working conditions and policy changes. CWSA uses short-term goals to make systemic changes. This means the local work it does has big repercussions.
Not only do victories like the one against Liberty Apparel change the way companies must conduct their business, they also change the way workers view themselves in society. Josephine Lee, a CSWA organizer, says that many immigrants first see themselves as vulnerable victims, since they don’t know the language or laws of this country. She says that’s why CSWA’s success lies in discovering “how to unleash skills and unify them to develop leadership and power.”
CSWA strives to give the vulnerable a voice through empowerment and support, while instilling within them the tools for self-sufficiency. The workers involved in the Liberty Apparel lawsuit have come to realize the huge impact they can have not only on their communities, but also on their world.