Sportswear firms slammed for exploitation on eve of World Cup

LONDON - The world's top sportswear manufacturers have been accused of continuing to use factories in the developing world which deny workers union rights and decent wages, despite claims they have cleaned up their act.

Just weeks ahead of the World Cup, a report from Oxfam claims that top brands such as Adidas, Nike, Umbro and Fila use suppliers in Asia where workers - mainly women - are forced to work long hours for low wages and face dismissal if they protest against their conditions.

The charity warned that the increased demand for replica shirts, shoes and other merchandise triggered by the World Cup was adding to the "outrageous behaviour" of some suppliers used by the brands.

Oxfam found that while many companies had professed to have improved workers' rights, some were cutting ties with suppliers which improved conditions and moving to countries where unions are not recognised.

The Oxfam report found that Nike makes 38 per cent of its shoes in countries where workers have no legal right to freedom of association, compared with 52 per cent in 1998. In recent years, the company has stopped working with suppliers who negotiate with workers' unions.

Adidas Predator Pulse football boots, worn by David Beckham, are made at a factory in Indonesia where 30 union workers were recently sacked for taking part in a legal strike for a pay rise to compensate for huge increases in the cost of living.

Workers at the factory receive as little as 90 cents an hour, while Adidas pays the French player Zinedine Zidane almost $3 million in sponsorship. Adidas refused to respond to Oxfam about whether the sacked workers will be reinstated.

Umbro, a sponsor of the England team, is criticised in the report for being slow in developing a labour rights programme, although recent progress was praised.

The biggest criticism was reserved for the Fila brand, owned by the US company Sport Brands International. According to Oxfam, Fila had been using a factory in Indonesia which had denied workers basic rights, subjected women to sexual harassment and committed serious labour abuses. When confronted with the evidence in 2004, Fila said there was little it could do.

The factory was closed last year, leaving its workers without jobs. Fila has declined to help and refused to give Oxfam details of other suppliers.

While some firms such as Nike and adidas were praised for making a start on improving worker rights, Oxfam said too little was being done, too late.

The charity's probe found that working conditions worsened as demand increased. At one factory in Indonesia, employees were forced to work from 7am to 11pm without breaks. At another, a union official was assaulted by five men and told to stop campaigning for workers' rights.

PUTTING THE BOOT IN

Adidas

* Revenue (2004): $13.2 billion.

* Made in: Suppliers in Cambodia, Japan and Indonesia.

* Criticism: More than half its production is based in countries where trade union rights are illegal or very difficult to obtain.

Umbro

* Revenue (2004): $421 million.

* Made in: Umbro runs factories in Indonesia.

* Criticism: Declined to answer questions about suppliers; not doing enough to ensure that its workers' rights are protected.

Nike

* Revenue (2004): $18.2 billion.

* Made in: Suppliers in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bulgaria and Indonesia.

* Criticism: Cut ties with unionised factories and increased production where labour rights are not recognised.

- INDEPENDENT