PHM-Exch> UCLA-IRLE Research Brief on Health and Safety in Export Zones

[Todd Jailer]

Although we spend about half of our waking hours at work, rarely is that 
reflected in the health care that we access, or the role of work in our 
right to health. To provide a tool in the struggle for workers' rights 
and occupational health, Hesperian is close to releasing /A Guide to 
Workers' Health and Safety 
<http://hesperian.org/books-and-resources/?book=advance_chapters_from_a_workers_guide_to_health_and_safety>/ 
that focuses on the garment, shoe, and electronics industries. The book 
looks at both work hazards as well as what we call "social hazards:" low 
wages, violence, sexual harassment, child labor, etc. and their impact 
on our health. A section of the book on identifying and dealing with 
toxic chemicals in the workplace is another innovative feature of this 
material.Recently, a *Research Brief 
<http://www.irle.ucla.edu/publications/documents/ResearchBrief16.pdf>* 
on the book and the process of creating it was released on the website 
of the *UCLA Institute for Research on Labor & Employment 
<http://www.irle.ucla.edu/>*, here: 
http://www.irle.ucla.edu/publications/documents/ResearchBrief16.pdf

Here's how they describe it:

"The collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh on April 
24, 2013, was one of the world's deadliest industrial disasters. Killing 
over 1,100 garment workers, it set the stage for a renewed discussion 
about working conditions for the people who make the clothes Americans 
wear. Roughly 97% of the clothing sold in the US is made 
internationally, largely in export factories and Export Processing Zones 
(EPZs) scattered across the globe.  The dramatic expansion of these 
factories and EPZs in their various forms has occurred without an 
increased commitment on the part of manufacturers, producers, investors, 
or governments to workers' health and safety on the job. This research 
brief reviews the growth and characteristics of EPZs and gives an 
in-depth introduction to a new educational tool, the /Workers' Guide to 
Health and Safety,/ a book being published in spring 2014 by Hesperian 
Health Guides in Berkeley, California. Using a popular education 
approach, prioritizing women workers' concerns, and building on workers' 
and organizers' experiences from the inception of the project, the 
/Workers' Guide/ has the potential to be an important tool in ongoing 
organizing in export manufacturing. "read more: 
http://www.irle.ucla.edu/publications/documents/ResearchBrief16.pdf

-- 
Todd Jailer, Managing Editor

Hesperian Health Guides
Knowledge for action.
Action for health.

todd at hesperian.org
www.hesperian.org

1919 Addison Street, Suite 304
Berkeley, California 94704
tel: (510) 845-1447 x 229
fax: (510) 845-0539

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://phm.phmovement.org/pipermail/phm-exchange-phmovement.org/attachments/20131204/baf1b130/attachment.html>