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Volume LXXXVIII, Number 48	University of Southern California	Monday, April 21 1980
Garment district probe exposes hazards, low pay
Serious fire, health problems found
By Max Castiel
Investigations' Writer
The nation's largest women's apparel market and second largest garment manufacturing center is Los Angeles, and over
50,000	workers live north and east of the university in inner-city communities of Pico Union, Vermont and 24th Street, downtown and East Los Angeles, Huntington Park, New Korean Town, and Chinatown.
But over 80% of the firms employing garment workers do not pay the minimum wage of $3.10 per hour, or offer overtime wages.
Investigation
And over 90% do not keep accurate employee records or comply with various labor codes.
About 30% do not give employees workers' compensation or any form of disability insurance.
Eight out of ten employees are undocumented workers mostly from Mexico.
With these violations come other related problems: serious fire and health hazards; lack of ventilation; unsanitary washrooms, hallways, and working quarters; and no breaks for lunch or rest.
A special task force of 37 investigators from the California Division of Labor Enforcement recently released these figures after inspecting over 2,100 Los Angeles apparel firms over a period of two years.
It is an astonishing report picturing an ill-structured industry dictated by manufacturers exploiting its workers.
"It's unusual when we find a clean shop," said Joe Razo, director of the task force.
The task force's findings are the basis of Senate Bill 545, aimed at enforcing minimum wage, child labor, overtime, and other employment laws.
The high percentage of violations in the industry suggests many of those producing clothing may survive because they can dodge legal sanctions.
Many accuse the industry of feeding itself on the fear of its work force, a large pool of undocumented workers who are willing to accept low wages at any cost.
But it is the structure of the industry that perpetuates abuses, Razo said.
"There are more unskilled contractors than the industry needs," he said.
Most manufacturers in California employ independent contractors to produce their garments.
Manufacturers are those who own fabrics, design and cut garments, publicize the products and sell them to retailers. Contractors simply mass-produce the garments for manufacturers.
The large pool of contractors allows manufacturers to alternate easily among contractors. Contractors compete for the lowest bids in order to remain in business. Thus, competition remains intense and production costs remain low.
Costs also stay low because a manufacturer can keep two contractors working simultaneously, Razo said.
If a contractor bids too high, a manufacturer goes elsewhere, either to newly foianed contractors who employ newly ar-(Continued on page 2)
EXTRA MONEY — A garment worker carries a bag of clothing home for his family to work on, a common practice in the industry.
defeated
Chicano student assembly, but also the Asian-American Student Programming Assembly and the Black Student Programming Assembly, and would have placed the organizations in other assemblies that already exist.
Despite the defeat of the proposal, Benton and Townsend had prepared a programming structure position, as the result of a week of investigation, that made four recommendations for future consideration and (Continued on page 13)
Staff photo by IMctiaal Yada
POOR CONDITIONS — A garment worker’s child sits on the decaying floor of one of many contractor shops in downtown Los Angeles. The workers often have an enormous amount of work to do and are often paid below the $3 10 minimum wage. Working conditions are also health and safety risks.
Prof challenges dismissal, may file second grievance
By David Romero
Staff Writer
Kenyon De Greene, a tenured professor in Safety and Systems Management, whose dismissal is being sought by the university, said Friday that he intends to make a formal response against the action by April 26.
He also said he will likely file a grievance against Paul Hadley, vice president of Academic Affairs; for not according him due process before decisions on the dismissal were made.
De Greene said the dismissal was in direct retaliation for his pursuing a grievance against Herold Sherman, executive director of the Institute of Safety and Systems Management. "I am willing to stake my life on it," De Greene said.
Hadley denied the retaliation charge Wednesday.
Hadley sent De Greene a letter, dated March 27, specifying a date for dismissal, cut-off of salary, and also rescinding of teaching duties and use of facilities.
"What Hadley has done is act as prosecutor, jury, judge and hangman before I even had a chance to respond," De Greene said.
Hadley said if De Greene chooses to make a grievance against the action, he must do so by 30 days from March 27.
De Greene said he should have been allowed to question witnesses against him, offer evidence and have counsel before a dismissal date was set oi any teaching duties were rescinded.
(Continued on page 12)
Proposal
By Susan Pedersen
Assistant City Editor
The current structure of four ethnic assemblies used for allocating program funds will remain intact following Friday's defeat of a proposed Student Senate bylaw amendment.
The senate also approved three recommendations for fu-
to disband
hire improvements in the programming structure.
The proposal, authored by Colette Benton and Monica Townsend, student senators, was met by strong criticism from a standing-room-only crowd, with one of the main contentions being that the current structure had not been giv-
four ethnic assemblies
en a chance, and that it did not have problems providing interaction and communication between the various assemblies.
The International Student Programming Assembly contended that a positive means for communication does exist, and that the proposal contained a faulty assumption.
A member of the Chicano Student Assembly added that the current structure was successful in providing interaction and had also resulted in benefits for the student body.
"The goal for putting them (the assemblies) together was not because they are doing projects for themselves, but for the whole campus," said Mercy Marquez, student senator and co-chairman of MEChA.
The proposal would have discontinued not only the international student assembly and the