Namibia's troubled textile industry was dealt a serious blow on Thursday when 1,600 workers were retrenched.

"It is a very sad day for me, because I do not know where to find a new job," said ex-Ramatex employee Hileni Haimbondi. "At least the [retrenchment] package includes a transport payment and a small bonus, because I worked there for two years", she told IRIN.

Investing time and money in above-the-line communications counts for little if you fail to deliver your product. Morag Cuddeford Jones examines the potential brand benefits of the supply chain

By Lisa Leff

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco supervisors unanimously

approved a new law Tuesday that requires city contractors

to guarantee in writing that the uniforms, computers and

other goods they supply were not made by workers exploited

in so-called "sweatshops."

By signing the "sweat-free code of conduct," manufacturers

and wholesalers that do business with the city would be

promising that their workers are paid the local minimum

wage, have the right to unionize and enjoy safe working

PORTLAND (AP) - Employees at factories that make clothing and sneakers for companies such as Nike and Adidas are still forced to work excessive overtime and are being blocked from organizing into labor unions, according to a new report from a watchdog group.

The third annual audit of factories by the industry-funded Fair Labor Association showed that the number of violations rose to 18.2 per factory in 2004 from 15.1 a year earlier, though that change is partly due to revised monitoring methods.

By Tess Kalinowski

School board allies with workers group

Can monitor where uniforms are made

The Toronto Catholic school board has decided to put some teeth into a new policy requiring its uniform suppliers to guarantee that their garments aren't made in sweatshops.