(MADISON) A national students group is calling on the University of Wisconsin-Madison to cut ties with sportswear maker Adidas. Theyâ??re accusing a former Adidas subcontractor of mismanagement and corruption, and UW- Madison officials say theyâ??re looking into the claims.
The UW Chancellorâ??s office says itâ??s sending a representative to El Salvador in April. Sheâ??ll visit former workers of Hermosa Manufacturing and neighboring apparel plants. The fact-finding tour is to help university administrators address the complaints with Adidas executives. The companyâ??s contract with the UW system runs through 2011.
But United Students Against Sweatshops and its Madison charter, the Student Labor Action Coalition, say reports of worker rights abuses have already been verified by the Workers Rights Consortium Molly Glasgow, a regional organizer and UW student, says Adidasâ?? disregard of workerâ??s rights makes it clear the University should cut ties with the manufacturer immediately. She says she realizes the university is in a very tough position, but so are the workers. She says she thinks itâ??s the Universityâ??s responsibility because theyâ??re in a position of power to change something now.