Igniting the flame for a sweat-free Olympics
Ethical Trading Forum 2008

* Can workers making Olympic-branded products expect fair labour practices?
* How far and how fast do sportswear brands need to go to improve wages and working conditions?
* Does “made in China” equal “poor working conditions”? What can companies, governments, trade unions and NGOs do to promote and protect worker rights in China?

Thursday, June 12, 2008
9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Joseph & Rosalie Segal Centre at SFU Harbour Centre,
515 West Hastings
Vancouver, British Columbia

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Dear Friends,

We are pleased to invite you to participate in an Ethical Trading Forum entitled Igniting the Flame for a Sweat-free Olympics on June 12, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm, in Vancouver, British Columbia. The forum is co-sponsored by the BC
Federation of Labour, the Canadian Labour Congress, the Ethical Trading Action Group, and the New Westminster and Vancouver labour councils. For more information on the forum, as well as the forum flyer to download, please go to:
http://en.maquilasolidarity.org/en/etf2008

Igniting the Flame for a Sweat-free Olympics will bring together representatives of international and Canadian trade union organizations, major apparel brands, labour rights NGOs, and the Olympics movement to discuss and debate how to improve wages and working conditions in the global sportswear industry and how to ensure that Olympic-branded sportswear products are made under decent conditions.

Speakers at the forum will include:

* Doug Miller, International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation, Brussels

* Monina Wong, Labour Action China, Hong Kong

* Caitlin Morris, Director of Compliance Integration and Collaboration, Nike Inc.

* Ann Duffy, Corporate Sustainability Officer, VANOC

* Jim Sinclair, President, British Columbia Federation of Labour

* Kevin Thomas, Director of Advocacy, Maquila Solidarity Network

* Ginny Coughlin, Global Strategies Director, UNITE HERE

The forum will also profile the recommendations of the international Play Fair Alliance to the sportswear industry and the Olympic movement contained in a recently released report entitled "Clearing the Hurdles: Steps to improving working conditions in the global sportswear industry." The report and an executive summary are available at:

http://en.maquilasolidarity.org/en/node/785

To register, please contact the CLC Pacific Regional Office at: 604-430-6766 or pacific@clc-ctc.ca.
Cost is: $30 civil society organizations; $50 companies; and $10 students.

We look forward to seeing you there. If you can't make it, and know someone in the vicinity that might be interested, please pass along this information.

Thank you.

Lynda Yanz, Coordinator

Maquila Solidarity Network

Secretariat, Ethical Trading Action Group