Labor group again pushing end to UW contract with Adidas (athletic apparel owes $825,000 in back pay

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-wi-wisconsin-adidas,0,4130116.story

9:10 PM CDT, May 4, 2008

MADISON, Wis. - A student group is pressuring University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor John Wiley to end the school's contract with Adidas for athletic apparel.

The dispute isn't new. It stems from treatment of former workers at the Hermosa factory in El Salvador, which closed in 2005 while owing 260 workers about $825,000 in back pay and severance.

The Student Labor Action Coalition and school officials say 63 workers who were union members protested, and they were blacklisted from future jobs.

Wiley says the university continues talking with Adidas and that the company understands how serious the issue is to the school.

Wiley calls it a messy, ugly situation, but points out Adidas has tried to persuade the government of El Salvador to act.

The university's contract with Adidas runs through 2011 and is worth about $1.2 million annually.