Editorial: Don’t sweat it, Pitt partners with WRC

The University has become the 180th school to join the Worker Rights Consortium.

Pitt’s chapter of Americans for Informed Democracy worked tirelessly to inform students and the administration about the benefits of aligning with the Worker Rights Consortium and continued to apply pressure until proper acknowledgement was made. AIDPitt founder Joe Thomas learned of Pitt’s alignment with WRC Monday.

From letter-writing campaigns to bringing in former sweatshop workers, AIDPitt persisted in upholding the topic’s relevance at times when other student groups might have given up the fight. 

This is the type of student activism that will create true change on campus.

The WRC is an independent monitoring organization that works with universities nationwide to investigate factories that manufacture university-licensed apparel. The consortium works to resolve abuses against worker rights and publishes the results of its investigations. 

The University aligned with the Fair Labor Association, another group that monitors fair labor practices in factories, but unlike the WRC, the association is funded by the companies it investigates. 

It was integral that the University acknowledge this conflict and align with the WRC’s methods of acting as a watchdog.

On a monetary level, the cost of alignment for the University is minimal. The Fair Labor Association and the WRC require universities to pay 1 percent of their licensing fees up to $50,000 annually. 

Duquesne, Carlow and Carnegie Mellon align with the WRC, and Penn State aligns with both the Fair Labor Association and WRC.

While the University declined to comment or inform any members of AIDPitt about its decision, we should support the University for its decision to align with the consortium. This simple move could dramatically impact campus culture and the ideals that Pitt represents. 

AIDPitt recognized the flaw in the University’s stance on workers’ rights, which is an issue that students feel passionate about. Student activists were successful in raising the issue and following its change to fruition. 

The group worked to garner the attention of the media, otherwise apathetic students and University administrators. They faced seemingly dead ends, but they chose to respond instead of fading away.  

But the University’s name listed on a website is not the end of the discussion, and while AIDPitt has made great strides, the struggle is not over for the group.  

It is important that student activists follow AIDPitt’s example and continue to speak out for their causes and to push for change. The University must represent the ideals it teaches its students and it is up to students to highlight when the administration makes decisions that fail in this regard.

The University has taken a substantial step forward in ensuring the morality behind the apparel that students, staff and alumni wear each day, and this change is a testament to AIDPitt’s efforts and student activism potential.