After what Duke officials said have been repeated but futile attempts to induce Lands' End to improve labor practices at an apparel factory in El Salvador, the University has suspended renewal of its trademark license contract with the Wisconsin-based company.
Duke Stores Director Jim Wilkerson notified Lands' End of the University's decision in a March 1 letter to Anne Kies, the company's director of quality.
"The most serious of allegations involves the 'blacklisting' of workers who are perceived to, or have actual ties to unions," Wilkerson wrote, noting that one of the cornerstones of Duke's Code of Conduct for manufacturers is that companies may not discriminate or retaliate against workers who choose to exercise their right of freedom of association and collective bargaining.
"The central issue in this case is the need to remediate the harm that was done to workers who were inappropriately denied employment at the [Primo S.A. de C.V.] factory. To date, this has not occurred," he wrote.
Wilkerson said the company's labor problems at the Primo factory have been confirmed by both the Fair Labor Association and the Worker Rights Consortium, two national organizations that assist campuses in monitoring the labor practices of manufacturers.
"All of our companies are required to subject themselves to the FLA's monitoring processes and to meet the requirements of the WRC. In almost all the cases up until now, we have been able to get companies to agree to a remediation plan that was acceptable to universities affiliated with the FLA and WRC without having to suspend the renewal of a contract," Wilkerson said.
After a year of almost constant communication between Lands' End and the two organizations, however, the company has been "less than enthusiastic" about agreeing to a proposed remediation plan, Wilkerson said.
"We're hopeful that the actions we're taking will contribute to them deciding to deal with these issues effectively," he said. "Suspending a contract is often a last resort, but in this case it is preceded by numerous efforts to resolve these issues in other ways."
Wilkerson noted that Duke is not the first university to suspend a contract with Lands' End.
However, Kies said she was surprised by the University's decision not to renew its contract. "We're working with the FLA and the WRC to resolve the situation, and the progress we've made on the things we're working on are on an FLA tracking chart on their website," she said.
Kies added that Lands' End is hoping to come to a resolution in the near future regarding labor practices at the Primo factory. "It could be premature for a contract cancellation, but that's the University's decision," she said.
University officials said Lands' End's efforts were too little, too late.
"We tried to give them the opportunity to respond to our concerns, and the reality is that we gave them more than enough time," said John Burness, senior vice president for public affairs and government relations. "Finally, we just had to say, 'That's it.'"
Wilkerson noted that although the company may "technically" have been working toward a solution for the Primo factory by discussing the situation with the FLA and the WRC, the University needed to see more concrete results.
"The purpose of the FLA and WRC is not just to have continual conversations with companies about problems but to reach solutions to those problems," Wilkerson said. "The talking and discussion doesn't serve a purpose if Lands' End doesn't agree to make right what's been wrong."
Wilkerson said the University would like to reestablish a contract with Lands' End, should the situation improve.
"We value our relationship with Lands' End, and believe all of our licensees share with us the goal of continuous improvement in working conditions," he wrote in his letter to Kies. "If and when a remediation plan is in place which satisfies the requirements of the WRC and FLA, we will reconsider our decision."
The last time the University suspended a trademark license contract was in November 2001, when it notified the New Era Cap Company that it would withhold renewal indefinitely, citing the company's unresponsiveness to labor concerns. New Era's contract was reinstated in August 2002.
The University should not have a problem filling in any gaps in production that might occur due to suspended renewal of the Lands' End contract, Wilkerson said. "Duke has over 400 licensees, of which Lands' End is one," he said. "There are continually plenty of companies in the business who are willing to step forward."
Wilkerson said Lands' End annually sells about $25,000 at retail of merchandise bearing Duke trademarks, offering tote bags and a host of clothing products for men, women and children. He noted that most of this business is transacted online through Lands' End's own website.
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