Shoppers urged to use buying power to aid toy factory workers

Trocaire and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions have urged shoppers to use their clout to seek improved conditions for workers making toys for the Irish market this Christmas.

In a joint campaign launched yesterday, the two organisations criticised manufacturers who employed people for as little as £1 a day in toy factories in developing countries such as China, Indonesia and Thailand.

The launch coincided with the publication of a new report by the Asia Monitor Resource Centre (AMRC) on toy factories in China. It found people had been forced to work up to 16 hours a day, six or seven days a week for an average daily wage of £1.06.

Workers complained of poorly ventilated and badly-lit factories causing breathing and skin problems, sore eyes and exhaustion.

Ms May Wong, co-ordinator of the AMRC research project, said many workers were too afraid to be interviewed and many who criticised the conditions were either punished or dismissed.

"We don't want people to feel guilty about buying these toys but we do want them to take action. Let the companies know that you are concerned about toy workers and that you want a guarantee that their basic rights are respected," said Ms Wong.

Under the campaign, consumers have been asked to write to major toy manufacturers such as Mattel and Hasbro, seeking the implementation of codes of conduct and guaranteeing workers the right to organise in trade unions.

Ms Caoimhe de Barra, campaigns officer with Trocaire, said Mattel, producers of Barbie, Fisher Price and Disney brands, agreed to introduce a code of conduct last year. However, it had yet to implement an independent monitoring system.

She said Hasbro, makers of Teletubbies, Furbies and Playskool toys, had yet to establish an independently verifiable code of conduct.

Postcards and letters addressed to Mattel and Hasbro are available from Trocaire and the ICTU. Neither company had a spokesperson available for comment last night.