Sweatshop Task Force Makes Biggest Sweep Yet

In their biggest series of raids yet in Southern California’s garment-manufacturing industry, state and federal labor investigators have turned up dozens of violations at shops sewing clothing for major apparel brands--including Kathie Lee Gifford’s line of women’s clothing.

The contractor for Gifford--the TV personality who was at the center of a recent sweatshop controversy--was cited for time card violations and for allegedly failing to pay a worker during a brief training period. The infractions, considered relatively minor, call for fines totaling slightly more than $1,000. A spokesman for Gifford said the contractor will be warned that another infraction would result in the loss of the right to manufacture garments for her line.

But over the last three days, the 18 teams of state and federal investigators sweeping through alleged sweatshops in Los Angeles and Orange counties say they have also uncovered far more serious abuses. In one Los Angeles sewing shop, investigators say, they found a 13-year-old working in violation of child labor laws.

Although final figures were not available as of late Thursday, investigators said they also turned up serious health and safety violations. By definition, these violations pose a substantial risk, in the event of an accident, of killing or seriously injuring a worker.

For example, at 19 of the 53 shops checked in Los Angeles County on Tuesday and Wednesday, Cal/OSHA inspectors found serious electrical problems that could lead to fires or electrocution. In another case, they found a plant whose only exit was blocked, possibly preventing workers from escaping in the event of a fire.

Mark A. Carleson, deputy chief of the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, expressed frustration at how widespread the violations remain nearly four years into the joint state-federal campaign against sweatshops.

“It’s going to take some time,” he said. “Things don’t turn around overnight.”

Officials said they also found dozens of examples of contractors illegally paying workers in cash or providing less than the minimum wage. In addition, nearly 20% of the companies checked in the first two days of sweeps were not licensed with the state, and nearly half as many had failed to buy workers’ compensation insurance for their employees.

Jose Millan, assistant California labor commissioner, said there were fewer-than-expected minimum wage violations, but he found little cause for encouragement. Making substantial progress in the war against sweatshops, he said, will require “a long-term investment.”

Along with the Gifford line, another well-known manufacturer whose label turned up at a contractor cited in this week’s raids was Rampage Clothing Co. of Los Angeles.

The contractor, a Buena Park shop called M.A. Fashion Inc., was fined more than $3,000 in connection with a registration problem, a manager there confirmed. The company refused to comment further. Sources said investigators are also looking into possible overtime violations.

Nancy Mamann, a spokeswoman for Rampage, said Thursday that she was unfamiliar with M.A. Fashion. Mamann said the company considers contractor violations a serious matter and would look into it.

For Gifford--who joined the government’s anti-sweatshop campaign this spring after it was discovered that her own clothing line was being produced in sweatshops--this week’s revelations figured to bring fresh embarrassment.

Investigators found her sportswear being sewn at TLC Fashion in Garden Grove, which was cited for the minor time card and pay violations. The firm was also cited by Cal/OSHA earlier this year for several safety violations.

Thanh Nguyen, TLC’s owner, refused to comment. Gifford, said to be aboard an airline, was unavailable.

But Gary Lewi, a spokesman for the TV personality, said she is developing a program to monitor the working conditions under which her garments are made.

Meanwhile, Lewi said, Gifford’s representatives will warn TLC and any intermediary firms involved in hiring TLC that “a second infraction would see them lose the right to manufacture any garment with [Gifford’s] name on it. I want to stress that the object is not to see people placed on unemployment, but to leverage these findings into an improvement in working conditions.”

The discovery of alleged problems at TLC, Lewi added, “is indicative of a systemic problem in the industry, and people are going to have to step up to the plate, like Miss Gifford, or they’re going to have to get out of the industry.”

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the retailer for which Gifford’s line of clothing is produced, also said it is looking into the TLC situation. “We have a lot of questions,” company spokesman Dale Ingram said. He added that Wal-Mart reserves the right to cut off business with manufacturers violating labor laws.