War on Want is pressuring the Olympics to stand for fair wages for those who make the athletic clothing for the games according to Ekklesia:
On Sunday 5 August, as crowds left the Olympic park after the men’s 100m final, War on Want projected a giant video message in protest at what it claims is the exploitation of Adidas workers around the world.
Several large sports companies and Olympic sponsors are under continued pressure over their commercial activities and their impact as the Games in London draw to a climax this weekend.
Murray Worthy, the anti-poverty charity’s Sweatshops Campaigner, declared: “Adidas has already sold £100 million of Olympic clothing whilst workers making its goods around the world are paid poverty wages and are having to skip meals to survive.”
“This is exploitation. It wouldn’t be OK for Adidas to do this in the UK and it shouldn’t be OK anywhere else in the world. Adidas must ensure that workers are paid enough to live,” he added.
Workers making Adidas clothes around the world are paid as little as 34p an hour, have little or no job security and face harassment or dismissal if they try and organise to defend their rights, says War on Want, urging people to write to the company to make clear that this has to stop.