There’s not a lot of safety in our factory. There’s not enough space
to walk down the aisles. We’re almost sitting on top of each other. The
walls, fans, and lamps are dirty. The bathrooms aren’t in the best
conditions – the toilet seats are broken and many of the toilets don’t
work. Sometimes there isn’t toilet paper. We are lucky to get paid
maternity leave that ranges between 20-60 days. We are offered a
medical plan but it’s expensive; for me the family medical plan costs
me $150 per month and it doesn’t even cover pharmaceuticals. We don’t
have paid sick leave: right now we’re organizing to have our legal
rights to12 paid sick days per year.

We’re trying to form a union right now but we’re facing resistance
from the company. They are threatening to close the plant should we
unionize. However, I don’t think that will happen because legally U.S.
military uniforms must be made within the United States or its
territories. I don’t think it would be cheaper to produce the products
that we make in any other part of the U.S. other than Puerto Rico. If I
were to change the situation, I’d like to have a better medical plan
and lower production quotas.

Maritza is a leader in the organizing effort at
her factory with Workers United Puerto Rico. Maritza and her co-workers have
been organizing at the Propper factories since spring of 2008. Maritza
recently traveled to the U.S. for the SweatFree Communities Economic
Stimulus Worker Tour. This tour led up to a report Subsidizing Sweatshops II
which highlighted the labor rights violations at Maritza’s factory.
More information about Maritza’s visit to the U.S. can be found at http://www.sweatfree.org/tour.