WASHINGTON (AP) — A Nicaraguan garment factory that supplies discounted clothing to American soldiers imposes sweatshop conditions and starvation wages on its workers, a lawsuit filed Tuesday contends.
The lawsuit, filed by labor-rights attorneys in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, seeks punitive damages against the Chentex factory and its Taiwan-based parent, Nien Hsing.
It contends Nien Hsing pays workers at the plant less than 20 cents for each pair of blue jeans sewn. The jeans retail for between $25 and $30, but workers receive what amounts to less than 30 cents an hour.