WASHINGTON – The Fair Labor Association (FLA) announced today that its board of directors voted to accredit Lakeshirts/Blue 84’s social compliance program, after the company demonstrated in a lengthy review that it has policies and practices in place to identify and remediate unfair labor practices in its global supply chain. Lakeshirts, headquartered in Detroit Lakes, Minn., has been an FLA affiliate since 2010 and began its implementation period for FLA accreditation implementation in 2012. The company produces apparel for resorts and universities across the United States.
“Students take enormous pride in their universities, and they want to know that the collegiate clothing and products they purchase are not made with sweatshop labor,” said Sharon Waxman, president and CEO of the FLA. “We commend Lakeshirts/Blue 84 for committing to promote and protect high labor standards for the workers who make the clothing they sell.”
The FLA accreditation report noted that Lakeshirts’ social compliance program included the following strengths:
- Lakeshirts’ corporate social responsibility committee, comprised of nine members from teams across the company and the executive team, facilitates broad cross-departmental collaboration on social compliance issues
- Lakeshirts’ comprehensive monitoring guidance outlines clear expectations for third-party auditors
- Lakeshirts’ method of ordering blank goods for embroidery and screen-printing in one centralized location encourages responsible purchasing practices
- Lakeshirts demonstrates engagement with employees at the U.S. factory owned by the company, and within the community of Detroit Lakes, Minn., where it is headquartered
“This accreditation is something that aligns completely with our values as an organization, and reflects how we’ve always felt about how we should do business,” said Mike Hutchinson, co-CEO for Lakeshirts/Blue 84. “To have gone through the rigorous process and to ultimately be accredited by FLA is the highest confirmation of how important those values are.”
The FLA is the only organization of its kind to which companies and suppliers commit to meeting the standards of regular review and assessment of corporate systems that support workers’ rights. FLA accreditation is the gold standard for a systems-level approach to human rights compliance and social responsibility. Companies must regularly assess supply chain production facilities for adherence to international labor standards and pursue continuous improvement efforts to address conditions for workers to achieve accreditation.
Please contact Tony Franquiz at TFranquiz@westendstrategy.com to be connected with FLA President and CEO Sharon Waxman for comment/interview on the FLA accreditation process.
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About the FLA
For the past 20 years, the Fair Labor Association has worked to protect and promote the rights of workers across the global supply chain through collaboration among business, civil society, and colleges and universities. FLA-affiliate companies and the factories that supply them commit to uphold high labor rights standards. The FLA conducts transparent and independent monitoring to identify the root causes of labor rights violations and work toward innovative and sustainable solutions.
About Lakeshirts / Blue 84
Lakeshirts / Blue 84 is a Resort and College garment manufacturer headquartered in lakes country in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. Started in 1984, what started in a basement has grown to a 325,000 square foot production and warehouse facility, over 700 team members, six dogs, and more than 10,000 satisfied customers. Despite our growth, our focus is still on our fantastic customers. We strive to exceed not only our customers’ expectations, but bring value to all our stakeholders – customers, employees, vendors, owners and the community we call home.