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Nike has been in hot water over alleged sweatshop abuses in its overseas factories for years, and it hasn’t bothered with much more than apologies. So why should anyone be surprised by news from OXFAM Australia that ever more outrageous labor offenses continue in Nike’s Indonesian factories?

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According to an article in the MELBOURNE AGE, the human-rights group infiltrated one of Nike’s Indonesian shoe factories and discovered that female workers, legally entitled to menstrual leave, were forced by supervisors to pull down their pants to prove menstruation before they were allowed time off.

The report also said factory workers burned excess rubber soles rather than recycling them at the plant, as the company had pledged it would. And workers in the plant were found to make the equivalent of US$1.13 per day and intimidated into working overtime. Nike said it would investigate the allegations.

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Managing an independent, nonprofit newsroom is staggeringly hard. There’s no cushion in our budget—no backup revenue, no corporate safety net. We can’t afford to fall short, and we can’t rely on corporations or deep-pocketed interests to fund the fierce, investigative journalism Mother Jones exists to do. That’s why we need you right now. Please chip in to help close the gap.

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