In Progress

"Several Pacific Island nations have tax-free zones. Wages in these zones are set by employers and are not negotiable. Workers are not allowed to organize and working conditions fairly stringent. Most of the tax-free zones in the Pacific are host to garment industries whose labor is predominantly women."

In Fiji, the garment workers are among the lowest paid in the tax-free zones and work under the most intolerable conditions. Fiji in the past practiced tripartite bargaining as a method of settling disputes between employers and employees. With the advent of structural adjustment programs (SAPs), the government has abandoned tripartite bargaining and instead passed draconian labor laws with no room for wage negotiations, improvement of safety standards or of working conditions. This has worsened the condition of workers in Fiji. Whereas before there was a legislated minimum wage for the manufacturing sector, now there is nothing."