Apparel Production Continues Despite Regime Change in Honduras
Most apparel manufacturers in Honduras said the ouster of the Honduran president was not affecting production.
However, on Tuesday, June 30, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said he would be closing the Nicaraguan-Honduran border to increase pressure to return Honduran President Manuel Zelaya to office.
The closed border was impacting some apparel manufacturers who transport goods between the two countries.
“My concern is about production in Nicaragua that is shipped to Honduras for export to the United States. It is shipped to Honduras because it has a bigger and better Atlantic seaport,” said John Strasburger, vice president and general manager of VF Americas Sourcing, part of VF Corp. “It should reopen in 24 hours. Other than that, all our Honduran suppliers [contract factories] are running,” the VF executive said.
VF Corp. owns one factory in San Pedro Sula where 1,500 workers in Honduras make uniforms for various industries. Dan Lorett, VF’s vice president of manufacturing who oversees the uniform factory, said operations there closed Sunday and Monday but were back up running on Tuesday. “The latest report is business as usual.” He added the factory closed 30 minutes early on Tuesday so workers could get home before dark.
Extra security guards were not being added to the factory because it is located inside an industrial park with its own security personnel.
Gildan Activewear, based in Canada, said the presidential ouster was not the reason it was closing some of its plants for two weeks. The maker of T-shirts, socks and underwear said the closures were to control excess inventory.
On Monday, demonstrators demanding the return of the deposed president tussled with police around the Honduran presidential palace in Tegucigalpa. Zelaya was deposed by a military coup on Sunday, June 28. He was flown to Costa Rica, where he is appealing to return as president of Honduras. —Deborah Belgum
