City agencies may soon be barred from contracting with companies who use sweatshop labor after the Berkeley City Council unanimously approved the development of an anti-sweatshop ordinance at last night‚s meeting.

The council referred a preliminary draft of the ordinance to the Commission on Labor, the Peace and Justice Commission and the Public Works Commission for feedback.

"Just like the UC students are working hard to get the university to have a sweat-free UC, I think it‚s important that Berkeley do the same thing", said Councilmember Kriss Worthington, who first made the recommendation.

Mayor Tom Bates and council members Max Anderson and Darryl Moore co-sponsored the resolution.

During the public comment period last night, representatives from the UC Berkeley chapter of Students Organizing for Justice in the Americas said the follow-through will be important for the ordinance.

"If it's just words without money behind it, it might make people feel good but it won‚t do anything", said UC Berkeley senior Nina Rizzo.

The draft defines sweatshop labor as including child labor, disregard of fundamental women‚s rights and workers‚ lack of freedom to assemble and collectively bargain.

The suggested ordinance would create a sweat-free procurement advisory group to handle the implementation and enforcement of the law and monitor the labor conditions of companies bidding, contracting and subcontracting with the city.