Somboon Srikhamdokhae
Bankok, Thailand
While working in the spinning and ironing room of a large cotton textile factory, Somboon lost 52% of her lung capacity from the cotton fibers in her work environment. The first person to sue a Bangkok employer for inadequate safety conditions in the workplace, she led 350 workers in a class action suit, which held employers responsible, including reparations for the damages sustained by the workers.
She created a self-help network for people afflicted with occupational illnesses which also acted as a lobbying group to draw national attention to issues that had thus far been considered taboo in Thailand.