Labor

Local TV Tales: Pro-Sweatshop Fake News and Paid Smokespeople

by Diane Farsetta — March 19, 2007 - 12:07pm

After federal authorities accused Francesco Insolia "of running a sweatshop to fulfill $220 million in military contracts and employing 361 illegal immigrants," he closed his New Bedford, MA, factory to reporters. In an affidavit filed in conjunction with an immigration raid on the factory, U.S.

Main Source: 
South Coast Today (Massachusetts), March 17, 2007

Indian Apparel Companies Gag Labor Groups with Court Filings

by Jonathan Rosenblum — March 5, 2007 - 3:45pm

A judge in Bangalore, India has reaffirmed a gag order against labor organizations and supporters who seek to criticize labor conditions at factories in the region, reports the Dutch newspaper, Trouw. Workers have alleged that Fibres and Fabrics International (FFI) and Jeans Knit (JKPL), which produce garments for the European and U.S.

Main Source: 
Clean Clothes Campaign, February 19, 2007

Detailed Corporate Social Responsibility Reports Rare, Publicity-Driven

by Jonathan Rosenblum — December 11, 2006 - 11:19am

Only a small proportion of annual corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports -- perhaps 15 to 20 percent -- provide "very thorough" accounts of real ethical problems faced by companies. Even that measure comes from within the CSR report industry, in interviews with writers Andrew Brengle of KLD Research & Analytics and Jeff Erikson of SustainAbility Inc.

Main Source: 
The Christian Science Monitor, December 4, 2006

Satirical Program Axed After Conservative Complaints

by Bob Burton — November 1, 2006 - 2:11am

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, a government-funded public broadcaster, has axed a popular weekly satirical current affairs program after one of its co-hosts, Corinne Grant, participated in protests against draconian changes to industrial relations laws.

Main Source: 
The Age (Australia), November 1, 2006

Wal-Mart / Edelman, Part Two: Will the Real Bloggers Please Stand Up?

by Diane Farsetta — October 20, 2006 - 4:05pm

O'Dwyer's has more revelations about the multifaceted fakery engaged in by Wal-Mart and its PR firm, Edelman.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily (sub req'd), October 20, 2006

Korea's Happy Fun Free Trade Love Corner

by Diane Farsetta — September 26, 2006 - 10:53am

On September 1, the South Korean government established the "Korea-U.S.

Main Source: 
The Korea Herald, September 22, 2006

Accentuate the Positive, While Getting Rid of Unions

by Diane Farsetta — August 24, 2006 - 9:44am

PR Week's "Toolbox" column provides tips on how to increase the effectiveness of various PR techniques. But in the August 15, 2006, issue, the feature hints at union-busting techniques. The question is how "to reduce the level of acrimony, improve communications, and facilitate a more pleasant outcome" to labor disputes.

Main Source: 
PR Week (sub req'd), August 15, 2006

Labor Lobby Spending on Nukes Revealed

by Diane Farsetta — August 21, 2006 - 12:02pm

As the Center for Media and Democracy noted previously, British government funds were used "to campaign in favour of Tony Blair's new nuclear power programme." Scotland's Sunday Herald reports on the more than £15,000 spent on "Nuklear21," a "campaign group that brings together workers from five trade unions at nuclear plants across th

Main Source: 
Sunday Herald (Scotland), August 20, 2006

Wal-Mart Front Group Loses Front Man

by Diane Farsetta — August 18, 2006 - 2:50pm

Andrew Young, the former civil rights leader turned chair of the front group Working Families for Wal-Mart, resigned from the pro-Wal-Mart group, after making remarks he now calls "demagogic" and "racist shorthand." During an interview with the Los Angeles Sentinel, Young said Wal-Mart should cause small local stores to go out of b

Main Source: 
Los Angeles Times, August 18, 2006

Labor Department Official Does Punditry On the Side

by Diane Farsetta — August 17, 2006 - 3:54pm

"'Conservative commentator' is not an appropriate label, by itself, for someone in her position, even if she is not speaking on government time or is speaking for herself and not the department," PBS ombudsman Michael Getler wrote of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor Karen Czarnecki.

Main Source: 
PBS Ombudsman Column, August 16, 2006
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