NewsBusiness, Labor The Big Beverage Problem A report released last Monday by British NGO War on Want and Unite, Britain’s largest union, “A Bitter Cup,” documents the precarious lives of tea processors and pickers in the developing world. While UK’s socialist daily, the Morningstar, covered the report, it has been for the most part ignored by the media… George WarnerAugust 4, 2010
NewsLabor American Apparel Won’t Hire You Unless You’re Hot Nice scoop by Gawker. The website published documentation today of American Apparel’s “Full Body Head to Toe” Employment Policy — that requires… Marissa Colon-MargoliesJune 9, 2010
InvestigationLabor, World Mexico’s Squid Sweatshops Much of the squid sold in the United States was processed in horrendous conditions in Mexico. Welcome to the Santa Rosalia factory in Baja California Sur. Virginia Sole-SmithThe ProgressiveMay 28, 2010
AnalysisBusiness, Labor Regulators Charged with BP Oversight Used Porn, Crystal Meth on the Job No comment necessary. Nice story, AP. Esther KaplanMay 26, 2010
InvestigationImmigration, Labor Bound for America Enticed by unscrupulous recruiters, saddled with thousands of dollars of debt, and working in exploitive, often abusive conditions, guest workers in the United States are legal — but vulnerable to a modern form of indentured servitude. John BoweMother JonesMay 5, 2010
NewsLabor Newspaper Layoffs Aren’t Color-Blind Massive job loses over the last couple of years have fallen particularly hard on people of color, hitting groups already plagued by high unemployment. It turns out this trend applies to the news business too. As daily newspapers continue to hemorrhage staff, these groups are losing out at a higher rate, according to the annual newsroom census by the American Society of Newspapers and Editors. Nicholas KusnetzApril 15, 2010
InvestigationLabor, Politics Timed Out on Welfare, Many Sell Food Stamps In Connecticut, which has the shortest welfare time limit in the country, desperate families are selling food stamps for pennies on the dollar to cover basic necessities. Seth Freed WesslerColorlines.comFebruary 16, 2010
AnalysisLabor 2009: Worst year for journalists I shouldn’t state this publicly, but I’m beginning to feel immune to stories about journalists’ deaths… Chantal FloresFebruary 5, 2010
InvestigationBusiness, Labor Making Ends Meet in the Great Recession The story of Tisha, an unemployed mother of three in Connecticut, who’s facing a social safety net shredded further by the economic crisis. Seth Freed WesslerLink TVFebruary 3, 2010
InvestigationBusiness, Labor Can Labor Revive the American Dream? From Wal-Mart to Home Depot to the Chamber of Commerce, the business lobby has declared war on the Employee Free Choice Act — to the tune of tens of millions of dollars. Esther KaplanThe NationJanuary 7, 2009