Stories about Labor from November, 2006
El Salvador: Gilberto Soto Murder, Two Yeras Later
Tim Muth says that the Teamsters union in the US issued a press release urging US Secretary of Condoleeza Rice to pressure the Salvadoran government to reopen the investigation into the murder of labor activist Gilberto Soto.
Russia: “DPNI-Light”
Sean's Russia Blog writes that in Russia, “The race struggle has replaced the class struggle, and the ‘illegal’ stands in for the ‘kulak’.”
Taiwan: handicapped VS. foreign maids
A report at interlocals.net by torrent on the recent debate between handicapped alliance and foreign maids on granting the migrant domestic workers basic labour rights in Taiwan.
Iran:Syndicate Leader Arrested
Kosoof, a leading photo blogger and journalist has published a photo of Mansour Osanlou, president of Tehran’s bus drivers syndicate. Kosoof reports that Osanlou was arrested in the streets of Tehran, near Resalat Square, following some shootings by undercover agents.
Senegal: Garbage Handlers’ Working Conditions
Appalled at the working conditions of the employees of a local garbage collection company, Blog Politique du Senegal writes (Fr): “Quick to denounce slavery … we refuse to see the quasi-slavery endured by many in our society and in our families. These quasi-slaves whose masters we are.”
Singapore: Retrenchment Compensation
Blueheeler in Singapore applauds the newly lauched compensation scheme for retrenched workers in Malaysia and says that Singapore should implement similar policies.
South Korea: labour movement history
Jamie at interlocals.net has written an article on the recent massive labour strike with a video explaining the labour condition of South Korea from the labour union perspective in the past 10 years.
Bangladesh: Strikes, livelihood and politics
Journal of a disturbed mind comments on the politics of strike (oborodh) in Bangladesh, linking these strikes to political parties and loss of livelihood. “To me, the situation is like bank robbery, where people are taken hostage to meet the demand.”
Corporate Social Responsibility: The blogosphere reacts
If you missed the live webcast of Reuters’ Corporate Social Responsible panel yesterday, you can click here to view the full-length archived video. Stephen Frost live-blogged it on the CSR Asia blog. We had a sizeable group of bloggers from a range of countries on the live IRC chat –...
North Korea: migrant labour
R. Elgin in Marmot's Hole discusses about the North Korean migrant labour conditions in Czech, who are producing luxurious car to support the North Korea's economy.
Croatia: Legalization of Prostitution
Lovorka Marinovic, coordinator of the trafficking prevention program of international organization IOM, says (HRV): Research conducted by IOM shows an enormous lack of relevant data about trafficking despite the issue's relevance for the region. According to the collected info, about 1,300 of the total 6,000 women that were sold in...
Are companies being socially responsible in your country? Let us know!!
On Thursday November 9th, at 6:30pm EST (23:30 GMT / 07:30am Friday Beijing time), Reuters will be hosting a live conversation about corporate social responsibility at its New York headquarters. According to the special web page built for the event: “Corporate responsibility is increasingly important in today’s global landscape, with...
Bangladesh blog buzz
Here are the latest buzz from blogs on Bangladesh: * Diaspora: Zubaer in Drishtipat blog gives an insight into the Bangladeshi Diaspora worldwide and how their remittances are contributing to Bangladesh's economy. Ulysses at Back to Bangladesh, an NRB himself had decided to return to Bangladesh despite many apprehensions and...
Bangladesh: Long hours in Tokyo
Even as people from South Asia send remittances back home, Drishtipat talks of the wave in the 80s when the promise of money had people from Bangladesh going abroad. “He told us how he’d gone to Shobuj and Maroof’s flat and found 7 men sleeping in 2 small rooms. He...
Cambodia: Life of a Karaoke Girl
Vutha describes the life of a girl working at a Karaoke bar in Cambodia. Koraoke bars are a common sight across South East Asia and East Asia and they usually employ young girls as hostess to provide company to the mostly male clientele.
Hong Kong: the story of a cleaning woman
ESWN translates a feature story on the 12 hours working day of a cleaning woman in Hong Kong. On average she earns HKD$10 (USD$1.2) per hour. Yet the government is still hesitated to pass the law on minimum wage protecting cleaning women and security guards.
Puerto Rico: Playing by the rules
The pressure to “keep up with the Jimenezes” and the notion that one should “stay within the system” may be highly incompatible in the Puerto Rican context, says Gil The Jenius.
