Cotton production involves the most child labor and forced labor in the world, according to the 2014 “List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor” by the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs.
Overall, 126 goods are produced annually by child labor and 55 goods produced through forced labor. Most of the goods, like cotton, are found in common items like T-shirts or are among popular foods, such as melons and rice.
Read More
Read More
Walmart workers, many who earn poverty-level wages and have irregular and part-time hours, have mobilized for justice and fairness at Walmart over the past few years and now are calling on Walmart to end retaliation against workers who are asking for $15 an hour and full-time hours. Now, workers’ allies in communities around the nation are joining them in massive demonstrations on Black Friday (Nov. 28), the biggest shopping day of the year.
California’s labor unions stood with veterans this November to commemorate Veterans Day 2014 with service projects and a free community celebration attended by 9,000 people in Orange County. Attendance nearly tripled this year as Southern California residents came to the OC Fair & Event Center to honor our nation’s heroes and enjoy free food, music and activities for the family.
Read MoreKim Moore
As baboomers age and the need for long-term care rises, caregiving has become one of the fastest growing occupations in America. And most people – ninety percent of us – indicate that we would rather be cared for at home than a nursing home or facility.
Read MoreBy Niyaz Pirani
SAN PEDRO—Armed with buckets of simple green and scores of rags, union members volunteered Saturday, Nov. 8, to be the USS Iowa crew for a day, scrubbing down bunks and cleaning walls in the 72-year-old battleship.
More than 40 members of Southern California’s labor unions—including Orange County Employees Association, United Food and Commercial Workers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and several others—came to commemorate Veterans Day and honor our nation’s heroes by giving back.
Read More
Walmart heirs. An oil tycoon. An Texas-based Enron trader. Venture Capitalists. It’s not surprising that this motley group is using their millions to try to influence our elections. What is surprising to some is where they’re putting their avalanche of campaign cash this fall. They’re pouring millions into the State Superintendent of Public Instruction race.
Just six days to go. We’ve heard a lot about the low-turnout projections. But in this final week, labor unions are out in force doing what we do best: talking to workers face to face and on the phone about the importance of exercising our fundamental right to vote. Voting gives a voice. It gives us a seat at the table. It’s the great equalizer to money and power.
Read More
IBEW
At Sacramento-based company Sunoptics, employees craft products that are ahead of their time – high-tech skylights that can help replace most electric lighting with natural sunlight for offices and homes.
Companies from Coca-Cola and Siemens to local school districts and police departments are using the systems to cut energy bills, slash carbon emissions and reduce pollution.
But while Sunoptics is making huge strides toward a greener future, many of its policies regarding its workforce have been stuck in the past.
Read More
The editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle thinks a Silicon Valley Congressman should speak for the billionaires who have a voice and want an even louder one.
Perhaps thanks are due the board for making the choice between Mike Honda and Ro Khanna so clear. If we want a Congress member, it argues,who will be a voice for “those high-tech titans (Eric Schmidt of Google, Sheryl Sandberg of Facebook, Marissa Mayer of Yahoo among them)” we should follow its recommendation and dump Mike Honda, and install Ro Khanna.
Read More