International News items
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Tuesday, May 25, 2004
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Preying On Human Cargo (Forbes.com). Forbes.com - Victor Zavala Sr. was in a panic. His sons and daughter-in-law had just been arrested by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's immigration division, part of a sweep last October of 250 illegals who held cleaning jobs at Wal-Mart stores in 21 states. Zavala waited on a call from Kenneth Clancy, who had put him and his family to work at the giant retailer in Old Bridge, Piscataway and Toms River, N.J., and would get them out of this horrendous scrape. Clancy did phone, says Zavala. But it was to tell him to put together a new crew to clean that evening. [Yahoo! News - Business] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
1:50:10 PM 
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Jobs threat hits north-east England textile factory. More than 100 jobs are under threat at a Wearside textile factory. The news is another blow to the north-east of England's struggling clothing industry, which has seen a spate of job losses over the past year. Bosses at the Dewhirst factory in Sunderland are to begun consultation with unions over the future of about 120 posts. The company is blaming falling orders and cheap foreign competition for the situation. BBC May 22 2004 1:41PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
1:49:22 PM
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Thursday, May 20, 2004
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Clashes erupt as three Andean nations open free trade talks with U.S. Colombia, Ecuador and Peru opened negotiations for a free trade accord with the United States Tuesday as anti-riot police clashed with protesters who say the pact would lead to job losses in the South American nations. Some 2,000 people marched through the Caribbean port city of Cartagena toward the conference center where the talks took place, holding signs that read "Colombia is not for sale" and "No free trade deal." San Francisco Chronicle May 19 2004 4:25AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
2:36:19 PM
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The brewery strike that is unnerving Norwegian beer drinkers. Norway's brewery workers have gone out on strike, and supplies may run out. With all production now at a halt, Norway cannot even import from neighbours Sweden or Denmark, because its truck drivers are also on strike. The 2,560 striking full-time brewery staff fear that a growth in temporary workers may undermine job security. BBC May 19 2004 4:06PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
2:36:00 PM
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Korean auto industry facing labors steep demands. Unions are demanding participation in company management and requesting that companies provide social welfare funds in addition to wage increases. Companies say they cannot accept such "infringements of managerial rights." The unions of four automobile companies under the Korea Metal Worker's Federation ¯ Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, GM Daewoo Auto & Technology and Ssangyong Motor ¯ made their demands at a joint press conference yesterday Joon Ang Ilbo May 19 2004 4:44PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
2:35:40 PM
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Immigrant Workers 'Helpful to UK Economy'. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said today that workers arriving in Britain from new member countries of the European Union were bringing useful skills and helping the UK. Mr Straw, speaking during a visit to Basildon, Essex, said that, provided immigrants from countries such as Poland paid taxes, they were not harming the British economy. PA News via The Scotsman Online May 19 2004 11:22AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
2:35:28 PM
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Slovak unemployment dips to 15.25 % in April.
The unemployment rate in Slovakia fell to 15.25 % in April, down from 16 % in March and 15.44 % one year earlier, according to figures released by Slovakia's Center for Labor, Social Affairs and Family.
The result was slightly better than preliminary estimates, which put the April jobless rate at 15.4 %. The number of job seekers ready to start work immediately fell 4.73 % to 399,309 in April.
The data for the past two months represent a renewed downward trend in unemployment, according to the center's spokesman, Peter Zemanik. Forecasts suggest unemployment could fall to under 15 % in May, he adds.
The Bratislava region again registered the lowest unemployment level of under 4 %, while the highest levels of over 30 % were seen in the districts of Rimavska Sobota, Revuca, Velky Krtis and Roznava.
Interfax Information Agency May 19 2004 12:37PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
2:34:41 PM
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Wednesday, May 19, 2004
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Ghettos in Denmark
Despite the country's long-held ideals of social equity and cradle-to-grave welfare, Denmark is increasingly becoming a socioeconomically polarized society. While the upwardly mobile and well-to-do are settling in comfortable residential neighbourhoods or privately rented apartments, the socially marginalized are stranded in ghettos with high concentrations of immigrants.
The trend was outlined in a new report by the Economic Council of the Labour Movement (AE), which was aimed at mapping the emergence of ghettos in Denmark. In 1982, 1.9 percent of the Danish population resided in what could accurately be termed "social ghettos." By 2002, that figure had swelled to 4.8 percent, comprising more than one out of four public housing complexes.
Some 250,000 Danes currently live in social ghettos, more than 30 percent of whom are classified as socially disadvantaged Copenhagen Post May 14 2004 9:41AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
10:50:49 AM
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Car plant closure in Australia to cost company $220m. MITSUBISHI Motors Australia will have to pay about $50million in employee entitlements and another $170 million in superannuation if it quits its two Adelaide factories. The 3500 employees of the plants in the southern suburbs will discover their fate on Friday, with the parent company confirming yesterday it would be revealing its long-awaited business plan in Tokyo then. news.com.au May 18 2004 10:09PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
10:44:22 AM
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Monday, May 10, 2004
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Korean Business Groups Reject Gov't Policies, Union Demands. The Executive deputy chiefs of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), the Korea Employers Federation (KEF), the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), and the Cooperative of Small-and-Medium Businesses Chosun Ilbo, Conservative daily of Seoul, South Korea fully rejected on Friday the government’s corporate policies that calls for limits on the share voting rights of financial service firms affiliated with conglomerates and the reintroduction of the right to track accounts by the Fair Trade Commission.
It also disapproved demands from the labor community, such as the union’s involvement in management and the transformation of irregular workers into regular workers, which will likely cause considerable conflict between management and the labor unions in future collective wage negotiations. [Breaking News Headlines from Around the World, Powered by Worldpress.org] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
12:01:21 PM
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Belgium set for massive pensions bill. BRUSSELS - In line with most of the rest of the developed world, Belgium is set to see spending on state pensions skyrocket over the next 30 years. Belgian Labour Minister Johan Vande Lanotte said on Friday that spending on pensions and care for the elderly would represent around 3.4 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) between 2003 and 2030. Expatica Belgium May 7 2004 3:28PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:57:05 AM
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Fiat Melfi: Unions Divided On Wages.
Melfi (Pz), May 7. - Second day of negotiations between Fiat and the Rsu at the Melfi factory, which were announced as preliminary. Yesterday the Lingotto delegation showed the company's offer to overcome the double night shift and the wage inequality in line with other factories. Regarding hours, there's substantial acceptance by union reps, the problem to solve is the pay increases, which Fiat would like to stagger and apply to financial improvements. This morning's meeting was due to start at 9.30am but the delegates still hadn't shown up. 750 workers were present at the factory (1300 for each shift) who also today will produce the Lancia Y and Punto. (AGI) - 071418 MAG 04 AGI Online May 7 2004 6:20PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:56:09 AM
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Small US towns, like Martinville Louisiana, look toward China to remedy job losses. After several trips with other officials to China, the town Mayor Eric Martin hopes to nab a Chinese auto parts manufacturer within the coming months. He also hopes the company, which he would not identify, will be just the first of other China-based companies to take up shop in the former Martin Mills plant. If all goes well, Martin expects as many as 500 jobs to be created, with thousands more possible in the future. Martin, like many other St. Martinville residents, blames the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for sweeping away 2,200 jobs at Martin Mills two years ago. But the mayor said he and other officials decided to look at NAFTA in a different way while seeking out recovery. [The Taipei Times: Business] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:55:28 AM
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Irish laborers found an early grave in Penn. together. William Watson and John Ahtes, two professors at Immaculata University, are looking for a mass grave believed to contain the remains of approximately 57 workers who died of cholera in 1832 while building a section of the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad in East Whiteland Township. Their efforts have been reported in various Philadelphia and Chester County media over the past few months. The Intelligencer May 7 2004 0:42AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:55:03 AM
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OECD economic indicator points up but shows signs of flagging. "Continued expansion lies ahead in the OECD area according to the latest composite leading indicators," the Paris-based organisation said in a statement Friday. "However, March data signal slightly weakening performance in the United States and the euro area but an improvement in Japan and Italy," it added. AFP via Yahoo! May 7 2004 3:40PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:54:21 AM
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Textile workers in Nigeria propose sector revival strategy. To revive the plummeting fortunes of the nation's textile industry, workers have called for a stakeholder's forum, to strategically map out measures, for improved business environment, on a sustainable basis. Indeed, officials of the National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) lamented that the ailing textile industry in the country holds dim prospect for the nation's economic recovery. Nigeria Guardian May 7 2004 3:48AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:53:57 AM
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Germany to create more apprenticeships in nanotechnology and biotechnology. German Minister for Education and Research, Edelgard Bulmahn, has launched her country's 'apprenticeship offensive 2004', saying that she sees particular potential for apprenticeships in the growth areas of microsystems technology, nanotechnology and biotechnology.
The government intends to target regions where the difference between the number of apprenticeships available and local demand is the highest, as well as those regions which have cut their number of apprenticeships by a higher than average number Cordis May 7 2004 2:01PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
11:53:42 AM
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Friday, April 23, 2004
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Nigeria: Airways Workers Chase Out MD, Others. Protesting workers of the ailing national carrier, Nigeria Airways yesterday added another twist to their recent activities when they chased out the airline's Managing Director, Mr. Jonathan Jiya and other top management staff out of office. The workers claimed their action was to force the management of the airline to source for their unpaid 12 months salary arrears and terminal benefits. AllAfrica.com Apr 22 2004 3:19PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
4:57:54 PM
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Labor Medal awarded to migrant worker. BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhuanet) -- The National Labor Medal, the highest honor for Chinese workers, has for the first time been awarded to the migrant worker before the International Labor Day. Bao Xianfeng, who came to work in the city from the countryside, has become the first migrant worker who won the medal for his outstanding contributions. He is now a group leader of a construction company in east China's Zhejiang Province. Xinhua News Agency Apr 22 2004 7:52AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
4:56:30 PM
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Global Poverty Down By Half Since 1981 But Progress Uneven As Economic Growth Eludes Many Countries. The proportion of people living in extreme poverty (less than $1 a day) in developing countries dropped by almost half between 1981 and 2001, from 40 to 21 percent of global population, according to figures released today by the World Bank. But while rapid economic growth in East and South Asia has pulled over 500 million people out of poverty in those two regions alone, the proportion of poor has grown, or fallen only slightly, in many countries in Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. World Bank Apr 23 2004 6:26PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
4:56:00 PM
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Thursday, April 22, 2004
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What German Prostitutes Want. Sex is big business in Germany. With some 400,000 prostitutes and an annual 1.2 million men who use their services, the yearly turnover has hit a massive €14 billion ($16.5 billion). But paid sex can be a nasty business. Two years ago the German government introduced a new prostitution law in what was an earnest attempt to protect prostitutes' working conditions and even offer them some protection against violence and exploitation. Deutsche Welle, International broadcaster of Cologne, Germany [Breaking News Headlines from Around the World, Powered by Worldpress.org] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
12:15:50 PM
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Nigeria's 'respectable' slave trade. Allan Little reports on how Nigerian society prefers to turn a blind eye to the problem of human trafficking. It starts with the promise of a better life. The parents are taken in. The children are persuaded. When they leave home they do so willingly, with some excitement, not trepidation. The trafficker has promised a good job, a schooling, a regular income. But that is not how it works out. [BBC News | Africa | World Edition] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
12:12:54 PM
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Friday, April 16, 2004
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UK border checks set for Belgium. AN agreement extending Britain’s borders to the Eurostar terminal in Brussels was expected to be agreed by Home Secretary David Blunkett today.
Mr Blunkett was due to finalise a deal with Belgian interior minister Patrick Dewael which will grant full powers to UK immigration officers on Belgian soil. Senior officials said it would allow them to "stay ahead of the game" in their campaign to keep illegal immigrants out of the UK. Edinburgh Evening News Apr 15 2004 1:08PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:44:23 AM
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The Changing Face Of Suburbia In South Africa. "Now a teeming suburb of 50,000, Rosettenville is a racial melange. Thousands have moved here from Soweto and other black and mixed-race townships, often buying homes from departing whites... The result is an ethnically diverse community that symbolizes the heralded successes — but also the enormous challenges — facing this country... Whites and blacks live side by side here in equal numbers and relative harmony. But crime has escalated, housing prices have sunk, schools are overcrowded, public transportation has become unreliable and joblessness shadows the streets of modest homes." Thu, 15 Apr 2004 11:00:20 PDT [PLANetizen: Front Page] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:43:48 AM
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Dutch Q1 unemployment 6.6 pct vs 5.0 pct yr-earlier (AFX News ). AMSTERDAM (AFX) - Unemployment in the first quarter stood at 6.6 pct, up from 5.0 pct a year earlier, the Central Bureau for Statistics said. After correcting for seasonal effects, the number of jobless stood at 483,000 in the quarter, up from 464,000 in the period Dec-Feb
The number of jobless has been increasing by 14,000 per month on average over the past six months, the CBS said
The number of people with employment of 12 hours or more a week in the quarter fell by 52,000 from a year earlier to 7.036 mln.FXstreet.com Apr 15 2004 8:55AM GMT [Moreover - Benelux news] [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:43:25 AM
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Hotel workers dispute in Cambodia continues, despite end of strike. Union officials in Cambodia say hundreds of workers at four top hotels have been prevented from returning to duty despite ending a nine-day strike over pay and conditions. The employees' union, the Cambodia Tourism and Service Workers Federation, says the hotels appear to be waiting for the dispute to go to arbitration on April 21.
ABC Online Apr 15 2004 2:30AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:41:46 AM
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French Unions Urged to Block Nestle Plans. French unions were today urged to refuse to accept work transferred from a Nestle factory in Britain which is set to close with the loss of over 100 jobs.
The Transport and General Workers Union, which is campaigning to save the plant at Staverton in Wiltshire, said their French counterparts were considering the request. PA News via The Scotsman Online Apr 15 2004 12:45PM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:40:16 AM
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Central American and Mexican consulates to aid Calif immigrants. Consuls from Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica and Mexico say they're uniting forces to improve the quality of life for Hispanic immigrants in California. The consuls announced a plan Wednesday to work with U.S. officials and community groups to provide joint education and legal assistance in areas of health, immigration and labor rights. San Francisco Chronicle Apr 15 2004 7:40AM GMT [Janice Kimball's Radio Weblog]
9:39:54 AM
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