Some Good News Re: Mother Earth

Finally! An Obama action I can get pumped up over! Our president is taking action to protect millions (up to 58 million!) of acres of forest! Read a press release from the Wilderness Society about it here.

Also the horrendous and exploitative conglomerate Nestle is getting feedback on its destructive practices where it hurts - in the wallet! Food and Water Watch reported a 2.4 percent dip in sales of Nestle products - the company's water products (including Poland Springs, Deer Park, Arrowhead, etc.) dropped 3.7 percent, which is unprecedented! GO RESPONSIBLE CONSUMERS GO!

And the UN is considering legislating water as a human right, which would have considerable legal repercussions, especially in countries where water supplies are drained and the natural ability to produce clean water is stymied (think Fiji). Apparently PepsiCo and Connecticut Water have already adopted "fair water" practices that can set good examples for other corporations. (For the full article read here.)

Take Action for Global Labor

From LabourStart

JUST ANOTHER COG IN THE MACHINE

"A union can make a big difference to people's perceptions of a job," says John Wood of the Trades Union Congress in Britain. And he's made this clever little video which has got to be seen by anyone who needs a union in their workplace but doesn't yet know that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLGoKqPAhSk

Spread the word - forward this message.

INDONESIA: NESTLE WORKERS NEED YOUR SUPPORT

Since 2007, the union at the Nescafé factory in Panjang has been struggling to negotiate two basic improvements to their contract. Nestlé refuses and has attempted to undermine the union's legitimacy by intimidating members and leaders, attempting to establish a rival organization and pressuring workers to join it. For nearly two years workers have resisted. You can support then by sending a message to Nestlé:

http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/campaigns/show_campaign.cgi?c=410

INDONESIA: DONATIONS NEEDED FOR LOCKED-OUT TOSHIBA WORKERS

The International Metalworkers' Federation is asking for donations in support of struggling Toshiba Indonesia union members who have been locked out of the plant with no wages or healthcare benefits since April. More than 700 workers went on strike after the company refused to recognize the collective labour agreement signed both by the union and management and fired 15 elected union leaders. For more details and to make your donation, please go here:

http://www.imfmetal.org/index.cfm?c=20041&l=2

PAKISTAN: VICTORY AT UNILEVER

A settlement between the IUF and Unilever has secured the creation of new permanent positions for all the union-supported Action Committee members at the company's factory in Rahim Yar Khan:

http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/dbman/db.cgi?db=default&uid=default&ID=6016&view_records=1&ww=1&en=1

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY

This week's Book of the Week is a tremendous resource for unions facing health and safety issues. To learn more and order your copies, go here:

http://www.labourstart.org/bookshop/?p=71