Workplace Safety & Health

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Corporate Responsibility, In the News, Retail, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values, Walmart, Workplace Safety & Health

H&M Takes Responsibility for Workplace Safety in Bangladesh

May 13, 2013

DSC_0147H&M has accepted binding building safety standards at Bangladeshi garment factories following the recent fire and building collapse that killed more than 1,000 garment workers in Bangladesh. By signing the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, H&M is taking the high road and putting people before profits at their supplier factories.

Thousands of UFCW members work in the retail industry, including at H&M, and the UFCW will continue to honor the workers who died or were injured in Bangladesh by supporting workers here and abroad who are struggling to protect their basic rights, and by calling on other retailers that have a strong presence in Bangladesh—such as Walmart—to do the right thing and sign this agreement.

Corporate Responsibility, Food Safety, Packing and Processing, Retail Food, Social Justice, UFCW Stewards, Workplace Safety & Health

Remembering Those Who Have Fallen

Apr 25, 2013

This Sunday, April 28th is Worker Memorial Day, in which we take time to remember and honor those who have lost their lives on the job.  With the tragedies of the past two weeks fresh on our minds, this year’s Worker Memorial Day is particularly somber and offers us a chance to rededicate ourselves to the fight for safer workplaces.

Last week, in West, Texas, a fertilizer plant exploded, killing at least 15 workers and emergency responders.  The amount of deadly chemicals stored at the plant was thousands of times beyond the mandated limit, and inspections of the factory had not been performed in several years.

This week, news of a collapsed garment factory in Bangladesh that has killed at least 300 workers saddened us all.  Reports that cracks in the building’s foundation found yesterday were ignored and that management still forced employees to come to work are alarming.  This incident comes only months after more than 100 workers perished at another Bangladesh garment factory, when a fire broke out and locked doors (done by management) trapped workers inside.

Workers at a Nicaraguan Walmart supplier were recently physically attacked by a paid mob when they protested about being fired for trying to organize for a voice on the job.

It’s time that companies stopped putting workers’ lives at risk in order to make a profit.  The working people who make corporations successful deserve basic human rights, and deserve safe working environments.

Take a moment to remember the victims of workplace fatalities, and help us continue to fight for worker safety. If you have a story of a friend or loved one lost or injured on the job that you would like to share, please send us a message on our Facebook page.

2013 Worker Memorial Day Break Room Flyers

Worker Memorial Day Flyerworkermemorialdia    workermemorialday2  workermemorialdia2  workermemorialday3  workermemorialdia3

Corporate Responsibility, Economic Justice, Organizing, Retail, Social Justice, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values, Walmart, Workplace Safety & Health

More Worker Abuse at a Walmart Supplier…

Apr 05, 2013

Reposted from Warehouse Workers United:

 

Source: Corporate Action Network

Exactly one month ago, on March 4, garment workers in Nicaragua were brutally beaten during a peaceful protest when the company they work for – SAE-A, a Walmart supplier – paid a mob of more than 300 other workers to attack these employees, using scissors, metal pipes, and other weapons.

Sign the petition.

This courageous group of workers is fighting to improve their working conditions, demand respect and win better wages. They are trying to form a new union, but in the process they are experiencing extreme retaliation. Workers have been bribed and 16 have been illegally fired in the company’s efforts to silence them. The brutal beating was the last straw.

Sign the petition and tell Walmart to demand its suppliers reinstate the workers, end all violent and illegal practices inside the factory and reimburse workers for medical bills and stolen property that resulted from the violent attack March 4.

Background

More than 8,000 workers produce camisoles, T-shirts and lycra clothing for Walmart and other retailers at this one garment factory inside an export processing zone in Tipitapa, Nicaragua. They are paid less than $1 per hour. They are mistreated, regularly yelled at, denied trips to the bathroom and more.

The Worker Rights Consortium, which monitors garment factories, conducted an investigation of the violent attack. Facts in this article and petition are taken from its report, which you can find here.