Labour agency vows to help workers (02-01-2009) In the face of a massive worker lay-off, Mai Duc Chinh, vice chairman of the General Confederation of Labour, talks to Tin Tuc [the News] about the problem and what needs to be done. Could you elaborate on the current wave of lay-offs? It is estimated that 22,000 workers have lost their jobs so far. Most of the jobs are in the export-oriented sector whose orders have dried up as a result of the financial crisis. It is pregnant women and mothers who suffer the most because no employer is willing to accept them at the moment. Such cases number 352. However, the situation is not so alarming given that up to 20,000 laid-off workers have managed to find jobs elsewhere, leaving the actual rate of unemployment this year not much above past years. Let's take Ho Chi Minh City, for example. Enterprises have recruited 5,000 of the 7,000 laid-off workers. So the actual number of jobless workers fluctuates between 1,700 and 2,000. It is rumoured that … [Read more...] about Labour agency vows to help workers
Workers compensation how much does it pay
BP gears up for well ‘kill’
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, Aug 2, 2010 (AFP) - BP geared up Monday for its long-awaited "static kill," hoping to plug the Gulf of Mexico oil well and take a major step towards ending the region's worst ever environmental disaster. Heavy drilling fluid, known in the trade as "mud," is to be pumped down into the well on Tuesday morning to shut the giant gusher that has threatened the Gulf's fishing, tourism and oil industries with financial ruin. Engineers performed a dry-run of "injectivity tests" on Monday, but BP then said it had to delay the last-minute tests before its kill shot due to a hydraulic leak in the cap sealing the well. The leak was not expected to significantly delay the planned Tuesday start of the kill operation. "It is anticipated that the injectivity test and possibly the static kill will take place Tuesday," BP said in a statement. Even as authorities aimed to shut down the Macondo well once and for all, they gave a more precise picture Monday of how much crude it … [Read more...] about BP gears up for well ‘kill’
Down where the death squads live: How Human Rights Watch covers for companies in Colombia
Banacol workers load a banana boat. Banacol is the successor-in-interest to Banadex, the former subsidiary of none other than Chiquita Brands which pled guilty to paying paramilitary death squads $1.7 million between 1997 and 2004, and supplying them with 3,000 AK-47s, the Interchurch Justice and Peace Commission (IJCP) explains. Photo: upstart.bizjournals.com On the CounterPunch masthead are these words proudly written, "Tells the Facts, Names the Names." It's because CounterPunch lives up to these words that I happily write for it and proudly donate to it. Human Rights Watch (HRW), on the other hand, fails to name the names in its recent report on Colombia entitled, "The Risk of Returning Home, Violence and Threats against Displaced People Reclaiming Land in Colombia." [1] And, this is much to HRW's discredit. Before diving into the report and its grave shortcomings, some general comments about HRW are in order. For years, I have been concerned about what appears to be HRW's … [Read more...] about Down where the death squads live: How Human Rights Watch covers for companies in Colombia
Workers back from Libya seek aid
VietNamNet Bridge - Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thanh Hoa spoke with Thoi bao Kinh te Viet Nam (Vietnam Economic Times) about support needed for workers evacuated from Libya. All of the Vietnamese that were working in Libya arrived safely home more than a month ago but they remain anxious due to a lack of support and work. Why have labour export businesses failed to liquidate contracts and compensate their workers when they committed to do so in two weeks after the workers return? … [Read more...] about Workers back from Libya seek aid
“Though I criticize sharply, no one’s yet said it’s ‘too much’”
National Assembly deputy Tran Hong Viet says frankly that heâÂÂs "always on the side of the weak." This is another interview in VietNamNetâÂÂs "Know Your Deputies" series. VietNamNet: You are one of our âÂÂfull time deputies,â but unlike most, you live in your home province, rather than in Hanoi. What are the pros and cons of this? Deputy Tran Hong Viet: The biggest advantage is that I live near the people so I can closely monitor their aspirations. We deputies who live in our constituencies may be a bit disadvantaged in understanding the âÂÂbig picture,â but weâÂÂre able to see more clearly how policies can best be put into practice at the local level. VietNamNet: Are there any distinctive aspects to being the deputy leader of a Mekong Delta province delegation in the National Assembly? Viet: I donâÂÂt have opportunity to meet voters in other regions, but I doubt that their aspirations differ a lot from those of my own constituents. All … [Read more...] about “Though I criticize sharply, no one’s yet said it’s ‘too much’”