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Firm fined $14,000 over death [New Zealand] - An Auckland company [Orthotic Centre (New Zealand) Ltd, which supplies artificial limbs and other devices] was fined $14,000 yesterday after an employee was strangled to death when his tie became tangled in a grinding and milling machine. (New Zealand Herald, 11 Apr. 2003)

Hindustan Lever Will Export Mercury Waste to USA [India] - Pollution control authorities in the southern Indian state of Tamilnadu have ordered Hindustan Lever Limited, a subsidiary of Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever, to export to the United States 286 tons of waste contaminated with mercury from its controversial thermometer factory in Kodaikanal, now closed. The company has been directed to decontaminate the site and its surroundings to global standards. (Nityanand Jayaraman, Environment News Service, 31 Mar. 2003)

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2003:

Firm fined $14,000 over death [New Zealand] - An Auckland company [Orthotic Centre (New Zealand) Ltd, which supplies artificial limbs and other devices] was fined $14,000 yesterday after an employee was strangled to death when his tie became tangled in a grinding and milling machine. (New Zealand Herald, 11 Apr. 2003)

Hindustan Lever Will Export Mercury Waste to USA [India] - Pollution control authorities in the southern Indian state of Tamilnadu have ordered Hindustan Lever Limited, a subsidiary of Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever, to export to the United States 286 tons of waste contaminated with mercury from its controversial thermometer factory in Kodaikanal, now closed. The company has been directed to decontaminate the site and its surroundings to global standards. (Nityanand Jayaraman, Environment News Service, 31 Mar. 2003)

Home health care exec hit with $1 million verdict in sex discrimination case [USA] - A federal jury in Minneapolis has awarded a former Mallinckrodt Inc. executive $1 million in lost wages and punitive damages in a sex discrimination lawsuit in which she alleged the company paid her less than her male counterparts but gave her heavier workloads...Mallinckrodt, a subsidiary of Tyco International, manufactures and markets home health care products. (Sherri Cruz, Star Tribune [Minneapolis-St. Paul], 12 Mar. 2003)

14 Organizations to Cut GHGs 4% by 2006 - Fourteen organizations, including several large corporations, have entered into a legally binding agreement to cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 4 percent within the next four years. The 14 entities announced last week that they are forming the Chicago Climate Exchange...The 14 entities include American Electric Power; Baxter International Inc.; the city of Chicago; DuPont; Equity Office Properties Trust; Ford Motor Company; International Paper; Manitoba Hydro; MeadWestvaco Corporation; Motorola, Inc.; STMicroelectronics; Stora Enso North America; Temple-Inland Inc.; and Waste Management, Inc. (GreenBiz.com, 23 Jan. 2003)

2002:

EYESIGHT: Deals Could Bring 10 Million Pairs Of "Adaptive Glasses" To Africa -...Silver [Oxford physics professor Joshua Silver] plans to sell up to 400,000 adaptive glasses in Ghana through his company, Adaptive Eyecare, in a deal with the WHO and World Bank. Another deal, for 9.3 million pairs for South Africa, is in the works. (UN Wire, 16 Dec. 2002)

Companies Will Pay for Polluting New Jersey Water [USA] - Nineteen polluters will together pay a total of $3 million to compensate the state of New Jersey and East Hanover Township for contamination of the local drinking water supply...The settling parties are: Voltronics Corporation; G & F Management; Vincent and Irene Muccione; Viscot Industries, Inc.; MCE/KDI Corporation; Colgate-Palmolive Company; Deforest Investment Co. L.L.C.; Philomena Gasparine; Estate of Sylvio Gasparine; Prime Fabricators, Inc.; Township of East Hanover; Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation; Dorine Industrial Park Partnership; Precision Rolled Products, Inc.; Phelps Dodge Corporation (f/k/a Cyprus Amax Mineral Company); GTE Operations Support Incorporated; Ingersoll-Rand Company and Royal Lubricants Company, Inc. (Environment News Service, 25 Nov. 2002)

'Heart and Soul' dramatizes HIV/AIDS and other issues for millions in Africa - The intertwined lives of two African families, one well-off and the other poorer, is the setting of "Heart and Soul," a prime-time television and radio soap opera that is bringing issues such as HIV/AIDS, poverty, human rights and development to a potential audience of 50 million to 75 million....Beiersdorf - Nivea (East Africa), the Coca Cola Africa Foundation and Western Union are private sector sponsors. (U.N. Development Programme, 3 Oct. 2002)

Remarks at [U.S. State Department] Awards for Corporate Excellence - Chindex does more than sell healthcare products and services; Chindex has brought the American spirit of volunteerism and corporate public service to China's healthcare sector, especially to Chinese orphans...Coca-Cola Egypt's contributions to Egyptian society are as widespread as the Coca-Cola logo. Take education for example; thanks to Coca-Cola Egypt's employee literacy program (U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, 1 Oct. 2002)

Experts mull global pact to cut mercury use - Scientists from around the globe began a week-long conference yesterday aimed at shaping a programme to cut back the use of mercury - a toxic substance which poisons and cripples hundreds of people annually...Widely used for decades in lamps, batteries and electrical equipment because it is an excellent conductor of heat, as well as in thermometers and dental fillings, it can cause permanent damage to the brain, nervous system and kidneys. UNEP says it has also been used in some pesticides and pharmaceuticals, as well as in some skin-lightening creams. (Reuters, 10 Sep. 2002)

US Senate votes to ban mercury fever thermometers (Reuters, 9 Sep. 2002)

Environmental Fiduciary: The Case for Incorporating Environmental Factors into Investment Management Policies - In this report, we show that fiduciaries who manage funds for institutional investors such as pension funds, foundations and charitable trusts should incorporate environmental factors into their portfolio management policies. [includes reference to DuPont, ST Microelectronics, IBM, Baxter Intl, Smithfield Foods, US Liquids, Weyerhauser, Georgia Pacific, ChevronTexaco, Marathon Oil, Deutsche Telekom, Nestle, Southern California Gas, ITT, Textron, Corning, Whole Foods, Hains Celestial] (Susannah Blake Goodman, Jonas Kron & Tim Little, The Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment, 21 Aug. 2002)

1200 latex allergy victims a year need action from glove makers to government [UK] - reports on a 'latex summit' hosted by the TUC in May, which brought together nurses, latex allergy sufferers, Malaysian glove manufacturers, unions, health sector employers and government agencies. (Trades Union Congress [UK], 13 July 2002)

Senate panel votes to ban mercury thermometers [USA] (Reuters, 28 June 2002) 

900 Lehigh Valley B. Braun Workers to Vote on Union Representation With Steelworkers June 20-21; Charges Filed Against German Medical Supply Company for Unfairly Pressuring Workers Against Union [USA] -...The Steelworkers Union has already filed Unfair Labor Practice charges against B. Braun with the NLRB, charging the company with unfairly pressuring, intimidating and threatening workers in an effort to discourage a pro-union vote. (United Steelworkers of America, 6 June 2002)

Workers Demand Independent Health Assessment [India]: Employees from the now-closed controversial Hindustan Lever Thermometer thermometer factory in Kodaikanal today condemned the company's efforts to stifle their right to demand an independent medical and health evaluation for the mercury contamination caused due to mercury exposure at the thermometer factory. (United Citizens Council of Kodaikanal, Palni Hills Conservation Council, and Greenpeace India, 7 Mar. 2002)

Labor Group Condemns Brutality [Indonesia]: A workers’ rights group [Indonesian National Front for Labor Struggle, led by respected unionist and former political prisoner Dita Indah Sari] has accused factory managers in several cities of using the notorious Pemuda Pancasila thugs-for-hire group to intimidate and attack laborers involved in trade union movements...Dita said workers at PT Maja Agung Latexindo [manufactures surgical and other sterile latex gloves, owned by US-based Shamrock Manufacturing Company] face constant intimidation from the local Pemuda Pancasila branch. (Laksamana.Net [Indonesia], 18 Feb. 2002) 

Asian Bank allocates $150,000 to end child labour [Pakistan]: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) would help the government to effectively implement the national policy and plan of action to eliminate child labour...According to reports, the soccer industry has already been cleansed of the child labour while surgical instruments and carpet industry are government's next targets. (Business Recorder [Pakistan], 8 Feb. 2002)

Drug Store Chain to Pull Mercury Thermometers: Responding to a shareholder request, pharmacy chain Eckerd announced it would stop selling mercury fever thermometers early this year...The largest remaining retailer to sell mercury thermometers is Kroger...Other large retailers that continue to sell mercury thermometers include Cardinal Health's Medicine Shoppe franchise, Publix and Fred's Pharmacies. (GreenBiz.com, 23 Jan. 2002)

Greenwash + 10: The UN's Global Compact, Corporate Accountability and the Johannesburg Earth Summit [includes reference to Unilever] (Kenny Bruno, CorpWatch, 24 Jan. 2002)

Phase-out of Mercury Thermometers Continues to Rise: In response to shareowner action campaign, most large pharmacy chains are voluntarily phasing out mercury thermometers. The campaign is now turning to the health care industry. (William Baue, SocialFunds.com, 10 Jan. 2002) 

2001:

J&J Accused of Pay Discrimination: Two Johnson & Johnson employees have sued the health care giant, accusing it of paying its black and Hispanic workers less than white colleagues and failing to promote them despite a 4-year-old internal study that said it discriminated against minority employees. Washington lawyer Cyrus Mehri, who oversaw similar racial discrimination cases against Texaco and Coca-Cola Co., and civil rights attorney Johnnie Cochran filed the federal lawsuit Thursday, seeking to represent the company's thousands of Hispanic and black workers. The company said in a statement Friday that it takes the charges in the lawsuit seriously and will ``investigate them fully.''  But it also said it has long promoted workplace diversity. (Amy Westfeldt, Associated Press, 16 Nov. 2001) 

Unilever's Mercury Fever [India]: The fifth in our series of articles on Global Compact companies examines Unilever's response when caught dumping toxic mercury waste from a thermometer factory in Southern India earlier this year. The Anglo-Dutch company recently closed the factory. Community members, however, allege that the multinational has downplayed the dangers of mercury and misled the public in an attempt to cover up the truth. Indian journalist Nityanand Jayaraman reports for CorpWatch. (Nityanand Jayaraman, special to CorpWatch, 4 Oct. 2001)

Greenpeace targets India's HLL for mercury pollution: Environmental lobby group Greenpeace and former employees of Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) demanded yesterday the Indian consumer goods company pay for healthcare costs from alleged mercury pollution caused by its thermometer unit. (Reuters, 25 Sep. 2001) 

Inadequate OSHA [U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration] Standard for Hazardous Metal Places Tens of Thousands of Workers in Danger: Agency Must Act Now to Prevent Further Deaths from Beryllium Exposure, Public Citizen, PACE Say - The government should immediately lower workers’ exposure to beryllium, Public Citizen and the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy Workers International Union (PACE) said today in a petition filed with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), because the metal, commonly used in the manufacture of sporting goods, dental equipment and airplane parts, is directly linked to a fatal lung disease. (Public Citizen, 4 Sep. 2001)

Surgical Instrument Manufacturers Association, ILO sign accord to end child labour: An agreement between the Surgical Instrument Manufacturers Association (Sima) of Pakistan and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has been signed to eliminate child labour from the Sialkot surgical industry (Business Recorder [Pakistan], 22 Aug. 2001)

Unilever admits to toxic dumping: will clean up but not come clean: Finally conceding to citizens groups and Greenpeace, the Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever has agreed to permanently close its mercury thermometer factory in India, the largest in the world. While the company will implement a cleanup of 5.3 tons of mercury wastes it illegally dumped at a local scrapyard, it still refuses to accept responsibility for local citizens and workers at the factory in Kodiakanal, who may have been exposed to the highly toxic metal. (Dyan M. Neary, Earth Times News Service, 13 July 2001)

WHO [World Health Organization] calls on private sector to provide affordable hearing aids in developing world: 250 Million People in the World affected by Hearing Loss - 25-fold decrease in hearing aid prices in developing countries possible (World Health Organization, 11 July 2001)

Air Liquide [manufacturer of industrial and medical gases] Agrees to Settlement with U.S. Resolving Environmental Violations in 18 States: The Justice Department and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced a ground-breaking Clean Air Act settlement with Air Liquide America Corporation to replace refrigerant chemicals that destroy the earth's stratospheric ozone layer with environmentally friendly alternatives. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 21 June 2001)

Unilever's Dumping Fever [regarding thermometer factory in India and mercury-contaminated toxic wastes] (Nityanand Jayaraman, Multinational Monitor, Apr. 2001)

Unilever admits to dumping of mercury in Indian tourist town (Greenpeace, 22 Mar. 2001)

Greenpeace accuses Unilever of negligence over mercury poisoning of Indian tourist resort (Greenpeace, 7 Mar. 2001)