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সোমবার, ২৬ নভেম্বর, ২০১২
Animals Are Literally Being Dissolved Alive Because of Acid in the Ocean
Ruth Whippman: How Corporate America Is Turning Into a Cult and Why It's Harming the American Employee
I used to work for a large organization. One afternoon, all the staff in my department were herded into a giant conference room, and informed that due to budget cuts within the year over half of us present would lose our jobs. Fresh from a leadership course at the University of Corporate Doublethink, our bushy-tailed manager "reframed" the concept for us. "Don't see this as a negative" he advised. "We like to see this as us empowering you to take on new opportunities."
Over the last decade or so, a growing disconnect has developed between the bizarre and almost cult-like rhetoric and practices that companies use with their staff, and the increasingly grim reality of being an employee in modern day Corporate America.
For example, anyone stumbling upon the Walmart careers website might be forgiven for thinking that Google had malfunctioned and directed them instead to the Scientologists, whose recruitment site features a collection of testimonials virtually indistinguishable in their tone of robotic devotion.
Over at "Walmart People," Lois Givens, Personnel Manager at store number 992 assures us: "If you live your whole entire life according to the Walmart culture and three basic beliefs, life becomes a lot easier." Shana Bailey, Director of Store Operations emotes: "To this day, I continue to grow and learn, and the Walmart family is always there for me every step of the way," while Patricia Graham of the Distribution Centers adds: " Walmart is my Life (capitalization her own). When I think about it, it's amazing how many aspects of my life are touched and made better by Walmart."
For those of us whose lives have yet to be touched by the transformative miracle of the out of town superstore, these testimonials may seem a little excessive. But these are not rogue sycophants in the company ranks. According to Michael Bergdahl, former "Director of People" for Walmart's Headquarters, and now an international speaker and consultant on the company's practices, the creation of "cult-like commitment" and devotion to the so called "Walmart Way" among its employees is the explicit aim of the company's intensive staff training program for new recruits. And lest employees forget what they have learned on the course, loyalty is reinforced daily in stores with the "Walmart cheer," a compulsory devotional chant.
It's not just Walmart. Corporate songs are common, "reframing" disappointment for those whose lives have taken the road marked "middle manager" rather than the one marked "rockstar." "We built this Starbucks on Heart and Soul," "Blue Box Values Are the Best, I Work For American Express" and perhaps most uplifting, Big Four accountancy firm Ernst and Young's reworking of gospel anthem "Oh Happy Day" which replaced the lyrics: "When Jesus washed my sins away" with the competing message "When Ernst and Young showed me a better way."
Once they have whipped their staff into a frenzy of corporate sycophancy, employers are increasingly expecting them to turn their whole selves over to the company's message and aims, and are employing a range of sophisticated psychological and practical techniques to achieve this.
Silicon Valley firms encourage their employees to work ever longer hours by turning offices into playgrounds, complete with slides, graffiti walls and foosball tables. Free dinner and on site dry cleaners, dentists and hairdressers are standard ways of ensuring that staff never leave the building. Facebook made the perfect metaphor for the overworked American employee into a reality with their flagship 'Insanity Wolf' treadmill desk, which allows employees to keep running to a never materialising destination while they continue to work. I met (a rather tired looking) Facebook employee recently who was thrilled to be provided with pizza and "allowed" to work overnight on a company project of his choice at no extra pay.
The boundaries between self and company are further blurred as employers increasingly encroach onto personal territory in order to keep their staff firmly in the workplace and not outside it. Biotech firm Genetech will organize babysitters for its staff rather than have them take time off to stay at home with a sick child. Consulting firm Deloitte offers backup care for an elderly parent or grandparent. Human Resources philosophers have ditched the mantra "work life balance" for the more sinister (and employer friendly) "work life integration."
Corporations now aim to identify and satisfy employees' emotional needs as well as their financial ones. Major white collar employers such as UBS, American Express, KPMG and the law firm Goodwin Proctor have instituted "happiness training" for staff, drawing on a combination of psychological research and ancient religious traditions. Other employers sponsor their staff to go on courses such as the hugely popular Landmark Forum series, several full days in a group setting in which bathroom breaks are discouraged and participants are invited to share personally disturbing life events such as relationship problems and family breakdowns with the group and then go through a signature process to "heal" these issues and find lasting peace.
But while loyalty to an employer and pride in one's work can be important planks of self esteem, the increasing merge of self and company is a cultural shift that poisonously favors the employer over the employee. The more the relationship is characterized by unswerving devotion rather than genuine bargaining power, the more employers are able to encourage staff to work harder and longer, and the more they are able to suppress any meaningful dissent.
It's a strategy that's working. For all this cultish rhetoric, the power balance between employer and worker has not been loaded further in the employer's favor since the second world war. Executive pay and profits have skyrocketed while wages have stagnated and vast numbers of blue-collar workers are living below the poverty line, dependent on food stamps and government assistance just to get by. These two facts are not unrelated -- a JPMorgan economist calculated that the majority of increased corporate profits between 2000 and 2007 were the result of "reductions in wages and benefits."
Despite all this talk of "empowerment" American workers have now lost any real bargaining power they once had with their employers to change these conditions. Union representation, with its promise of better wages and benefits for workers, has reached a record low. The Walmart workers' strike comes after decades of methodical discouraging of union membership by their employers. They are not the only ones. Among others, Starbucks ("we're called partners because it's not just a job, it's our passion") lost in Federal Court after being accused of illegal union busting efforts and firing baristas for union activities.
White collar workers are affected by this trend too, with punishingly long hours at no extra pay now the norm. The average American employee spends a staggering month longer on the job each year than their 1969 counterpart and vast swathes of companies including Bank of America, Starbucks and IBM have been implicated in lawsuits for failing to pay their office staff appropriate overtime. Easy for bosses to dismiss as a necessary pulling together in tough economic times, this is a trend that long predates the recession and one from which those at the very top have only benefited.
It would seem that the more Corporate America demands cult-like devotion from its employees the worse it is able to treat them, and the less likely they are to complain. Yet given that the vast majority of Americans stand to lose rather than gain from this type of relationship, it is worth injecting a bit of healthy scepticism back into our assessment of our employers' motives. Now that really would be empowering.
?
Follow Ruth Whippman on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ruthwhippman
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ruth-whippman/how-corporate-america-is-_b_2171040.html
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112 killed in fire at Bangladesh garment factory
Relatives of garment factory workers killed in a fire cry as they come to collect bodies from a mortuary in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a late Saturday night fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. (AP Photo/Khurshed Rinku)
Relatives of garment factory workers killed in a fire cry as they come to collect bodies from a mortuary in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a late Saturday night fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. (AP Photo/Khurshed Rinku)
Bangladeshi firefighters battle a fire at a garment factory in the Savar neighborhood in Dhaka, Bangladesh, late Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. (AP Photo/Hasan Raza)
Bangladeshi police officers stand guard outside a burnt garment factory outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a late Saturday night fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. (AP Photo/Khurshed Rinku)
A Bangladeshi police official inspects the burnt garment factory in the Savar neighborhood outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday Nov. 25, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a late Saturday night fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday.(AP Photo/ khurshed Rinku)
A Bangladeshi police officer stands guard outside the burnt garment factory outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012. At least 112 people were killed in a late Saturday night fire that raced through the multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday. (AP Photo/ khurshed Rinku)
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) ? At least 112 people were killed in a fire that raced through a multi-story garment factory just outside of Bangladesh's capital, an official said Sunday.
The blaze broke out at the seven-story factory operated by Tazreen Fashions late Saturday. By Sunday morning, firefighters had recovered 100 bodies, fire department Operations Director Maj. Mohammad Mahbub told The Associated Press.
He said another 12 people who had suffered injuries after jumping from the building to escape the fire later died at hospitals. The death toll could rise as the search for victims was continuing, he said.
Local media reported that up to 124 people were killed in the fire. The cause of the blaze was not immediately clear, and authorities have ordered an investigation.
Bangladesh has some 4,000 garment factories, many without proper safety measures. The country annually earns about $20 billion from exports of garment products, mainly to the United States and Europe.
Relatives of the factory workers were frantically looking for their loved ones. Sabina Yasmine said she saw the body of her daughter-in-law, who died in the fire, but had no trace of her son, who also worked at the factory.
"Oh, Allah, where's my soul? Where's my son?" wailed Yasmine, who works at another factory in the area. "I want the factory owner to be hanged. For him, many have died, many have gone."
Mahbub said firefighters recovered 69 bodies from the second floor of the factory alone. He said most of the victims had been trapped inside the factory, located just outside of Dhaka, with no emergency exits leading outside the building.
Many workers who had taken shelter on the roof of the factory were rescued, but firefighters were unable to save those who were trapped inside, Mahbub said.
He said the fire broke out on the ground floor, which was used as a warehouse, and spread quickly to the upper floors.
"The factory had three staircases, and all of them were down through the ground floor," Mahbub said. "So the workers could not come out when the fire engulfed the building."
"Had there been at least one emergency exit through outside the factory, the casualties would have been much lower," he said.
Many of the victims were burned beyond recognition. The recovered bodies were kept in rows on the premise of a nearby school.
Army soldiers and paramilitary border guards were deployed to help police keep the situation under control as thousands of onlookers and anxious relatives of the factory workers gathered at the scene, Mahbub said. He would not say how many people were still missing.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed shock at the loss of so many lives in the blaze and asked authorities to conduct thorough search-and-rescue operations.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association said it would stand by the victims' families.
Bangladesh's garment factories make clothes for brands including Wal-Mart, JC Penney, H&M, Marks & Spencer, Carrefour and Tesco.
Separately, a flyover under construction fell onto a busy market, leaving at least 14 people dead including three construction workers in southeastern city of Chittagong, an official said Sunday.
Local fire official Abdul Mannan said the concrete structure collapsed on Saturday night, and authorities recovered the bodies by Sunday morning from under the debris in the second-largest city after Dhaka.
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রবিবার, ২৫ নভেম্বর, ২০১২
Ryan throws for 353, Falcons beat Bucs by 1
By FRED GOODALL
AP Sports Writer
Associated Press Sports
updated 3:48 p.m. ET Nov. 25, 2012
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - The Atlanta Falcons stumbled into a hole, only to find a way to escape again.
Matt Ryan threw for 353 yards and overcame two critical turnovers by leading another late touchdown drive to rally the Falcons to a 24-23 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.
Ryan teamed with Julio Jones on an 80-yard TD midway through the third quarter, but the NFC South leaders found themselves trailing 23-17 after the Bucs marched for a touchdown, then forced a fumble by Ryan to set up a field goal that put the Falcons in catchup mode with 10 minutes to go.
Michael Turner's 3-yard TD run put Atlanta ahead for good with 7:55 left. Connor Barth missed a 56-yard goal for Tampa Bay (6-5) in the closing minutes, and the Bucs' four-game winning streak ended when Josh Freeman's desperation pass fell incomplete in the end zone with no time remaining.
The win enabled the Falcons (10-1) to keep pace with Houston for the NFL's best record. Turner also scored a fourth-quarter TD that helped the Falcons overcome six turnovers to beat Arizona 23-19 last week.
Doug Martin scored on a pair of 1-yard run for the Bucs, however the rookie who began the day leading the NFL in total yards from scrimmage was limited to 50 yards rushing on 21 carries.
Barth kicked field goals of 22, 42, and 48 yards, the latter giving the Bucs their six-point lead after cornerback E.J. Biggers sacked Ryan to force a fumble. Ryan threw a second-quarter interception - his sixth pick in two weeks - that led to Barth's field goal that made it 10-10 at the half.
Ryan completed 26 of 32 passes, including four straight on the drive that Turner finished with his TD run. Jacquizz Rodgers had a 5-yard TD run in the first quarter, and Jones finished with six receptions for 147 yards despite playing on a sore right ankle that limited him in practice.
Ryan started the game with 10 straight completions before Ronde Barber's interception and 28-yard return to the Atlanta 31 led to Barth's first field goal.
The Falcons drove to the Tampa Bay 4 in the closing seconds of the half, but wasted an opportunity to regain the lead when Matt Bryant hooked a 22-yard field-goal attempt wide left as time expired. The Atlanta kicker missed a 48-yarder with 8 seconds left, giving the Bucs one more chance to pull out what would have been their first signature victory under first-year coach Greg Schiano.
Atlanta struck quickly after Barth's second field goal put Tampa Bay up 13-10. Ryan found Jones racing up the right sideline, and the receiver broke free from cornerback Leonard Johnson to continue into the end zone. The Bucs regained the lead when Martin scored his second TD on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Freeman finished 19 of 30 for 256 yards. Vincent Jackson had five catches for 96 yards.
Atlanta converted six of eight first downs and outgained the Bucs 239 yards to 105 in the opening half, yet it was 10-10 at the break because the Falcons settled for a field goal after holding the ball for more than seven minutes of its first scoring drive, Ryan's interception and Bryant's missed field goal.
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? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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More newsGetty ImagesCutler returns with roar for Bears
??Jay Cutler threw for 188 yards and a touchdown after missing a game because of a concussion, and the Chicago Bears broke it open early in a 28-10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Peyton's 2 TDs lead Broncos to 6th straight win
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Peyton Manning threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns, and the Denver Broncos rallied to beat the woeful Kansas City Chiefs 17-9 on Sunday for their sixth straight win.
Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/49957761/ns/sports-nfl/
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Video: How did TODAY anchors spend Thanksgiving?
>>> we have had a great thanksgiving holiday. we're reminiscing here. we're going to share a little bit of ours with you. i was tasked with taking pictures as we all were. i failed at my assignment. so i'm just apologizing.
>> that's beautiful!
>> thankfully, melissa, one of our producers made it look really good. the wine does not belong to sawyer and weston.
>> but you tried a video.
>> i tried a video to get them to say what they're thankful for. my oler son was super sweet. he said i'm thankful for my elf on the shelf. and my younger one says i'm thankful for dirty.
>> which sounds like turkey.
>> my son made that centerpiece.
>> this was the first thanksgiving my twin girls could play a full round of candy land , so there they are without throwing the pieces around. we played some rock band . we did an asian dinner. we went to a children's museum in philly where you can dress up as different professions, and they dressed up as doctors, where i got a check-up. i think we have a shot of that, too. there we are. got my ears checked. the bad thing was they said where's our co-pay?
>> but they did clear you to work today.
>> yes, that's right.
>> the picture of health .
>> well, my family came down from boston. my in-laws now. and that is a group of all of us. and way, way, way in the back is the parade. this is my first time spending thanksgiving in new york city with the parade, and i didn't realize how all the streets are closed off. i'm like oh, we'll just walk up to it. we saw papa smurf . we saw spiderman. so the kids were happy.
>> this is your first married holiday. like me this is my first married holiday. but because of work, we didn't have time to travel so. we volunteered for an organization in new york that provides home and shelter to lgbt youth. that is the before picture of the yams. that is the after.
>> who was cooking?
>> this was a combination. if you saw that shot, we had patrick, who was taking everybody to the gun show. [ laughter ]
>> two tickets, right?
>> but ally sheedy was in that picture. the actress and her daughter. it was a new oven.
Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/49947504/
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Shadyside Celebrates ?Small Business Saturday? ? CBS Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ? More than 70 local stores in Shadyside teamed up today to offer deals for ?Small Business Saturday.?
One Shadyside boutique, Pursuits, is offering 20 percent off handbags for anyone who brings in a gently-used purse to donate to an organization called POWER that helps women starting over.
Pursuits owner, Maria McManus, says the support from locals is what keeps her business afloat.
?I have a clientele that truly comes in to support me,? McManus said. ?And that?s why I?ve been successful and we have been here for nine years.?
The city also decided to waive meter enforcement Saturday to attract shoppers.
The shopping day was created by credit card giant American Express to help small businesses struggling during the recession.
This is the third year for ?Small Business Saturday.?
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Source: http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2012/11/24/shadyside-celebrates-small-business-saturday/
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Iran: U.S. Navy Carried Out 'Illegal And Provocative' Acts In Persian Gulf, Sea Of Oman
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (R) speaks at a news conference as Iran's Ambassador to the United Nations Mohammad Khazaee listens on September 26, 2012 in New York. (DON EMMERT/AFP/GettyImages)
UNITED NATIONS -- Iran is accusing the U.S. Navy of carrying out "illegal and provocative acts" in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman.
In identical letters to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council, Iran's U.N. Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee said the Navy repeatedly violated the country's airspace.
He cited flights over the coastal areas of Bushehr on seven occasions in October and most recently a U.S. drone flight on Nov. 1 which disregarded all radio warnings and penetrated Iranian airspace.
The letters, circulated Friday, urged Ban to warn the U.S. "against the continuation of acts in violation of international law and of the adverse consequences of any provocative and dangerous acts for which the United States government would be held responsible."
The White House had no comment Friday night.
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