Chevron faces shareholder pressure over $19 Billion Ecuador Judgment
Chevron, the oil and gas giant, is facing increasing pressure to settle a $19bn liability case in Ecuador. In 2011, after an eight-year trial, an Ecuador court found the company liable for dumping billions of gallons of toxic waste into the Amazon River and imposed the $19bn dollar fine. Since the ruling, John Watson, CEO of Chevron, has embarked on a series of legal actions, through the U.S. federal courts, against the fine. Chevron claims that it is the victim of fraud in Ecuador. The company now faces mounting pressure from shareholders, and the U.S. Congresswoman, Janice Schakowsky, to settle the case. (CSR Wire)
Employees
Factory workers strike in Indonesia’s industrial heartland
Tens of thousands of factory workers took part in a general strike across Indonesia on Wednesday, calling for higher wages, more social security and an end to employers’ use of temporary contracts that circumvent the country’s strict labour laws. Trade unions claimed that more than 2m workers would go on strike in 80 industrial estates in 24 cities in a day of industrial action. Many factories in Indonesia’s industrial heartland around Jakarta closed for the day as trade unionists addressed rallies attended by thousands of workers. There have been dozens of major strikes this year, including a number where workers were taken hostage by strikers. (Financial Times*, The Globe and Mail)
South African strikes spread to iron ore
Two fresh wildcat strikes have broken out in South Africa’s mining sector as the industry’s worst crisis for years continues to escalate. Kumba Iron Ore, a subsidiary of Anglo American, said 300 workers at its northern, Sishen mine – South Africa’s biggest iron ore mine – refused to continue work on Tuesday night. It is the first industrial action to affect iron ore in the country since the unrest began at Lonmin platinum mines in August. Harmony Gold, previously unaffected by the industrial action, also said workers at its Kusasalethu mine, in eastern South Africa, had embarked on a wildcat strike. It is now estimated that more than 75,000 miners are now on strike, with the industrial action affecting companies including Gold Fields, Anglo American Platinum and AngloGold Ashanti. (Financial Times*)
Policy & Research
UN report says organised crime is responsible for up to 90 percent of illegal logging
A new report from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has indicated that organised crime is responsible for 50 to 90 percent of illegal logging in tropical countries in the Amazon basin, Central Africa and South East Asia. According to the study, the illegal timber trade accounts for 15 to 30 percent of the logging industry and is estimated to net between $30-$100bn per year. Taking into account the numerous concealment techniques used by the cartels, the report found that illegal logging rates were rising rapidly. (Huffington Post)
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