Here are the scenarios from class:
A new trash disposal site will be created that will increase recycling and also incinerate trash to create a new source of energy. This facility will need to be located very close to the population center, and may increase emissions of some harmful chemicals.
A new law proposes to stop construction of new buildings in a greenbelt that extends for five miles around your home town. This greenbelt would allow for regrowth of forests, new parks, and allow for more local agriculture. The law would also limit available housing and likely force many poorer residents to leave in search of affordable housing.
A grocery store chain is seeking to source more meat locally, and has proposed a project to build several buildings around town to raise livestock in confinement. The animals would live indoor in close quarters, but it would spare land for nature, and save on fuel for shipping the meat into town from some place farther away.
An oil and gas exploration company has approached your town about buying or leasing the rights to drill for and extract fuels form underneath your town. This will create income, some jobs, and potentially lower the cost of heating and electricity. It will also significantly change the local landscape for years to come.
Assignment (in class) -
As a class, you will be debating the following question: “When companies outsource their manufacturing, do they have a responsibility to use factories that provide safe and fair environments for their workers?” Assignment rubric
You will be divided into 1 of 2 groups: the affirmative or the negative (groups of 3). Some recommended resources to examine include:
Affirmative arguments
Bloomberg Businessweek. Overseas Sweatshops Are a U.S. Responsibility.” The “pro” section of this article makes the case that U.S. companies should care about worker rights in overseas factories.
China Labor Watch. “Company Codes of Conduct.” This page provides a list of links to corporate codes of conduct for Nike, Disney, Walmart and others.
China Labor Watch. “Reports.” Reports review numerous undercover factory investigations in China and give examples of abuses in various industries.
Chu, Kathy, and Michelle Yun. “Wages, Conditions Improve as Workers in China Form Unions.” USA Today, November 19, 2010. This article describes efforts by Chinese workers to improve their own conditions.
Democracy Digest. “China Boosting State-run Labor Unions to Dampen Militancy?” China’s government plans to unionize 65 percent of the country’s foreign-invested enterprises by the end of 2011.
Ravich, Madeline. “Can International Attention Improve Factory Conditions?” Qn. This article argues that efforts by U.S. companies to improve factory conditions make a difference.
China Labor Watch. “Reports.” Reports review numerous undercover factory investigations in China and give examples of abuses in various industries.
Rosoff, Robert J. “Beyond Codes of Conduct.” The China Business Review. This article points out limitations of corporate codes of conduct and factory inspections and outlines alternative strategies for addressing labor rights problems in China.
United Nations. “Global Compact Principle Two.” This principle describes actions that businesses can take to ensure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses.
Negative Arguments
Bloomberg Businessweek. “Overseas Sweatshops Are a U.S. Responsibility.” The “con” section of this article argues that protecting worker rights in China is not the responsibility of U.S. companies.
FoxNews.com. “Third World Workers Need Western Jobs.” This article makes the case that poor countries benefit from jobs provided by U.S. companies.
Kristof, Nicholas D., and Sheryl Wudunn. “Two Cheers for Sweatshops.” The New York Times Magazine, September 24, 2000. This article claims that sweatshops provide a path to prosperity for impoverished workers.
Tofani, Loretta. “American Imports, Chinese Deaths.” The Salt Lake Tribune, October 21-24, 2007. This series argues that China needs to figure out its own labor issues.
