Politicians, please take note: regulation works – National Consumers League

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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

Today’s New York Times featured a piece about conservatives attacking the Environmental Protection Agency. Never mind that a substantial majority of Americans are concerned about air and water pollution and largely trust the E.P.A.

Conservative presidential candidate and member of Congress Michelle Bachmann drew applause ten days ago at a rally in Iowa when she declared: “I guarantee you the EPA will have doors locked and lights turned off, and they will only be about conservation. It will be a new day and a new sheriff in Washington, DC.”

Sorry to upset your apple cart, Ms. Bachmann, but it just so happens that regulation works. One of my favorite examples is the dramatic reduction in highway deaths over the past decade. Have we become safer drivers? I don’t think so. Have cars become safer and have we been more successful in cracking down on drunk driving? Absolutely.

How’s this for a statement of fact: Americans are less likely to die on the highway today than at any time since the middle of the Truman Administration (that was 1948-1952, 59 years ago) The number of people killed in accidents dropped to 32,788 in 2010, the lowest since 1949, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In fact, the 3 percent decrease in traffic fatalities since 2009 occurred even as drivers put nearly 21 billion more miles on their cars than they had the year before. Imagine: the death rate has declined by 25 percent since a peak of 43,000 in 2005. The reason for this reduction: stronger drunk driving laws, mandatory safety standards on vehicle for both crash protection and crash avoidance, including head and side air bags, better seat belts, head rests and crush zones in cars. Add anti lock brakes and rollover prevention (known as “stability control”) have all contributed to safer cars and thousands of lives saved. And guess what – all of these safety features came about as a result of regulation. EPA prevents our cities from being engulfed by smog and keeps our water clean and safe to drink, especially for children.

This talk about closing the EPA or any other regulatory agency is reckless, ill-informed, and not supported by the American people. Politicians should look elsewhere in their quest to garner votes.

First lesson of the school year: planning healthy lunches – National Consumers League

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As the first day of school looms closer and the school year routine begins to reassert itself, the age-old question returns: what to put in those school lunches?

Rather than sending your kids off with healthy items you hope they’ll eat, packing lunch with your child is a great way to ensure you include not only healthy items, but healthy items that get eaten. Whether you pack on a daily basis, or only occasionally send your child with a homemade lunch, keep these important points in mind:

  • Pack a safe lunch. Ensuring a safe lunch means keeping hot foods hot and cold foods cold, from the time your child leaves the house until he/she sits down to eat. Use a thermos for hot foods, such as soup, and include a cold pack with foods that need to stay chilled. If possible, pack your child’s lunch in an insulated bag.
  • Meet your child’s caloric needs. Children’s caloric needs vary greatly, depending on age, activity level, and other factors. Talk to your child’s pediatrician to get a general estimate of what his/her caloric needs are, and aim to provide one third of those calories at lunch time.
  • Pack foods your child will eat. The nutritional quality of the lunch you pack means nothing if your child refuses to eat it (or trades components away for more appealing options). Brainstorm with your child to come up with healthy options that he/she wants to eat. See if dinner leftovers, soups, or salads appeal to your child. If he/she is tired of sandwiches or more traditional lunches, think in terms of smaller “snacks” that together create a healthy meal.

If your child buys lunch at school, view it as an opportunity to talk about choosing healthy options when faced with a range of choices.

For a complete set of tips on planning healthy school lunches, click here.

Brand Yourself: Running your own personal public relations campaign – National Consumers League

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By Alex Scheider, LifeSmarts and Public Policy Intern

It’s the Internet age. Who do you want to be?  As it turns out, you have choices.  Take a look at these tips on how to brand yourself in the age of social media.  Making a conscious, informed decision about what kind of Internet user you want to be will save you from potential embarrassment and disappointment down the road.

What goes in the cloud, stays in the cloud

It’s a truism of the digital world we live in: adding information to the ‘cloud’ is easier than removing it.

Automated archive robots at archive.org are hard at work every day keeping a record of what was online in the past, with the goal of never losing data.  Newspaper archives now stretch back to the early 1990s and most websites no longer delete old content, leaving it live for Google to retrieve at a moment’s notice.

As editor of my college newspaper, I often receive requests from alumni to remove certain information from our newspaper’s archives. Our ethics policy disallows such action in order to promote our newspaper as a community paper of record, but the onslaught of such requests acts as a reminder that what goes online really does not go away anytime soon.

Take a proactive approach

Taking a proactive approach to your online presence is crucial as employers increasingly Google first, interview later.

Google is the gateway to first impressions.  Ideally, you should be the only person who appears in the top ten results in that search, giving others a positive impression of your work.

There are many ways to do this.  The easiest is to own a website, although avoid vanity.  A clean website that tells a bit about you and some well written, researched and edited blog posts or articles would be great.

Avoid poor representations of your work.  Journalists should avoid professional or ethical quandaries such as mixing opinion and news writing, artists should only post their best work and employees should avoid negative comments about current and past employers.

Use social media responsibly

Opening a LinkedIn account and choosing a recognizable user name will help you gain visibility on the web.  On the other hand, Facebook and Twitter can work against you.  Never post anything you wouldn’t want your boss to see and always attend to privacy settings.

American resumes do not often include pictures, due to the possibility of discrimination.  But no one will know if an employer takes a look at your online photos. Keeping this in mind, avoid posting pictures on the Internet that give a negative impression of yourself or your work.

News stories and the press

On the off chance that the media comes knocking on your door, possibly because you won the Lifesmarts competition, speak as though every sentence you say could be a quote because every sentence could in fact be a quote.  This includes high school or college newspapers.  Even if you support an opinion that could be considered controversial, think to yourself, should I share such an opinion and if I do share it, am I ready to be defined by this opinion on an Internet search?

Avoid at all costs

Whatever you do, remember that when you publish something publicly, anyone can see it, so proofread everything and avoid spelling and grammatical mistakes.

Strengthening the American middle class – National Consumers League

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By Michael Finch, NCL Public Policy Intern

Earlier this month, three of the NCL interns (me, Alex and Ben) attended a hearing held by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee called “Building the Ladder of Opportunity: What’s Working to Make the American Dream a Reality for Middle Class Families.” For the first part of the hearing, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis spoke about the Department of Labor’s efforts to rebuild a strong middle class.

Secretary Solis emphasized the importance of education and training in the effort to rebuild the middle class. A company represented in the second part of the hearing was a perfect example of this. IceStone, a recycled glass and concrete surface manufacturer, provides their workers with a living wage (starting at $10 an hour), and stresses the importance of professional development. All workers are given opportunities to improve their job skills (whether relevant to their current position or not) and therefore earn an even higher wage shortly after joining the company. The wage gap between their lowest-earning employee and their CEO is only ten times, an impressively small difference in an economy where the gap is usually closer to 300 times. Although IceStone only has a small number of employees, hopefully this model can be refined and used by more businesses in the future, both small and large.

One issue that Secretary Solis stressed that was of particular interest to us was the high youth unemployment rate. Young people are entering the workforce at much lower rates, and those who do manage to find employment encounter a high turn over rate. She pointed out that the lack of jobs for young workers is most likely caused by older workers having to wait longer to retire. This is just one entry in a long list of reasons young people should support bolstering our country’s safety nets for older Americans, but that’s an issue I could write a whole separate blog post about.

Back on the topic of young workers: Secretary Solis highlighted a heartening story about the company Jamba Juice, which agreed to provide 2,500 jobs to young workers as a part of the Department of Labor’s *Summer Jobs USA challenge. When Secretary Solis visited Jamba Juice, they informed her that they have actually provided 2,700 jobs to young workers so far and would be willing to participate in similar programs in the future. As Secretary Solis put it, “I think once we begin a discussion with businesses about what we’re faced with, people will give it some thought and open up to those opportunities.” The Department of Labor had hoped to facilitate opening up 100,000 summer jobs for young people, and they’ve so far reached 80,000.

Another dismaying effect of the decline of the middle class mentioned by several hearing participants is the increasing wage gap between white workers and their minority counterparts. According to a new Pew Research Center study, white workers make around 20 times more than African-American workers, and 18 times more than Hispanic workers. This gap is the largest it has been since the government started collecting this data 25 years ago.

Secretary Solis suggested that increased training and professional development could also be a solution to this specific problem. She also emphasized the importance of helping workers to pinpoint and develop important skills and credentials that could make them more valuable to employers. This way, workers will be able to obtain, and retain, stable employment.

As Committee Chairman Tom Harkin pointed out, politicians on both sides of the aisle understand that the middle class is a vital part of keeping America great, and they acknowledge that a lack of opportunity for the middle class is bad for everyone. While the parties may vary on the specifics of cause and solution, they need to work together to figure out the best way to solve this pressing problem.

*Links are no longer active as the original sources have removed the content, sometimes due to federal website changes or restructurings.

Consumer concerns emerge with yet another food illness outbreak – National Consumers League

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By Alex Schneider, NCL Public Policy Intern

Last Wednesday, at the request of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), food manufacturer Cargill announced a massive recall of 36 million pounds of ground turkey due to possible contamination from Salmonella.  Already, a 65-year-old Northern Carolina woman died due to the outbreak, and 77 people have reported falling ill, with one-third ending up in the hospital.  The outbreak has highlighted two consumer concerns related to detection of Salmonella and the use of antibiotics in the food supply.

The need for new testing procedures for salmonella

As reported by CBS News, after the first illness was reported in March and the first signs of an outbreak appeared in May, investigators were able to determine a link between Cargill ground turkey and the outbreak in July.  Inevitably, consumers, industry observers and the media will question why the recall was announced five months after the first reported illness.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) sent a petition to the USDA in May that would have declared four strains of Salmonella to be ‘adulterants.’  The four are – Salmonella Newport, Salmonella Hadar, Salmonella Typhimurium and the strain present in the current outbreak, Salmonella Heidelberg –and  have all been the cause of serious food illness outbreaks.

Under this classification, testing before the product goes to market would be required to identify potential contaminants, as is currently required in testing meat for E. coli O157:H7.  The classification would also mean that selling products with these strains of Salmonella would be illegal, the goal being to stop contaminated meat from ever reaching the marketplace.

Concerns over livestock antibiotics

The second big concern is that Salmonella Heidelberg is resistant to several antibiotics, including ampicillin, streptomycin and tetracycline, as described in a report by NPR.  Today, farmers use 29 million pounds of antibiotics, or four times those prescribed to humans, to get animals to grow more efficiently before their entrance into the food market.

The side effect – antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria  – poses considerable risks, as evidenced by this most recent outbreak of Salmonella.  Although alternative antibiotics exist to treat people who do get sick, this problem has the potential to get worse.  As the Food and Drug Administration has stated, medically important antibiotics should be avoided in the food industry.

NCL strongly supports the CSPI petition calling for a “test and hold” program for the four strains of Salmonella before meats are shipped out to consumers and make people sick, or even worse, kill them. NCL also calls upon the FDA to prohibit the use of medically important antibiotics in animal feed because of the very problem we see with Salmonella Heidelberg,  it’s resistant to treatment by specific antibiotics.

The lasting relevance of the Fair Labor Standards Act – National Consumers League

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By Ben Judge, NCL Public Policy Intern

Last month, in the Education and the Workforce subcommittee on Workforce Protection in the House of Representatives, there was much talk about the changing times, with and certain members calling for “modernization” of one of the most important workers rights laws ever passed—the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). FLSA was passed as one of the New Deal provisions of 1938, covers over 130 million workers, and controls how many hours someone can be required to work in a week.

If you benefit from overtime, minimum wage, or have children who are not working in heavy industry, then this law directly affects you.

How the FLSA protects workers and why the Republicans find it wrong
The FLSA protects workers by limiting the number of hours that can be worked under a normal hourly wage to 40 hour a week.  Whenever someone works over 40 hours they are entitled to overtime.  However, Republicans believe that the traditional 40-hour workweek outlined in the act isn’t flexible enough for the 21st century worker, although the FSLA already allows for a pretty flexible schedule.  Republicans would like the see the act “modernized” by allowing companies to exempt more workers from the FSLA, and bring more workers on as independent contractors.  Republicans says that with more workers exempt and their schedules more flexible that there will be an increase in employment and an increase in economic growth.  To counter that argument, although there could be an increase in employment, the wages of those employees would be much lower and the amount of time they work would be much high.

Moving forward
As attempts to roll back regulation and workers rights, it is important that those who are covered by the FLSA stand up and unite to prevent it from being “modernized” to fit the Republican agenda.  Do not let this important law be weakened!

Luxury goods sales highlight rich-poor gap – National Consumers League

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By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

A front page New York Times story that ran yesterday, Aug. 4, begins like this:

“Nordstrom has a waiting list for a Chanel sequined tweed coat with a $9,010 price. Neiman Marcus has sold out in almost every size of Christian Louboutin ‘Bianca’ platform pumps, at $775 a pair. Mercedes-Benz said it sold more cars last month in the United States than it had in any July in five years.”

In the perverse world we live in, the 9+ percent unemployment rate for millions of Americans won’t budge, more than 50 million of us are without health insurance, and more than 5 million citizens are living solely on food stamps – that’s right, they have no other resources, so food stamps are their only safety net.

And the gap between rich and poor in America continues to grow. In 1915, an era in which the Rockefellers and Carnegies dominated American industry, the richest 1 percent of Americans earned roughly 18 percent of all income. Today, the top 1 percent account for 24 percent of all income. During the late 1980s and the late 1990s, the United States experienced two unprecedentedly long periods of sustained economic growth. Yet from 1980 to 2005, more than 80 percent of total increase in Americans’ income went to the top 1 percent. That’s because the increase in productivity wasn’t shared; it was commandeered by the rich and the very rich.

Today, sadly, the vast majority of Americans live a far more modest existence, and many are poor.

Meanwhile, the Times article quotes a designer brand that sells shoes that cost $2000 each. That’s hard to fathom – or to justify – in this economy.

NCL continues to denounce the Corn Refiners Association’s petition to mask High Fructose Corn Syrup using “Corn Sugar” – National Consumers League

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August 3, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC– In a letter sent to the FDA today, the National Consumers League (NCL) continues to urge the FDA to oppose the Corn Refiners Associations’ (CRA) petition to change the name of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), under the grounds that the name change would be contrary to public policy, inconsistent with emerging scientific evidence, and not in accordance with the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic act.

There are a number of legitimate reasons why many consumers wish to avoid foods made with HFCS. The scientific community is actively researching the health effects of HFCS.  Preliminary studies have shown that HFCS consumption may be linked with a number of adverse and interrelated diseases and health conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease and certain forms of cancer. Leading medical authorities have noted the nature of the emerging research in the area.

The FDA has a statutory responsibility to honor to ensure that consumers have the opportunity to exercise free choice in the marketplace without being misled by confusing name changes designed to hide the identify of ingredients contained in a food product.

Consumers rely on FDA to ensure honesty and fair dealing in the marketplace without interference by commercial interests that claim to speak for the public.   Emerging scientific and nutritional studies are suggesting differences between high fructose corn syrup and sugar.  If it should turn out that HFCS contributes to health problems, a regulatory decision allowing manufacturers to hide this ingredient from consumers would be a great disservice to the public and inconsistent with FDA’s statutory mandate.

To read the full letter, please click here.

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

NCL joins 9 other groups in calling on Administration to fill upcoming Commissioner vacancy on the Consumer Product Safety Commission – National Consumers League

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August 3, 2011

Contact: NCL Communications, (202) 835-3323, media@nclnet.org

Washington, DC– Breast Cancer Fund (BCF), Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Consumers Union (CU), Kids In Danger (KID), National Consumers League (NCL), National Research Center for Women & Families (NRCWF), Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Public Citizen (PU), U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) urged President Obama to quickly nominate a Commissioner at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in a letter sent today.

After serving three terms (16 years) of distinguished service, Commissioner Thomas Moore will leave the CPSC on October 26th, 2011, leaving an unfilled Commissioner slot, which could have unfortunate consequences for the CPSC and for consumers.

If Commissioner Moore’s vacancy is not filled before he must leave the CPSC, the Commission will unfortunately be hampered by a deadlock. Without a full complement of Commissioners, the agency may be prevented from making final decisions on numerous safety matters. The Commission has had close (3-2) votes about lead limits for children’s products, the implementation of the consumer incident database, and extending the deadline for compliance with the crib standard. The Commission has been working hard to meet its Congressional mandates as required by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). This progress would not have been possible without five CPSC Commissioners in place.

The CPSC is committed to the mission of protecting consumers from hazards posed by unsafe products and needs all five Commissioners to work effectively. A vacancy at the Commission could place CPSC progress on key safety issues in jeopardy.

To read the complete letter, click here

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About the National Consumers League

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad

Ramming Legislation Through…. – National Consumers League

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By Michell K. McIntyre, Project Director of NCL’s Special Project on Wage Theft

As a child, when something doesn’t go our way we may pout, throw a tantrum and sometimes even break our toys.  As a teenager we may slam the door or walk out, but as an adult, we’re supposed to suck it up and deal. But what do members of Congress do when something doesn’t go their way?

In the case of a few Republican members of the House, you respond by creating a piece of legislation that guts an independent federal agency and strips away the rights of American workers. When the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled against Boeing for moving their plant from Washington state to South Carolina as retaliation to union workers in Washington, these members crafted H.R. 2587, “Protecting Jobs from Government Interference Act,” as a way to protect Boeing and other Fortune 500 companies from facing the consequences when they trample on their employees’ rights.

“The legislation (H.R. 2587) is nothing more than a rush to protect one special interest to the determent of all American workers,” said Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the senior Democrat on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.  “The bill presents American workers with a choice: you can have your rights or you can have your job.  But you can’t have both.”

H.R. 2587 would remove the only meaningful remedy available to workers if a company illegally moves operations or eliminates work because workers engaged in protected activities such as organizing a union.  An employer can outsource for any reason, except for an unlawful reason.  Retailing against workers for exercising their rights under the National Labor Relations Act is one unlawful reason.

“These rights to organize and collectively bargain are meaningless if there is no effective remedy when they are violated,” said Miller.  “The impact of this change would be wide-ranging.”

H.R. 2587 was pushed through the House Education and the Workforce Committee last week by a party line vote in less than 48 hours after it was introduced and is expected to be up for a full House this week.  If passed by the House, the Senate will hopefully put a stop to this troubling and dangerous piece of legislation.

It’s time that ALL Members of Congress stop acting like children and act like the adults they’re supposed to be. After all, they were elected to uphold the Constitution, protect American workers and serve their constituents—not to protect and serve the special interests’ of Fortune 500s.