New study says Chipotle management presses workers to work sick and skip food safety practices, creating health risks for consumers

/in imported/by

February 6, 2020

“The Unsavory side of ‘Food with Integrity.’ ” report details management practices that lead to worker abuses and call into question protocols Chipotle put in place after recent food safety crises

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

New York — After dozens of outbreaks of food borne illness incidents over the past four years, Chipotle gave lip service to reforms in their work practices, but the fast-casual restaurant has continued to engage in management practices that lead to abuses of workers that may create food safety risks for consumers, a new study says.

Scores of employees interviewed for the study reported management pressure to work fast without following proper food safety procedures, such as:

  • One worker being pressured to work while sick, even after the worker vomited  part way into his shift;
  • Undercooked chicken being served to a customer because the grill cook out in place had not been properly trained;
  • Workers pressured to work so fast that during lunch and dinner rushes, they often flipped over  chopping boards used to cut raw meat, and reused the boards without washing them;
  • One worker who cooked food had to clean feces off the floor or ceiling of a bathroom multiple times without hazmat suit or adequate protection equipment;
  • Pressure to work without stopping, with no time left to wash their hands for hours on end.

In the report, “The Unsavory Side of ‘Food with Integrity,'” workers told researchers that their managers often knew when supposedly independent audits were coming because other managers or field leaders who have undergone inspection often tip them off. Workers reported that managers relax rules outside of inspection periods and tightened up adherence to food safety protocols when inspections are imminent.

“The findings of this report call into question the effectiveness of measures that Chipotle put in place to solve their food safety crises of a few years ago,” said Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League, which co-authored the report. “If Chipotle executive management and the Food Safety Advisory Council are responsible for making sure that this program is implemented effectively to keep the public safe, they have been asleep at the wheel.”

The National Consumers League, America’s pioneering consumer advocacy organization which has been representing consumers and workers on marketplace and workplace issues since their founding in 1899, undertook the study after SEIU Local 32BJ brought the organization information from field organizers about what were learning about practices that could affect consumer food safety from Chipotle workers they were supporting in their organizing efforts.

Organizers and researchers spoke to hundreds of workers, then undertook formal interviews with 47 workers at 25 stores in New York City. These interviews and statements form the basis of the report, which also included analysis of a variety of corporate filings, press reports, and other publicly available documents.

“We chose to blow the whistle on these practices and abuses because our Chipotle managers did not listen to us,” Jeremy Espinal, a Chipotle worker, said. “It’s a pressure-packed workplace where supervisors intimidate you and retaliate against you.”

“I am speaking out because I want to make Chipotle a better place to work and a better place for customers to eat,” Jahaira Garcia, another Chipotle worker, said. “This job is how I support myself, how I help my father out with expenses at home and how I am able to partly pay for my school fees.”

32BJ President Kyle Bragg thanked the National Consumers League for working with the union and thanked the workers for their courage.

“I believe that these workers are Chipotle’s best assets,” Bragg said. “They can put the integrity back into ‘food with integrity.’ Give them a voice on the job and they will help Chipotle achieve the lofty ideals of its marketing.”

Report findings include:

  • Managerial pay incentives that promote cutting food safety corners:  managers can earn up to an additional 25% of base pay by meeting performance goals that include reducing labor costs, creating a highly pressurized work environment. This bonus program may incentivize managers to meet productivity goals by cutting corners on food safety or by violating worker protection laws.
  • Ineffective store audits: Worker interviews revealed that general managers frequently know when supposedly independent audits are coming because other managers or field leaders who have been inspected often tip them off. Workers reported that managers have relaxed rules following outside of inspection periods and tightened up adherence to food safety protocols when an audit is imminent.
  • Pressure to work sick: New York-based workers reported that managers have pressured crew members to work while sick or retaliated against workers for taking paid sick leave.
  • Minimal training: Despite the substantial skills needed to safely prepare Chipotle’s fresh food menu, many new hires receive minimal training and “learn as they go” from co-workers who may not have received much training themselves.

“As chairman of the New York City Council Public Health Committee, this is deeply troubling to me,” said New York Councilmember Mark Levine. “Risk of contagion should not be aggravated by an aggressive incentive structure that encourages managers to abuse workers and cut food safety corners. The public needs to know more and Chipotle needs to change their policies. That is why I am calling for a public hearing in the Council. I encourage Chipotle workers and consumers to come forward to discuss these issues. I also invite the company to be there to engage in this conversation.” 

Nick Freudenberg, distinguished professor of Public Health at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy and Director of the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute, discussed Chipotle’s history of food borne disease outbreaks.

In 2015 and 2016, Chipotle was rocked by a series of food safety crises that sickened hundreds of customers across the country and included exposure to virulent pathogens like E. coli, salmonella, and norovirus, resulting in vomiting, pain, and in some cases hospitalizations. Despite claiming major food safety reforms instituted in 2016 to recapture consumer confidence, the company continued to have food-borne illness problems in 2017 and 2018, including an Ohio outbreak in which 647 people were sickened.

Despite Chipotle implementing an “enhanced food safety program” in 2016, the City’s Department of Health found 260 critical violations at 74 out of 84 restaurants from 2017 to 2019. Critical violations are those most likely to pose “a substantial risk to the public’s health” and lead to food-borne illness. The critical violation examples found by health inspectors include food left at dangerous temperatures that allow for the growth of pathogens, practices that allow for the contamination of ready-to-eat foods, evidence of various pests, and stores supervised by managers without a certificate in food protection. Just two weeks ago, the City cited a Chipotle restaurant where they found a crewmember working while “ill with a disease transmissible by food or [an] exposed infected cut or burn on [their] hand”.

Worker advocates and community groups were surprised by the findings and expressed support for Chipotle workers:

“Chipotle has not only acted duplicitously—championing a mission of integrity and freshness in public while speeding up production and cutting corners behind the counter—the company has created added risks for workers and consumers in the pursuit of profits,” said Ana Maria Archila of the Center for Popular Democracy. “Outlined in this report are issues that range from cautionary to alarming. Will Chipotle wait for another outbreak before they take corrective action—or will they take action ‘with integrity’ now to reduce potential harm?”

“This report is vital to understanding that the exploitation of workers in the food industry does not just impact workers and their families, it impacts everyone, including consumers,” Suzanne Adely of the Food Chain Workers Alliance said. “Chipotle and all food service workers deserve fair working conditions. Denying them basic, humane rights like sick days, proper healthy and safe working spaces, cannot be justified. Exploiting food workers for profit does not only harm workers and their families, it harms everyone, including consumers.”

“Chipotle is another example of worker safety and consumer safety being undermined together,” said Charlene Obernauer of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH). “Chipotle has a legal responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace and they need to take the appropriate steps to make this possible.”

“This report details how Chipotle’s low-road labor standards and incentives for managers to cut corners are endangering the dining public,” said Paul Sonn, State Policy Program Director for the National Employment Law Project. “Chipotle needs to recognize that investing in its workforce with stable, quality jobs is essential for delivering a safe and healthy dining experience for its customers.” 

“We are deeply concerned with the workplace issues, especially that of forced arbitration described by Chipotle workers in this study,” Deborah Axt of Make the Road said. “We stand with Chipotle workers, the majority of whom are workers of color and many of whom are from communities like the ones our members are from, in calling for company-wide reforms and a commitment to invest in a stable workforce.”

###

About 32BJ SEIU

With 175,000 members in 11 states, including 85,000 in New York, 32BJ SEIU is the largest property service workers union in the country. 

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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.

New study says Chipotle management presses workers to work sick and skip food safety practices, creating health risks for consumers

/in Diseases and treatment, Featured Home - Food, Nutrition, & Obesity, Featured Home - Health, Food, Food policy, Food safety, Health, Labor, Labor policy, Workplace safety/by

February 6, 2020

“The Unsavory side of ‘Food with Integrity.’ ” report details management practices that lead to worker abuses and call into question protocols Chipotle put in place after recent food safety crises

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

New York — After dozens of outbreaks of foodborne illness incidents over the past four years, Chipotle gave lip service to reforms in their work practices, but the fast-casual restaurant has continued to engage in management practices that lead to abuses of workers that may create food safety risks for consumers, a new study says.

Scores of employees interviewed for the study reported management pressure to work fast without following proper food safety procedures, such as:

  • One worker being pressured to work while sick, even after the worker vomited partway into his shift;
  • Undercooked chicken being served to a customer because the grill cookout in place had not been properly trained;
  • Workers pressured to work so fast that during lunch and dinner rushes, they often flipped over  chopping boards used to cut raw meat, and reused the boards without washing them;
  • One worker who cooked food had to clean feces off the floor or ceiling of a bathroom multiple times without hazmat suit or adequate protection equipment;
  • Pressure to work without stopping, with no time left to wash their hands for hours on end.

In the report, “The Unsavory Side of ‘Food with Integrity,'” workers told researchers that their managers often knew when supposedly independent audits were coming because other managers or field leaders who have undergone inspection often tip them off. Workers reported that managers relax rules outside of inspection periods and tightened up adherence to food safety protocols when inspections are imminent.

“The findings of this report call into question the effectiveness of measures that Chipotle put in place to solve their food safety crises of a few years ago,” said Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League, which co-authored the report. “If Chipotle executive management and the Food Safety Advisory Council are responsible for making sure that this program is implemented effectively to keep the public safe, they have been asleep at the wheel.”

The National Consumers League, America’s pioneering consumer advocacy organization which has been representing consumers and workers on marketplace and workplace issues since their founding in 1899, undertook the study after SEIU Local 32BJ brought the organization information from field organizers about what were learning about practices that could affect consumer food safety from Chipotle workers they were supporting in their organizing efforts.

Organizers and researchers spoke to hundreds of workers, then undertook formal interviews with 47 workers at 25 stores in New York City. These interviews and statements form the basis of the report, which also included analysis of a variety of corporate filings, press reports, and other publicly available documents.

“We chose to blow the whistle on these practices and abuses because our Chipotle managers did not listen to us,” Jeremy Espinal, a Chipotle worker, said. “It’s a pressure-packed workplace where supervisors intimidate you and retaliate against you.”

“I am speaking out because I want to make Chipotle a better place to work and a better place for customers to eat,” Jahaira Garcia, another Chipotle worker, said. “This job is how I support myself, how I help my father out with expenses at home and how I am able to partly pay for my school fees.”

32BJ President Kyle Bragg thanked the National Consumers League for working with the union and thanked the workers for their courage.

“I believe that these workers are Chipotle’s best assets,” Bragg said. “They can put the integrity back into ‘food with integrity.’ Give them a voice on the job and they will help Chipotle achieve the lofty ideals of its marketing.”

Report findings include:

  • Managerial pay incentives that promote cutting food safety corners:  managers can earn up to an additional 25% of base pay by meeting performance goals that include reducing labor costs, creating a highly pressurized work environment. This bonus program may incentivize managers to meet productivity goals by cutting corners on food safety or by violating worker protection laws.
  • Ineffective store audits: Worker interviews revealed that general managers frequently know when supposedly independent audits are coming because other managers or field leaders who have been inspected often tip them off. Workers reported that managers have relaxed rules following outside of inspection periods and tightened up adherence to food safety protocols when an audit is imminent.
  • Pressure to work sick: New York-based workers reported that managers have pressured crew members to work while sick or retaliated against workers for taking paid sick leave.
  • Minimal training: Despite the substantial skills needed to safely prepare Chipotle’s fresh food menu, many new hires receive minimal training and “learn as they go” from co-workers who may not have received much training themselves.

“As chairman of the New York City Council Public Health Committee, this is deeply troubling to me,” said New York Councilmember Mark Levine. “Risk of contagion should not be aggravated by an aggressive incentive structure that encourages managers to abuse workers and cut food safety corners. The public needs to know more and Chipotle needs to change their policies. That is why I am calling for a public hearing in the Council. I encourage Chipotle workers and consumers to come forward to discuss these issues. I also invite the company to be there to engage in this conversation.”

Nick Freudenberg, distinguished professor of Public Health at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy and Director of the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute, discussed Chipotle’s history of food borne disease outbreaks.

In 2015 and 2016, Chipotle was rocked by a series of food safety crises that sickened hundreds of customers across the country and included exposure to virulent pathogens like E. coli, salmonella, and norovirus, resulting in vomiting, pain, and in some cases hospitalizations. Despite claiming major food safety reforms instituted in 2016 to recapture consumer confidence, the company continued to have food-borne illness problems in 2017 and 2018, including an Ohio outbreak in which 647 people were sickened.

Despite Chipotle implementing an “enhanced food safety program” in 2016, the City’s Department of Health found 260 critical violations at 74 out of 84 restaurants from 2017 to 2019. Critical violations are those most likely to pose “a substantial risk to the public’s health” and lead to food-borne illness. The critical violation examples found by health inspectors include food left at dangerous temperatures that allow for the growth of pathogens, practices that allow for the contamination of ready-to-eat foods, evidence of various pests, and stores supervised by managers without a certificate in food protection. Just two weeks ago, the City cited a Chipotle restaurant where they found a crewmember working while “ill with a disease transmissible by food or [an] exposed infected cut or burn on [their] hand”.

Worker advocates and community groups were surprised by the findings and expressed support for Chipotle workers:

“Chipotle has not only acted duplicitously—championing a mission of integrity and freshness in public while speeding up production and cutting corners behind the counter—the company has created added risks for workers and consumers in the pursuit of profits,” said Ana Maria Archila of the Center for Popular Democracy. “Outlined in this report are issues that range from cautionary to alarming. Will Chipotle wait for another outbreak before they take corrective action—or will they take action ‘with integrity’ now to reduce potential harm?”

“This report is vital to understanding that the exploitation of workers in the food industry does not just impact workers and their families, it impacts everyone, including consumers,” Suzanne Adely of the Food Chain Workers Alliance said. “Chipotle and all food service workers deserve fair working conditions. Denying them basic, humane rights like sick days, proper healthy and safe working spaces, cannot be justified. Exploiting food workers for profit does not only harm workers and their families, it harms everyone, including consumers.”

“Chipotle is another example of worker safety and consumer safety being undermined together,” said Charlene Obernauer of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH). “Chipotle has a legal responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace and they need to take the appropriate steps to make this possible.”

“This report details how Chipotle’s low-road labor standards and incentives for managers to cut corners are endangering the dining public,” said Paul Sonn, State Policy Program Director for the National Employment Law Project. “Chipotle needs to recognize that investing in its workforce with stable, quality jobs is essential for delivering a safe and healthy dining experience for its customers.”

“We are deeply concerned with the workplace issues, especially that of forced arbitration described by Chipotle workers in this study,” Deborah Axt of Make the Road said. “We stand with Chipotle workers, the majority of whom are workers of color and many of whom are from communities like the ones our members are from, in calling for company-wide reforms and a commitment to invest in a stable workforce.”

###

About 32BJ SEIU

With 175,000 members in 11 states, including 85,000 in New York, 32BJ SEIU is the largest property service workers union in the country.

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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.

LifeSmarts program awards scholarships to five student leaders from Morehead City, NC, Bedford, TX, and Ellenboro, WV

/in imported/by

January 30, 2020

Contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202)  207-2832

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League (NCL) has announced five scholarship recipients, honored for their involvement in a community service and leadership initiative made possible through its consumer literacy program, LifeSmarts  (LifeSmarts.org). The students have been awarded $1,000 academic scholarships for winning entries based on their experiences serving as Safety Smart® Ambassadors, a partnership between LifeSmarts and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) that pairs high school students with elementary classrooms to teach lessons about health, safety, and the environment. 

Scholarship winners 

  • Addison Jones, (11th grade), West Virginia – Ritchie County High School
  • Allison Little, (10th grade), Texas – Midcities Montessori
  • Matthew Loynes, (12th grade), North Carolina – West Carteret High School
  • Abby Olstrup, (10th grade), Texas – Midcities Montessori
  • Destinee Smith, (11th grade), West Virginia – Ritchie County High School

In 2019, more than 300 LifeSmarts students became Safety Smart Ambassadors. Working as teams, high school students made more than 500 interactive, 30-minute presentations, sharing empowering and educational safety messages with 13,600 young children throughout their communities. LifeSmarts is a national program that competitively tests high school students’ knowledge of consumer awareness, with subjects including personal finance, health and safety, consumer rights and responsibility, technology, and the environment.

“We are so proud of our students who participated in the Safety Smart Ambassador program and the positive impact they made on their communities, and especially these five stand-outs,” said Lisa Hertzberg,  LifeSmarts program director. “We truly appreciate this partnership with UL. It has been extremely gratifying to see LifeSmarts students embrace the Safety Smart Ambassador program, provide education and mentoring to younger children, and learn about themselves in the process.” 

The LifeSmarts and UL partnership has underwritten the Safety Smart Ambassador program and provided LifeSmarts with access to the vast knowledge base of UL’s educational programs, including resources for LifeSmarts to bolster its science and environment curriculum, resources, and competitive opportunities. 

For more information, please visit LifeSmarts.org/SafetySmart.  

Winter 2020 Safety Smart Ambassador award winners – in their own words  

Addison Jones (WV)

I have never been good at public speaking. Throughout this experience, I have learned how to adapt to a younger audience and how I can improve my public speaking skills. This truly was an amazing learning experience and I am grateful to have such amazing partners, along with an amazing group of children as an audience.

Allison Little (TX)

Safety Smart has always been one of the highlights of my year. I love teaching kids new things especially when it’s meaningful for all of us. Teaching kids to wash their hands correctly helps them prevent illness and keeps others from getting sick as well. It’s a win, win. 

Matthew Loynes (NC)

This program is more than a community service project to me. It has enriched my High School career in a way that nothing else has. The main draw is interacting with children and feeling like I am making a difference. Safety Smart allows me to step into the education of hundreds of kids and teach them about something that I find very important. This program has gone a long way in teaching me the value of youth education. It has also shown me how much of a difference I can make.

Abby Olstrup (TX)

I brought out a blacklight so we could see all the germs on their hands. They were intrigued as they searched for germs on their hands. I heard one kid talking to his friend saying, “I could feel the germs on my hand.” Then we came around and gave them hand sanitizer to clean off their hands and brought out the blacklight again to see if the germs were still there. We explained that hand sanitizer is good to use if you don’t have soap or warm water. They counted to twenty so they could see how long they should scrub their hands. After this we discussed other ways they could stay healthy. We then passed out “germ fighters” stickers that we created. With what they know about germs and staying healthy, I can officially say that they are “germ fighters” and Safety Smart.

Destinee Smith (WV)

Honestly, I’d never known children had such a narrow understanding of how treacherous the online world could be, or how important it was to make sure they knew these things at such a young age. I’m thankful I had the opportunity to open up their young minds to something that will quite literally affect them for the rest of their lives.

### 

About LifeSmarts and the National Consumers League 

LifeSmarts is a program of the National Consumers League. State coordinators run the programs on a volunteer basis. LifeSmarts educational resources are available online throughout the year at LifeSmarts.org. Competition begins again in September. For more information, visit: LifeSmarts.org. 

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  nclnet.org. 

Script Your Future launches ninth annual student competition for innovations in medication adherence

/in imported/by

January 20, 2020

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—Today marks the launch of the ninth annual Script Your Future Medication Adherence Team Challenge, a two-month-long intercollegiate competition among health profession student teams and faculty for creating solutions to raise awareness about medication adherence as a critical public health issue. The Challenge, hosted by the National Consumers League (NCL), is returning to university campuses across the country after eight years of successful student competition and innovation.

The Challenge is an integral part of Script Your Future, a campaign launched by NCL and its partners in 2011 to combat the problem of poor medication adherence in the United States, where nearly three out of four patients do not take their medication as directed.

“Today’s medications are better than ever at treating and curing people, but these treatments can only work if patients know the importance of taking their prescriptions as directed. It takes all members of the health team to make that happen, and pharmacists play a big role in that circle of trust,” said Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director. “For nine years, our Script Your Future Medication Adherence Team Challenge has galvanized student health professionals to explore creative, interprofessional approaches, in encouraging medication adherence. To usher Script Your Future into the next era of improving adherence, we have implemented two new components to the Team Challenge: technology innovation and vaccine adherence. We have been blown away by the ingenuity of our student teams, and we look forward to how they will contribute to their communities in this year’s Team Challenge.”

The Challenge is sponsored by the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Foundation, the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA), and the American Pharmacists Association (APhA).

Starting today through March 20, inter-professional teams—including student pharmacists, nurses, doctors, and others—will implement creative outreach approaches in their communities to raise awareness and improve understanding about medication adherence. At the end of the Challenge, teams submit entries for review by national partner organizations, and winners are recognized for their efforts to improve medication adherence.

“The Script Your Future Medication Adherence Team Challenge has provided a tremendous opportunity for health professions students to demonstrate how they can work collaboratively to improve patient care through better medication adherence,” said Dr. Lucinda L. Maine, Executive Vice President and CEO at the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. “This Challenge, now in its ninth year, is a powerful example of the impact health professions teams can have on the public health issue of medication adherence.”

Since the Challenge began in 2011, more than 18,800 future health care professionals have directly counseled nearly 78,000 patients and reached more than 26 million consumers about the importance of medication adherence. Last year’s National awardees were Pacific University School of Pharmacy, University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, North East Ohio Medical University College of Pharmacy (NEOMED), Touro University California College of Pharmacy, and the University of Charleston School of Pharmacy. Wilkes University Nesbitt School of Pharmacy earned the Rookie Award for their outstanding contribution during their first year of participation in the Team Challenge.

In addition to the national-level awards, the Challenge also honors teams with focused awards in the areas of health disparities, communications and media outreach, and creative inter-professional team collaboration. In 2019, the Challenge honored the following schools with focused awards: Northeast Ohio Medical University College of Pharmacy (Health Disparities), Touro University College of Pharmacy (Media Outreach), and the University of Charleston School of Pharmacy (Creative Inter-professional Team Event).

To learn about previous winners, visit https://www.scriptyourfuture.org/

For more information on the Challenge, visit the Challenge Community website at

*https://syfadherencechallenge.ning.com/. Tweet along with us during the Challenge using #SYFchallenge, and follow the campaign @IWillTakeMyMeds.

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

###

About Script Your Future

Script Your Future is a campaign of the National Consumers League (NCL), a private, non-profit membership organization founded in 1899. NCL’s mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information about the Script Your Future campaign, visit ScriptYourFuture.org. For more information on NCL, please visit nclnet.org.

New National Consumers League podcast We Can Do This! explores current, historic socioeconomic reform in America

/in Consumer Education, Consumer literacy, Consumer policy, Consumer Protection, Featured Home - Food, Nutrition, & Obesity, Food, Food policy, Fraud policy, Fraud Prevention, Health, Health policy, Labor, Labor policy/by

January 16, 2020

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC—The National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s pioneering worker and consumer advocacy organization, has launched a podcast called We Can Do This!, produced by District Productive and hosted by NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg and other members of NCL policy staff. 

In We Can Do This!, NCL and justice-minded, expert guests explore current socioeconomic issues at the heart of American political and cultural battles before a backdrop of the historic and ongoing advocacy and activism that help pave the way for meaningful policy reform. 

We Can Do This! episodes span the breadth of NCL’s wide mission and issues, including; healthcare, data and privacy, food and nutrition, labor, finance, and other topics. 

A first batch of episodes featuring individuals who are helping to shape the nation’s social and economic reforms have been released:   

E1-2: Crashing through the glass ceiling with two dynamos of women’s rights law—parts 1-2 

With Judith Lichtman, president emeritus and senior advisor of the National Partnership for Women and Families and Marcia Greenberger, founder and co-president of the National Women’s Law Center 

E3: Ending the scourge of child labor 

With Kailash Satyarthi, anti-child labor crusader and Nobel Laureate 

E4: Measles, it ain’t over until it’s over 

With Dr. Linda Fu, general pediatrician at Children’s National Health System 

E5: Sorry, fair pay and a safe workplace aren’t on the menu 

With Diana Ramirez, federal senior policy advocate at Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC United) 

These five episodes are available now on Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts, and the remainder of the 11-episode series will be released in early 2020. 

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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.

Consumer group urges additional action by DOJ and Congress to promote competition in the live event industry

/in Consumer policy, Consumer Protection, Corporate social responsibility, Featured Home - Consumer Protection/by

December 20, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC –The National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s pioneering worker and consumer advocacy organization responded to the Department of Justice’s settlement with LiveNation/Ticketmaster for engaging in anti-competitive practices in violation of their 2010 consent decree.  

The following statement is attributable to Sally Greenberg, executive director of the National Consumers League:  

Yesterday’s action by the Department of Justice to extend the 2010 Live Nation/TicketMaster consent decree by five and a half years was welcome news as it will prevent the ticketing giant from engaging in even more blatantly anti-competitive conduct. However, the DOJ’s action lacks the major fines, and additional structural and behavioral adjustments needed to bring transparency and competition to the opaque live event ticketing industry. Absent of these changes, Congressional action is sorely needed to fix the broken live event ticketing marketplace.  

Fortunately, the Better Oversight of Secondary Sales and Accountability in Concert Ticketing Act of 2019 (“BOSS ACT”), (H.R. 3248/S. 1850) which is currently pending in the House and Senate, will provide a comprehensive fix to the ticketing mess. The Boss Act will end deceptive holdbacks and egregious undisclosed ticket fees. It will also require transparency on whether ticket sellers are affiliated with a venue and ensure that ticket holders can sell or give their ticket away as they see fit without extra fees. The time for Congressional action is long overdue. The system is rigged against consumers and that must change.  

While we remain hopeful that yesterday’s actions by the DOJ are just a first step, we will continue to urge members of Congress to fix once and for all the broken live event ticketing system.

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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 urges caution following HHS drug importation announcement

/in Featured Home - Health, Health, Health policy, Healthcare coverage, Medication adherence/by

December 20, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL)urges caution in light of this week’s announcement on drug importation from the Department of Health and Human Services. Our primary concerns are that this proposed new rule will put the public at greater risk of counterfeit drugs while not clearly passing on any cost savings on to consumer.

NCL recently launched the Fake Rx Action Center in conjunction with our site Fraud.org, which aims to educate consumers on the risks posed by counterfeit medicines, and how to spot, avoid, and report them should consumers come across any fakes. Counterfeit medicines have already claimed lives across the country, and this proposal further endangers consumer health by undermining the security of the American pharmaceutical supply chain.

Opening the door for states, pharmacies, and distributors to obtain medications beyond U.S. borders means that consumers could more easily fall prey to bad actors from around the globe when being provided medications that have originated outside of the U.S. regulated manufacturing and distribution supply chain. As the World Health Organization has noted regarding the broader counterfeit issue, patients may end up with medications that have the wrong active ingredient, the wrong amount of active ingredient, no active ingredient, or dangerous added ingredients. While we will continue to advocate for access to affordable drugs, it is not clear from the regulations that any potential cost savings from obtaining medications outside the U.S. borders will be passed on to individual consumers. The goal of lowering prices for consumers without a clear assurance of out of pocket cost savings in these regulations is not worth increasing the risk of harm to consumers by exposing them to medications that may not meet the clear standards of U.S. law.

Our organization has put consumers first for more than 100 years. It is our belief that there are safer and more effective ways to provide access to necessary prescription medications than to expose Americans to potentially deadly counterfeits originating outside the United States.

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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 applauds passage of two consumer protection bills

/in Consumer policy, Consumer Protection, Featured Home - Consumer Protection/by

December 19, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League, the nation’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization today applauds Senators Markey (D-MA) and Thune (R-SD)  and Representative Pallone (D-NJ) for the passage of the TRACED Act, and Senator Markey (D-MA) and Representative Eshoo (D-CA) for the passage of the TRUE Fees Act. The Traced Act will provide regulators with the tools they need to crack down on illegal robocalls and the TRUE Fees Act will require cable and satellite TV providers to disclose an “all-in” price for their services.  

The following statement is attributable to NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg:

“The Passage of the Traced Act and the TRUE Fees act is a win for consumers. Because of these bills, the days of cable companies slamming consumers with hidden fees are numbered, and relief from illegal robocall scams is on the way. NCL applauds the passage of these bills and urges President Trump to quickly sign them into law.”

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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 applauds House passage of safety bills

/in Consumer policy, Consumer Protection, Featured Home - Consumer Protection, Featured Home - Fraud Prevention, Fraud policy, Fraud Prevention, Privacy & security, Scams, Telecommunications, Uncategorized/by

December 17, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League applauds the passage by the House of Representatives of three bills to protect consumers, all of which came from the Energy and Commerce Committee.

“We are grateful for the leadership of Chairman Pallone and Subcommittee Chair Schakowsky in getting these bills through the Committee and to the House floor for passage,” said NCL Executive Director Sally Greenberg. “The House is taking an important in protecting Americans—especially our children—from dangerous products and protecting consumers from overseas scams.  Children are the most vulnerable consumers, and they need our advocacy. Products that prove dangerous to their health and wellbeing – like inclined sleepers and crib bumpers – should no longer be on the market, and we hope the Senate takes up these bills immediately. Thanks once again to the bipartisan efforts through the Commerce Committee and full House leadership for these important consumer protection measures.”

The House passed the following bills:

H.R. 4779, a bill to extend the Undertaking Spam, Spyware, And Fraud Enforcement With Enforcers Beyond Borders Act of 2006, reauthorizes the U.S. SAFE WEB Act, which improved the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) ability to combat unfair or deceptive acts or practices that are international in scope, through Fiscal Year 2027 and requires the FTC to issue a report to Congress describing the Commission’s use of and experience with the authority granted by the Act. 

H.R. 2647, the “Safer Occupancy Furniture Flammability Act” or “SOFFA,” adopts the California upholstered furniture flammability standard as a national flammability standard for upholstered furniture to limit exposure to toxic flame retardant chemicals.

*H.R. 3172, the “Safe Sleep for Babies Act of 2019,” designates inclined sleepers for infants as banned hazardous products under the Consumer Product Safety Act. The bill was amended to include the text of H.R. 3170, the “Safe Cribs Act of 2019,” which also designates crib bumpers as banned hazardous products.

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

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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 welcomes DOJ enforcement of Live Nation consent decree

/in Consumer policy, Consumer Protection, Corporate social responsibility, Featured Home - Consumer Protection, imported/by

December 16, 2019

Media contact: National Consumers League – Carol McKay, carolm@nclnet.org, (412) 945-3242 or Taun Sterling, tauns@nclnet.org, (202) 207-2832

Washington, DC–The National Consumers League (NCL), America’s pioneering consumer and worker advocacy organization welcomed the news that the United State Department of Justice (DOJ) is reportedly preparing legal action against Live Nation Entertainment Inc. to crack down on anticompetitive conduct in the live event marketplace. In 2009, NCL led a coalition of consumer groups, independent promoters, and venue owners in opposition to the Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger. Since the merger was approved in 2010, NCL has continued to advocate for fairness and transparency in the live event ticketing marketplace. 

The following statement is attributable to NCL Vice President of Public Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud John Breyault:

“The DOJ’s interest in reining in Live Nation’s abuses is a welcome development, and long overdue. While robust enforcement of the consent decree may help, it won’t solve the entrenched ticketing industry practices that cause untold frustration for consumers. This is just the latest sign that the DOJ’s approval of the original Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger was the wrong decision.  Anyone who has tried to buy tickets knows that the live event marketplace, dominated by Live Nation, is rigged against fans. Congressional action to rein in abuses by Live Nation and others in the live event marketplace is necessary to restore sanity and fairness to the ticket-buying experience.” 

###

About the National Consumers League (NCL)

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.