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Lilli
Cannabis Sacrament Minister
Joined: 12 Dec 2003
Posts: 4218
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 Posted: Mon May 17, 2004 11:08 am Post subject: Dell using prison labor |
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Protest slams Dell's use of prison labor
Friday, January 10, 2003 Posted: 10:50 AM EST (1550 GMT)
Michael Dell, head of Dell, holds one of his company's handheld computers.
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (AP) -- Some environmentalists dressed in prison uniforms say they are a high-tech chain gang.
They demonstrated Thursday outside the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to protest Dell Computer's use of inmates to recycle computers.
"I lost my job. I robbed a store. Went to jail. I got my job back," chanted five mock prisoners wearing "Dell Recycling Team" signs and linked by chains.
The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition says Round Rock-based Dell's computer recycling program is a sham.
And the coalition says Dell is putting prison workers in danger because they aren't protected by federal safety standards.
"Dell is an environmental laggard," said protester Fred Kirsch, 26.
Saving money
The coalition also complains that instead of using cheap prison labor, Dell could provide others with jobs.
A Dell spokesman acknowledges that the prison labor does save the company money, but says inmates meet all standards.
Dell's computer exchange program lets owners of obsolete Dell machines pay shipping costs to return their computers.
Ted Smith, executive director of the coalition, said Dell doesn't do much to promote the program.
Hilton said the protest was partially the result of miscommunication, and said his company and the coalition have the same goal.
"I think our challenge now is educating our customers about what their options are," he said. "I think there's a lack of awareness of what to do with an old computer."
Lagging foreign rivals
Victor Ramirez, 30, who uses a Dell computer at his job as a graphic designer for the Chicago Transit Authority, laughed as he watched the protest.
"They'll throw everything in a landfill," Ramirez said of Dell. "They don't care. They're all about the money."
Also Thursday, a new report by the coalition said U.S. technology companies lag foreign rivals in reducing hazardous materials in electronic devices, exposing gadget-hungry Americans to toxins whenever they use computers.
The Computer TakeBack Campaign assigned poor or failing grades to Hewlett-Packard, Micron Technology, Gateway and Dell in its third annual report card.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/biztech/01/10/dell.protest.ap/ |
_________________
I pass to you the torch that Christ once passed to me.
Others are still in the dark and need
the light to see.
"I AM"
"Gathering the fragments so that
none are lost"
His Shepherdess
http://missouri.thcministry.org/ |
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Lilli
Cannabis Sacrament Minister
Joined: 12 Dec 2003
Posts: 4218
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| Posted: Mon May 17, 2004 3:54 pm Post subject: Dell drops prison labor |
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Dell drops prison labor
Company finds new recycling vendor
Friday, July 4, 2003 Posted: 10:30 AM EDT (1430 GMT)
DALLAS, Texas (AP) -- Dell Computer said Thursday it will stop using a contractor that relies on prison labor to dismantle and recycle computers.
Dell said it has hired two new contractors to perform the work, Resource Concepts Inc. and Image Microsystems Inc.
The computer giant has been under pressure since last week to sever ties with UNICOR, a government-run corporation that uses federal inmates for a variety of money-making ventures.
Accusations against Dell
Last week, the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, an environmental group in California, accused Dell of running a "primitive" recycling system that exposed inmates to dangerous chemicals as they took apart computers and plucked out the reusable parts.
Dell spokesman Bryant Hilton said the switch in vendors was not related to the California group's report.
Dell said RCI and Image Microsystems had agreed to certain conditions for doing the recycling work, including compliance within one year with internationally recognized workplace-safety guidelines.
Calls to UNICOR officials in Washington were not immediately returned.
Environmental officials say the most troublesome ingredient in old computers is lead from cathode ray tubes and solder used on the motherboard.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/biztech/07/04/dell.recycling.ap/
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_________________
I pass to you the torch that Christ once passed to me.
Others are still in the dark and need
the light to see.
"I AM"
"Gathering the fragments so that
none are lost"
His Shepherdess
http://missouri.thcministry.org/ |
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