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B&H Photo - largest seller of camera gear in USA exploits workers


Ed_David
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B&H:
A camera is manufactured in China by a person that needs food and energy.
It is flown to America by a plane and pilot and then offloaded by some people who all need energy.
It is transported and then packaged into a warehouse in Brooklyn by people and trucks that use energy.
After I have placed my order it is transported back to the airport by people and trucks consuming energy.
Flown to Sweden by planes and people.
Delivered by a truck to my town by trucks and people.
I walk to the post and pick it up.

LOCALY:
A camera is manufactured in China by a person that needs food and energy.
It is flown to Sweden by a plane and pilot and then offloaded by some people who all need energy.
It is transported and then packaged into a Store in my town.
I walk to the store and pick it up.

I see your reasoning. However, my understanding is that the plane from China to the US is happening regardless. And the plane from US to Sweden is happening regardless. And everything in between is happening already too. Not trying to start a debate. I was just wondering if I was missing something. 

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I see your reasoning. However, my understanding is that the plane from China to the US is happening regardless. And the plane from US to Sweden is happening regardless. And everything in between is happening already too. Not trying to start a debate. I was just wondering if I was missing something. 

Its happening because people want it. They wouldn't fly empty.

So if people outside the US didnt buy from B&H they would stop flying.

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I feel like the people in this thread that are in denial about worker exploitation are the same people that gave Philip Bloom the benefit of the doubt over his domestic abuse. The world doesn't always adhere to your majority view. It's a deeply unjust place. 

The irony is you posted this less than 24 hours after Walmart had one of it's biggest one day drops in it's stock price after it said it would hire more people and raise wages across the board for it's lowest paid workers.

Shares of the world’s largest retailer tanked 10 percent, its worst percentage loss since the late 1980s, as the company presented a bleak outlook while it invests heavily in e-commerce and increases employee wages at an analyst meeting in New York.

As it warned that profits would drop as much as 12 percent in the next year, heirs to the Walmart throne watched more than $11 billion of their combined net worth wiped away over the course of a few hours, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/10/walmart-billionaire-stock

Anyone on this forum who says they would voluntarily casually lose $11 billion in a matter of hours just to raise some grocery checkers salary is full of it.  That just isn't human nature.  Some people would do it... but most?  No way.

Operating in the retail space in America is cut throat.  Unless the government steps in with a decent national minimum wage and comprehensive immigration reform any business that tries to run itself like a religious charity is going to face significant headwinds and probably bankruptcy.

There is nowhere locally for me that even sells Panasonic cameras.  There is no local camera shop.  The only people I can buy this type of gear from are online and lord knows what their warehouses are like.  I just think singling B&H out after a hit piece from an Arab news organization is pretty irresponsible.  Fine.  Run B&H out of business.  Now which saint do I order from?  Adorama?  Amazon?  Buydig?  Who?

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This is union muckraking, and I'm sorry, but anyone who doesn't see through this is stupid. This is the 21st Century US, not 40's Nazi Germany or behind the Iron Curtain. If the job is less than safe, then quit. They're not being forced to work there. Why weren't they reported to OSHA for their allegedly poor safety practices?I'm sorry but the timing of this expose' and the timing of the unionization of the BH workers are just too close to be called coincidental. And this nonsense that they aren't allowed to go to the bathroom... If you work a job that won't let you poop when you have to poop and you comply to their no pooping on the job policy... Then... You probably deserve to work that job. 

EDIT: I apologize "stupid" is a strong word, I should have said misinformed or naive. 

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I don't know Mercer, there has been a lot of abuse of working class and lower middle class workers these days. Check out NYTimes articles on Nail Salons and Amazon Warehouses. What is different now is more people are willing to take a risk to expose it, post-Snowden era.

I always go on the side of the worker.  They are risking a lot by speaking out. Especially nowadays in America where there aren't many factory jobs left.

Also re: Walmart - I don't think raising the pay of their workers has much to do with their losses - I think its the change in how people buy stuff - more online than brick and mortars.  Not many brick and mortar stores are doing well.  Best Buy I think turned it around.  But that's purely "creative" reporting.

USAToday has the same analysis - http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2015/10/14/walmart-amazon-dislocation-stock/73925812/

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This is union muckraking, and I'm sorry, but anyone who doesn't see through this is stupid. This is the 21st Century US, not 40's Nazi Germany or behind the Iron Curtain. If the job is less than safe, then quit. They're not being forced to work there. Why weren't they reported to OSHA for their allegedly poor safety practices?I'm sorry but the timing of this expose' and the timing of the unionization of the BH workers are just too close to be called coincidental. And this nonsense that they aren't allowed to go to the bathroom... If you work a job that won't let you poop when you have to poop and you comply to their no pooping on the job policy... Then... You probably deserve to work that job. 

EDIT: I apologize "stupid" is a strong word, I should have said misinformed or naive. 

I think anyone who buys in to this post is mmisinformed or naive.

Its all classic "taking the easy route" imo.

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This is union muckraking, and I'm sorry, but anyone who doesn't see through this is stupid. This is the 21st Century US, not 40's Nazi Germany or behind the Iron Curtain. If the job is less than safe, then quit. They're not being forced to work there. Why weren't they reported to OSHA for their allegedly poor safety practices?I'm sorry but the timing of this expose' and the timing of the unionization of the BH workers are just too close to be called coincidental. And this nonsense that they aren't allowed to go to the bathroom... If you work a job that won't let you poop when you have to poop and you comply to their no pooping on the job policy... Then... You probably deserve to work that job. 

EDIT: I apologize "stupid" is a strong word, I should have said misinformed or naive. 

Well I think the problem is the abuse is so pervasive it isn't like you can just walk out of that job and find another one that's better.  Ed David is right in regards to the NYTimes article on Nail Salons.  It looked at an entire industry... not just one nail shop.  If they just highlighted one nail shop it would give a false impression and people would simply go down the street to a different nail shop... which could very well be orders of magnitude worse than the one they are boycotting.  I just like my journalism in context.

 

Also re: Walmart - I don't think raising the pay of their workers has much to do with their losses - I think its the change in how people buy stuff - more online than brick and mortars.  Not many brick and mortar stores are doing well.  Best Buy I think turned it around.  But that's purely "creative" reporting.

 

Even USAToday takes my analysis - http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2015/10/14/walmart-amazon-dislocation-stock/73925812/

The USA Today article simply says "lower earnings".  It doesn't say why those earnings are lower.  They are lower because Walmart is going to take money that would have gone to bottom line income and instead reinvesting it in people... and they were thusly rewarded... with a 10% drop in their stock price.

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A video about this

 

I'm sorry but, to me, that seemed extremely staged. One guy looked like he was reading from cue cards.

The fact remains that workers have the right to unionize, I just feel the timing of the expose' and the union organization is a little too convenient.

I hope it works out for all parties. But to be honest, there is not enough evidence yet that will keep me from shopping there. 

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I'm sorry but, to me, that seemed extremely staged. One guy looked like he was reading from cue cards.

The fact remains that workers have the right to unionize, I just feel the timing of the expose' and the union organization is a little too convenient.

I hope it works out for all parties. But to be honest, there is not enough evidence yet that will keep me from shopping there. 

yeah, a conspiracy is the most likely scenario.......................

.......

    .....

 

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yeah, a conspiracy is the most likely scenario.......................

.......

    .....

 

It's probably organized by ISIS. They hate Jews right? 

The "just get another job" comments floor me. You guys need to start living paycheck to paycheck for awhile. 

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Update from Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective - "Recent update from a friend of mine working with LWC:

"Updates coming soon from LWC but B&H warehouse workers showed incredible strength and solidarity today in the face of employer intimidation. Forced management to do a complete 180 and claim workers were never fired and are all welcome back to work tomorrow. POWER."
 
#BHExposed"
 
 
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