Nike And Asian Labour Essays - Business, Nike, Inc., Fashion

Nike And Asian Labour There has been much debate and controversy recently concerning Nike's Asian labour practices. This is a very complex issue and one that is a long way from being solved. It is very difficult to determine which side of this argument to defend, as both sides acknowledge the facts, yet put a completely different spin on them. Do you believe Nike's critics who say they're exploiting workers? Or, do you believe Nike when they say that they are giving workers in these countries wonderful opportunities to raise their standard of living? The consensus answer to this question by all sides seems to be that Nike is improving but still has a ways to go. Nike's Asian ties can be traced back to the birth of the company. The CEO, chairman of the board of directors, and co-founder, Phil Knight, wrote his masters thesis at Stanford University in the 1960's on the prospects for using Asian labor to produce goods cheaper and more effectively. In order to incorporate this plan in to Nike's business structure, a partnership was set up with a Japan based company called Tiger Sports. Tiger Sports would manufacture shoes for Nike in Asia then shipped them to the United States to sell. In the 1980's however, this aspect of Nike's partnership with Tiger Sports was dissolved, and Nike was forced to expand production from the United States to countries such as Taiwan and Korea where their products could be manufactured at the same relatively low cost that Nike enjoyed through the Tiger Sports partnership. Over the last five of years, however, the production numbers for these countries have been decreasing at an alarming rate due to the fact that their economies expanded at a very rapid pace. This, in turn, caused the cost of labour to increase dramatically, and therefore Nike could no longer produce their product as efficiently as before. In lieu of the rapid economic growth in the pacific rim, and the increased production cost, Nike has moved more into countries such as Vietnam and China where the labour is cheaper and labour laws less stringent. (VLF, VN Fact Sheet) Nike does not own any of the factories that produces its products in Asia, and subsequently they do not directly employ the workers or management. They contract out work to factories that make all of the products and run all of the factories. They do, however, have a massive amount of leverage when dealing with these factories because of the huge contracts they supply. To ensure good labour practices, Nike has a Code of Conduct that every contractor must agree to abide by in order to get a contract. The Conduct Code in theory condemns and prohibits child labour, requires that workers be paid fair wage, imposes caps on the days and hours a worker can be forced to work, prohibits mistreatment or discrimination of workers in any form, obligates factories to implement programs that benefit worker's health and safety, and recognizes and respects the workers right to freedom of association. There are 1000 Nike employees worldwide monitoring operations at the subcontractors and specifically the Code of Conduct adherent. The most consistent criticism of Nike is that the workers in the factories contracted by them are not aware of the Code of Conduct that was agreed upon, and/or it is not enforced (especially the wages and overtime aspects) by the factory officials. Critics contend that the factories pay less than minimum wage at times, force too many overtime hours, and fail to make the workplace as clean and as safe as standards dictate. Many of the factories that are contracted have workers and management from different countries, causing some problems in communication. Some factories in China have Taiwanese Managers while factories in Vietnam have Korean managers. This is one reason offered by Nike in defense of the factories failure to comply with the Code of Conduct. To look into this issue, earlier this year Nike commissioned Andrew Young, a former civil rights leader and United Nations ambassador to do an analysis of how well the Code was working. Young and his staff visited four factories in Vietnam, Indonesia, and China for three to four hours each led by Nike's people. Young's conclusion proved not only to be uninformative, but somewhat aggravating to the public due to its elementary tone. "Nike is doing a good job, but could do better" was the statement released by Young at the end of the report. Another aspect of the inquiry that bothered the public was

MY BONDAGE AND MY FREEDOM essays

MY BONDAGE AND MY FREEDOM essays The book My Bondage And My Freedom, one of Frederick Douglasss many biographies, attempts to put into perspective his views and experiences on slavery. Born in the year 1817, Frederick Douglass lived not with his mother and father like the white children of that era would, but with his grandparents. Living with them it was a long time before he knew himself to be a slave. As he began to mature in age and understanding he began to realize that the house and land he had grown to love, belonged not to his loving grandparents but to one his grandmother always referred to as Old Master. Understanding this also brought the knowledge that his grandmother, himself and all the other children around belonged not to themselves as freemen but to Old Master. Even through all this, still did he not realize what it meant to be a slave until around the age of seven or eight when he was carried to Old Masters plantation where he was to begin the labors expected of him. At the change of scene he was introduced to brothers and sisters he hadnt before met or seen. He was expected to treat them as long lost relatives he had once again discovered but to do this he would have had to know about their existence and spent time with them before now. His brothers and sisters did their best to help him get adjusted to the way of life he was now expected to live in but he was still a child and real labors werent to be thrown on his shoulders for a while longer. Although he was the property of Old Master throughout his life he would call many people master. At around the age of ten he was sent to Baltimore to live with a relative of Old Master, Master Hugh Auld. For the first time, he was living in a big city and got to see the differences between city slaves and country slaves. City Slaves had life a bit easier because not everyone in the city owned slaves...

Retail Market Analysis - Mobile Phone Retailing in the UK for the last Essay

Retail Market Analysis - Mobile Phone Retailing in the UK for the last quarter of 2011 (October December) - Essay Example Current paper focuses on the mobile phone industry of UK; the country’s mobile retail market is analysed emphasizing on the last quarter of 2011. Reference is also made to the industry’s performance in the past, especially during 2011, since it is considered as a valid indicator of the industry’s performance not only in the last quarter of 2011 but also in the future. A problem has appeared when reviewing the performance of the sector’s major competitors for the last quarter of 2011: not all of these firms publish their financial accounts and it was not possible to retrieve these figures through the organizations’ websites. However, where such information was not available, other websites, providing information on this issue, have been used as alternatives for identifying the financial performance of mobile retailing firms in UK for the 4th Quarter of 2011. Also, where figures are not available for the particular period of time, such as for example in the case of Hutchison, reference is made to the performance of the firm for the entire 2011 so that the comparison of the performance of the firm with its rivals to be feasible. Mobile phone sector in the UK - overview Mobile phone industry is quite valuable for the UK economy. Currently, the mobile connections in UK are estimated to 81 million (Mobile Operators Association 2012). In fact, the sector’s operators have managed to gain about a 71% of the telecommunications sector in UK (Mobile Operators Association 2012).... Five are the sector’s competitors, as highlighted in Figure 1 below. Customers of these firms seem to be quite satisfied with the services provided to them; in a survey conducted in 2010 it was revealed that a percentage of 93% of the industry’s customers are quite satisfied with the quality of customer services within the particular industry (Mobile Operators Association 2012). The key point for the transformation of the UK mobile retailing industry has been the merger of Orange UK with T Mobile UK in July, the 1st of 2010 (Everything Everywhere 2010). Since then, the distribution of power among the industry’s competitors has been significantly changed, as analysed below. 3. Mobile phone sector in the UK for the last quarter of 2011 (October – December) – industry analysis 3.1 Competition As already noted above, five are the major competitors in the UK mobile phone industry (Figure 1); through the years, these firms have tried to keep their share i ntact, despite the high industry’s competition (Figure 2). The graph in Figure 1 reveals that new entrants or substitute products do not threaten the performance of the industry’s major competitors, as this issue is taken into consideration when evaluating a firm’s performance using the Porter’s five forces model on industry competition. In fact, the market share of these firms seems to be standardized, being kept at same levels from 2008 up to 2010 (Figure 1). A similar trend, in terms of performance, would be expected for 2011, as also verified by the graph in Figure 2. Figure 1 – Five major competitors in the UK mobile phone industry, performance for the period 4thQ of 2008 up to the 1stQ of 2010 (Source: Telecoms Market Research 2011) On the other hand, the graph in Figure 2 below reveals a

Communication Security Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Communication Security - Essay Example Frequently, one would desire to make use of various cryptographic equipment with estimated, noisy, and non-uniformly disseminated keys, rather than the exact, sternly random strings that are typically needed. Similarly â€Å"fuzzy† secret could be assessed on somewhat concealed biometric characteristics a retinal scan rather than a thumbprint. For instance, it could be a long password incorrectly dedicated to memory, or one’s impulsive reactions to a list of personal questions. If at all possible, someone would be looking for a wide variety of techniques to alter some of the above into cryptographically powerful keys practical for a variety of purposes. Hence, a number of structures geared toward precise applications have surfaced in the previous few years.The application of fuzzy cryptography can offer an excellent support for potential enhancement of network communication error correction and security. It is an admitted fact that the application of next-generation sec urity mechanisms has offered much better support and network security which have improved the security of a communication network. With the evolution of penetration through mobile devices in current years, safety and privacy threats, as well as security necessities correspondingly, have multiplied. In fact, it has augmented a wide variety of threats, though, is indistinct to wireless networks and mobile users as security methods are supposed as a hassle for the reason that they are not inconspicuous as well as might divert from high-level jobs. (Boyen; Dodis, Reyzin and Smith; Al-saggaf and Acharya). The basic purpose of this research is to assess the application of fuzzy cryptography for achieving feasible network security and offering better security means that are less unobtrusive or even obtrusive? Proposed Solution For the application of better security through fuzzy cryptography, the proposed idea is to make use of context (sensor generated, state reliant content for example ambient audio, location or ambient light) as an embedded method to implement a fundamental level of privacy and security. In fact, this context can be employed as frequent secret codes amongst devices in the similar

Cost Information for decision making Essay Example for Free

Cost Information for decision making Essay Two common costing systems used in business are traditionally cost accounting system (job costing, process costing and operating costing) and activity-based costing system (ABC). There are some similarities and differences between these systems. Regarding the similarities, both accumulate product costs throughout the production process and assign those costs to individual units of production. Additionally, product cost under two costing systems consists of direct materials, direct labor and manufacturing overhead. In terms of differences, they are different in the way how the overhead costs are allocated. For conventional costing, it assigns manufacturing overhead based on a single volume based cost driver such as direct labour hours. In contrast, ABC approaches cost from the perspective that products do not cause costs. It requires activities which are the causes of all costs incurred so it allocates manufacturing overhead according to the activities needed to produce the products. Therefore, it highlights the existence of non value added activity which is not existed under traditional method. ABC also differs from conventional costing in the use of several cost pools when allocating the overhead costs. For instance, traditional costing uses only one cost pool to distribute the overhead whereas there are many cost pools involved under ABC. Furthermore, ABC employs both volume-based and non-volume-based cost drivers while conventional costing utilizes only volume-based cost drivers. Another difference is that conventional approach complies with the GAAP so it can be used to satisfy conventional financial reporting requirements. On the other hand, accounting standard board does not accept ABC to prepare financial statements so it can be useful for internal management decision. Under conventional system, there are similarities between job costing, process costing and operating costing. Firstly, they accumulate product costs throughout the production process and assign those costs to products. Secondly, these costing systems calculate the product costs which comprise direct material, direct labour and manufacturing overhead. Lastly, the cost flows for three systems is from raw material to work in process to finished goods and then to costs of goods sold. These first two systems can be distinguished by the following differences. First, job costing system is used by the company which produces unique products or products based on customer orders. Conversely, process costing is for the firms which produce one or a few homogenous products and often have continuous mass production. Second, each individual product costs are traced easily under job costing while process costing makes no attempt to track individual product costs. Thirdly, under job costing, the transfer from one job to another does not take place whereas the production from one process is transferred to next one till the product is full completed under process costing. Next, process costing accumulates product costs in each production department throughout the period while job order costing accumulates product costs to specific units. Operating costing for company which has a mix production system that produces in large quantities but then is customized the finished product. Therefore, operating costing is a combination of process costing and job costing. However, it differs from job and process costing which includes more than two types of cost pools in overhead allocation process. The cost pools are designed to match the separate processes that may be allocated to batches of products. Comment about the quality of your work: According to the assessment criteria, my answer for the question should be marked 7. This is for the following reasons. Firstly, the answer is well-organized into five paragraphs which consist of differences between conventional costing and ABC costing. For instance, the first and second paragraphs demonstrate the similarities and differences between conventional costing and ABC. Apart from this, the answer also points out the similarities and differences between job costing, process costing and operating costing.

Atmosphere and Tension in Great Expectations Essay -- Great Expectation

Atmosphere and Tension in Great Expectations In this essay I am going to write about how Charles Dickens creates atmosphere and tension in the opening chapter, of Great Expectations. Because the audience cannot see what Dickens wants them to, he has to create atmosphere and tension to guide the audience through the incident, as well as hooking the audience by keeping them interested. Dickens intentionally creates that atmosphere because he wants us to feel sympathy for Pip and what he’s going through. And if we care about what happens to Pip we keep interested. Atmosphere and tension set the tone and mood of the book. Dickens begins his book by starting with Pip at the graveyard to create atmosphere and tension, by referring to death and tombstones. The story is set in a time were disease and death were common, before any major advances in medicine, and it was ordinary to loose a lot of your close family to illness. We are told by Pip, that his mother, father, and five little brothers were buried there but that is all we are told. By doing this Dickens has deliberately created a felling of solitude and helplessness and makes the reader feel and identify with Pip. Dickens tells us the churchyard is overgrowing with nettles and there are gravestones all around the area. Instantly the graveyard creates a morbid feeling, and knowing that Pip’s dead relatives are surrounding him produces a scary feeling, that you wouldn’t want to be in yourself. The reader becomes worried that a young child is in such a place alone, which adds to the dread that something might go wrong. Dickens also uses weather to create atmosphere and tension by making it seem bitter, and cruel. The weather is described as a â€Å"raw afte... ...e tombstone obviously isn’t Pips he thinks he is going to die because of how the convict is acting physically and verbally. It feels personal to him and this is a fear-building phrase. Pip is portrayed as being venerable and young. Dickens wants you to see him as an innocent, to see him scared of what is going on as it is a new and shocking experience. Dickens wants us to understand and sympathise with him. Pip describes the convict as â€Å"a fearful man† and the convicts first words as â€Å"a terrible voice†, which tells us that Pips first impression of the convict is a fearful one. The convicts orders are written as if they were directed at the reader. For a second we become pip and undergo what Pip is going though. This creates tension as the reader begins to understand what pip has felt. Dickens uses colour as another factor to create atmosphere morbid.

Ken from Whose Life Is It Anyway Persuading the Judge to Let Him Die Essay

In this essay, I will be describing and analysing how Ken, from â€Å"whose life is it anyway†, used persuasive techniques to persuade the judge to let him die. Ken is trying to persuade the judge to let him die, and he persuades him with this quote â€Å"†¦and I find the hospital’s persistent effort to maintain this shadow of life an indignity and its humane. † this quote is clearly showing that he does not want to rely on other people. The word â€Å"maintain† stands for holding something like an object in your household. He does not want the hospital and the doctors to â€Å"maintain† his shadow of life because he thinks that he is â€Å"dead already†. In the quote â€Å"†¦but the dignity starts with their choice. If I chose to live, it would be appalling if society killed me. If I chose to die, its equally appalling if society keeps me alive. † This quote shows that he cares about other people not just himself. The word â€Å"society† is used because it shows that he thinks truly not only about himself. Also there is a word â€Å"choose†, this clearly shows that there is no modal verbs and it is more effective and emotive, as that word, it self, shows that he thought everything though what he actual said. I like the way Ken uses strong words like â€Å"appalling†, by saying this, he is exaggerating and by doing this, he is shocking. Ken doesn’t thing letting someone live although they’re against it is terrible, but the fact that they don’t get the choice. â€Å"The cruelty doesn’t reside on saving someone or allowing them to die. It resides in the fact that the choice is removed from the man concerned† this quote means exactly how ken feels at that moment. The choice is about to be taken from him, and that will make things even harder for him. The word â€Å"cruelty† is a very strong word. Using it, Ken, creates sympathy and it made the whole quote more persuasive and he was saying that people are cruel by taking the choice from him. Also I this quote, he is stating by using words like â€Å"is†, â€Å"fact†, â€Å"it resides†. All of these are modal verbs and show that he knows what he is talking about and is confident with what he thinks and knows. The author chose the techniques for a reason, and the reasons are that the whole fact about persuading the judge needs to be pointed out as it’s the most important bit in the story play, the judge will judge from whether to save the man or let him die as he wanted. It’s a life or death situation. Ken also uses rhetorical questions to make the judge think, â€Å"Is that surprising? † Ken said this on purpose as it is very effective persuasive technique like in the one. Rhetorical questions overall, start arguments and debates in which this story is all about. Overall I think that the judge did the right thing letting ken die. He would be suffering mentally and physically if he didn’t. This story has many different writing techniques and only very few I have analysed in this essay. I think they are very effective upon this story and the story wouldn’t make sense and so much drama if it didn’t.