Stop Bridgestone Tyres from using child labour!

By Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

To mark the recent World Day Against Child Labour (15 June), The Body Shop Australia calls on Bidgestone Americas Holding Inc the makers of Bidgestone and Firestone tyres to make concrete changes on their rubber plantation in Liberia to ensure an end to child labour.

According to the International Labour Rights Forum :

Firestone workers must tap trees in order to extract the latex necessary for making rubber tires. The rubber tappers must meet a daily production quota or their already low wages will be halved.

By Firestone Natural Rubber Company CEO Dan Adomitis’ own admission on CNN (transcript), it would take over 21 hours to meet the quota. As a result, tappers are forced to bring their children and wives to work. Children are forced to carry two 70 pound buckets of rubber on their shoulders for miles. In addition, tappers and their children must apply toxic pesticides without protection.

From their website, it looks like the Firestone Natural Rubber Company should be congratulated for doing a lot for local communities in Liberia, in terms of jobs, education and healthcare. However, it's time for Firestone to change its pay structure to a living wage and enforce their own "zero-tolerance policy against bringing children to a work site". The reality is that changing the quota system is the only way of stopping child labour.



The Solutions:

• After a long struggle, the workers on the plantation finally have democratic and independent union.
  
• The union is negotiating their new collective bargaining agreement with company management right NOW.
• The biggest demands for the workers is to switch from a task-based pay system to a fair, daily wage. Note: the current adult wage is only $3.19 a day!
• Firestone can honour World Day Against Child Labor by agreeing to end the quota system, but they need pressure from you!

Activist action The Body Shop has taken:

• The Body Shop Australia is immediately boycotting Bridgestone / Firestone tyres for all of our company vehicles until they end the quota system in their rubber plantations in Liberia.
• Talking to the International Labor Rights Forum about how we can best support their campaigns to stop this human rights abuse.

Activist action you can take:

• Read more about the issue and download campaign materials from www.stopfirestone.org/about
  
• Use your ethical purchasing power to only support tyre manufacturers that do not use child labour.
• Use this form to email Firestone and demand change!
• Help spread the word by joining the Stop Firestone MySpace or Facebook group.
  

~ Adam