Hershey exploitation

Never knew this about Hershey. I wonder how many more corporations do unethical stuff like this to cut costs. I hate to ramble on about how corporations are quite literally the worst form of business structure and how they, along with the banking industry, are steering our society to its death, so I will leave it at that. I know how much ATS staff love topics with little content in the original post so I guess the point of discussion here is to educate each other about the repulsive things that corporations do to achieve their one and only goal - more profit.

Aww and I love Reese's ...
Damn you Hershey, now I have to eat knockoff brand on principle!!

They do the samething in my town...The Amusement Park Cedar Point hires out of the country and houses and works the kids long hours.Takes houseing out of there pay.They use to hire at all the colleges but now they bring the workers in and on thier name tags are from what country they are from....I have seen Thailand and Singapore...to name a few...

reply to post by frozenspark


As bad as this is it is merely the tip of the iceburg. Dig into what is occuring at the Meat packing houses across the US and the conditions and treatment of workers. The same is happening in regards to not wanting to hire local people or American people. This is part of the reason behind big business riding the backs and buying politicians to rid the country of organized labor unions. There are so many american people who simply don't know and don't understand the behind the scenes reasons for what is happening.

Yep. No surprise here. Unchecked power always produces this result.

The only ultimate solution is to take power away from the CEOs and presidents and government officials and people behind closed doors, and put it in the hands of the people. I want a system in which we, right now, can stop this ourselves. No lobbying, no protesting. It just stops. Because we decide that it stops. That kind of power could be in our hands right now, using the technology we have today.

reply to post by StripedBandit


Just so you know...McDonald's is starting to bring guest workers in, too...There are a few from China here now.

i have the same problem with one of my favorites country crock (sorry but it just works better for cooking)used to leave it out on the counter all year long would not seperate.about a year ago along with the size of the container getting smaller for the same price which is a whole seperate thing ,it now seperates sometimes a yellow oil,sometimes water sometimes a combination of water and yellow oil besides the more solid majority of what "margerine" really is. so i e-mailed them to complain and they sent me free product coupons which is nice and all but now i'm going to e-mail them back and ask them why they changed the formula that they use,not for the free coupons but i figure if i keep asking and the people i tell about this e-mail them and we all stop using the product eventually they might start to question their practices and realise that they are not getting over on anybody any more.unfortunatly this is the only power us average shmoes have.like kraft and the cauliflower powder in the pasta supposedly only in the mac and cheese at wal-mart and i noticed a difference the noodles are mush and if you have ever had cauliflower trust me you can taste it,so i e-mailed them never got a response so i no longer buy that product, i have told everyone i know and hope they will do the same by telling their friends and stop using the products and to e-mail and complain.on the other side of this coin we have to applaude stand up companies and e-mail them tell them they are doing things right and why you think so,and to tell all of your friends about your good experiences.like one of my favorite places in my hometown of alexandria,MN a place called tennesee roadhouse, every time i go there the food is always good the service is always good and the owners are almost always there watching over things and making shure things are perfect. ii go there as often as i can afford and i always tell them what a good job they are doing. this is the only kind of revolution any of us can ever pull off making shure our hard earned money goes to the people and companies that deserve it. and thanks for the info on hershey and cedar point i went there a few years ago and was actually planning a vacation there this fall,i now will be changing plans and e-mailing them and and telling them about my change of plans and why i will not be spending my money at their establishment.

im not surprised, ive worked in two factories before, pullin 40 hrs a week, 12hr shifts it was horrible, but hey at least i got minimum wage, and was free to quit.....which i did, lasted bout a year at both,

the idea of being stuck there, threatened with deportation, paid less then minimum wage, its outragous, i wouldnt tolerate it, problem is many of these kids are trying to support families back in their home country so their own lives arent the only ones at stake,

honestly though, what the hell do you people expect? what country do you think you are in? the mythical "land of the free"? or is this capitalism? im tellin you, capitalism and freedom do not go together,

when the bottom line is profit/the dollar, this obviously ought to mean the bottom line is NOT freedom,


couple songs come to mind

www.youtube.com...



www.youtube.com...




theres only one bottom line, its either money/the dollar, or it's freedom,

which do you think our government/corporations are run by?

reply to post by pryingopen3rdeye

or is this capitalism? im tellin you, capitalism and freedom do not go together,

Capitalism can only work on the back of slave labor. Capitalism requires someone to be oppressed. Our way of life is not sustainable. Our capitalist experiment has failed. We are living on borrowed time and we are seeing the repercussions of this in the form of riots world wide.

We have allowed a prison system to be erected around us. some of us are born into it, go to school and come out hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, which is the plan. Others come here looking for a dream that is nothing more than a lie.

Corporations are not people, they do not have rights, and they are not our masters. If only some of us had the balls those kids have, we might actually change things.

reply to post by phishyblankwaters


Socialism can only work on the back of slave labor, then. All you're doing is replacing private businesses with the collective. Don't you know what happens to the minority under the rule of the majority?

This is just amazing. I grew up outside of Hershey and to work for them or one of their subsidiaries was considered an "honorable" job. Then the suits got wise. They saw the huge honeypot left by Milton Hershey (the entire organization is based off of a trust fund he set up) and started making moves to "corporatize". They opened plants in Mexico, shut down ones here in the US, and now this.

I think some more research needs to be done on this J-1 Visa program. My initial examination led me to think this is nothing but a revolving door for cheap labor as suggested in the video.

Check out the US State Dept's VISA site and you will come across a Designated Sponsor List which lists all companies that act as "sponsors" for these students coming to America. These companies look like nothing more than fronts for overseas companies that recruit the kids, take their money and send them over.

Here's another "sponsor" that pretty much sums up the gears behind this program.

The J-1 Exchange Visitor program is a great way to add international flare to your business while promoting cultural exchange among countries. You don't have to limit yourself to American employee searches, now you can open up your positions to the world. A Cultural Exchange Service, Inc. (“ACES”) provides Staffing Personnel an easy and affordable way to participate in this program.

Options
Whether you are looking for unskilled labor such as housekeeping and kitchen or skilled employees in a specific area such as ski instructors or cooks/culinary arts students our network of recruiters have it all.

Easy and Affordable
Whether you have possible candidates from other countries that you want to offer a job to, or you are looking to find staff for your current openings, we can help make a perfect match. ACES helps make this process easy and affordable...remember, you save in payroll taxes as well.

Save Money on Taxes!
What most employers don’t know is that by employing students from the J-1 Exchange Visitor Programs whether they work in unskilled or skilled positions, you actually save money. The student’s pay rate and compensation package must be comparable to US peers in the same positions and they must meet minimum wage requirements; however, employers are not responsible for FICA and FUTA payroll taxes. That’s a great savings.

(bold emphasis is mine)

This looks like a good place to plop this link. Students are having a sit in at a Hersheys factory to protest their crappy ethics.

www.jwj.org...

On August 17th, hundreds of student guestworkers from around the world were joined by unemployed American workers and labor leaders in a factory sit-in at the Hershey's Chocolate Company packing plant in Pennsylvania. The students paid $3,000-$6,000 each to come to the U.S. this summer for what they thought would be a cultural exchange program through the State Department's J-1 visa. Instead, they found themselves packing chocolates at the Hershey's plant in deeply exploitative conditions. After automatic weekly deductions for rent in company housing and other expenses, they net between $40 and $140 per week for 40 hours of work.They talked about their struggle and asked for our support at the JwJ national conference last week. The student guestworkers aren’t the only ones who have suffered. If Hershey hadn't chosen to subcontract to have its chocolates packed by exploitable guestworkers, 400 workers in Central Pennsylvania could have had living wage, union jobs. The students' demands: End the exploitation of student workers at the Hershey's plant and return the $3,000-$6,000 that the student workers paid for a cultural exchange That Hershey's make these living wage jobs for local Pennsylvania workers

reply to post by frozenspark


I live about 10 minutes from Hershey - and my AMERICAN nephew worked there for, oh, maybe 30 days and walked out. What these people are saying about being treated horribly is 100% correct, as well as, the pay they receive. For a corporation that supposedly cares deeply about it's roots and reputation - I find it hard to believe that it is being run today with the same decent intentions Mr. Hershey originally instituted. Most assuredly, he is rollin' in his grave. Shame on you Hershey - you giveth...and you taketh away. I now buy my chocolate from Europe

reply to post by frozenspark

Tell 'em in the country,
tell 'em in the town,
Miners down in Mingo laid their shovels down.

We won't pull another pillow,
load another ton.
We won't lift another finger til the union we have won,

Stand up boys, let the bosses know
Turn your buckets over, turn your lanterns low.
There's fire in our hearts and fire in our souls,
but there ain't gonna be no fire in the hole.
...no there ain't gonna be no fire in the hole!

Union song from the days of the Mingo County Coal Wars. (from the film Matewan)

Have you seen what Hershey's is doin' now? Aerated Chocolate? "Let's whip up the chocolate a little so their are bubbles in it, that way we give out less chocolate and charge the same for it." "Harrumph!" "Harrumph!" "Harrumph!"

When customers start to buy them at my store I warn them what it is they have in their hand. None have been sold on my watch.

In the early days of the US a corporation was only issued a charter if it could show that it was being formed to benefit the public. Even then, a corporation would only be chartered for the duration of the project they were undertaking, or for a set period, usually ten years at the longest. Dump trucks full of cash convinced one New England State and then another to back off of that law. Before long the domino effect had taken over and the States were racing for their cash deliveries too. Now, instead of the Government controlling the corporations, the corporations control the Government.

A lot has happened while we were collectively napping, huh?

Originally posted by StripedBandit
Aww and I love Reese's ...
Damn you Hershey, now I have to eat knockoff brand on principle!!

Theres a knockoff brand?? Maybe im sheltered on this issue, what is other brands of peanut butter cups or chocolate bars?

Im only asking that, because I live under an hour away from the hershey plant, and its all ive known around here...


Thats just so messed up that they are basically using slave labor... I dont even really know what to say about it, except I will definitely be informing people around here about it... Its a good thing I have given up candy bars and stuff anyways(I mean who has 1.69$ per bar these days?)

AW, poor little Hershey's getting all this bad press.

CORPORATION ARE PEOPLE people!

Working for a chocolate factory is fun! Hard work, but fun.
youtu.be...

See??????

So let me get this straight.
These kids come from a foreign nation and pay their way here. They get an appartment to live in and the freedom to take classes at US schools and shop at US stores and send what ever they want home and in return they are asked to only work 40 hours a week and pay for the apartment.

MY GOD THATS SLAVERY!

WHO could DARE ask someone to actually work for FORTY hours on TWELVE hour shifts doing manual labor? GOD the HUMANITY! Its virtual sweet shop, oh wait SWEAT shop!
AND PAY FOR THEIR LIVING SPACE
Those poor children were practically chained to those machines!

Grow the hell up. In highschool I worked for less money 32 hours a week with no benefits after I did 8 hours a day at school. You dont live on minimum wage its there for entry level jobs to provide folks a way of earning their place in a company and working their way up. Its not there to raise a family.

I find it a bit ironic that these people of other nations are fighting the battle that we have lost the heart or the drive to do so for ourselves.

We have become a soft feeble nation of overly offended complainers. We have lost the "put up or shut up" attitude we once embraced and we have become subdued to do as what fits the status quo.

This should be a wake up call to all Americans. The fact that immigrants are willing to fight the fight against these corrupt corporations, in which we seem to lack the will to do so anymore.

Its trully amazing.

They are comming here to pursue the American dream, they get here, and are treated as slave labor in a nutshell.

This isn't American this is out right disgusting.

I will commence a boycott to any and all of hershey's products at this moment. If this vid went viral and say 50 million people joined in this boycott. I wonder what hershey's would do.

I'm sure they wouldn't have a sweet taste in there mouths.

reply to post by frozenspark


I mean this doesn't sound that bad to me. Work sucks. The only bad part was paying them that little.


But to be honest. Well world, welcome to the first generation immigrant experience. Did you expect it would be easy?

Again, pay is the only thing I see bad here. Because you should at least be able to propel yourself forward.

Wow this was only yesterday. Thanks for bringing this to light.

I am boycotting Hershey's.