NZ Election 2020: Labour promises to double sick leave to 10 days
19 Sep, 2020 

Labour Workplace Relations & Safety spokesperson Andrew Little promised to double sick leave to 10 days and increase the minimum wage to $20 by 2021 if re-elected. Labour Party NZ Herald




Labour is promising voters it will double workers' sick leave entitlements from five to 10 days a year.

If re-elected, it is committing to making the change within its first 100 days and would work with businesses and unions on timeframes.

Labour's workplace relations spokesperson Andrew Little unveiled the party's policy this morning which also promises to:

• Increase the minimum wage beyond the scheduled increase to $20 next year.

• Raise the age for workers to be allowed to perform hazardous work from 15 to 16.

• Legislate protections for dependent contractors.

• Strengthen the Employment Relations Act to make it harder for collective agreements to be undermined.

• Legislate for and implement Fair Pay Agreements.

• Improve transparency for pay across genders and ethnicity.

If re-elected, Labour would legislate to increase the statutory minimum sick leave for workers from five to 10 days.

"To maintain healthy workplaces and to prevent the spread of Covid-19, all workers must be able to take sick leave while self-isolating," Little said.

"The costs to the economy of going into lockdown far outweigh the costs of employees staying home sick."

On increasing the minimum wage, Labour said it would take a "balanced approach" so the country's lowest-paid workers could benefit from economic growth "while also ensuring employers and businesses can continue to grow and provide stable employment".

It also promised to make it easier for women to gain pay equity in their organisation or across their industry.

There wasn't much detail in their policy document about how it would do that besides "ensuring there are better records of pay equity" across New Zealand.

"This will enable people can better see where the problem lies and build on the work we have already done to streamline the process for women to negotiate equal pay settlements."
Labour's workplace relations spokesperson Andrew Little has unveiled the party's workplace policy. Photo / Alex Burton

It would also introduce Fair Pay Agreements in line with the recommendations of the Fair Pay Agreement Working Group it says would make it easier for workers to receive fair wages and conditions.

Key provisions of Fair Pay Agreements that Labour would introduce include:


• Agreements would cover employees and dependent contractors.

• Workers would be represented by registered unions during bargaining and only unions would be able to initiate bargaining for the first agreement.

• Concluding an agreement would need more than 50 per cent support from workers and more than 50 per cent support from employers.

• Once agreed, Fair Pay Agreements would cover all employers in the sector but there would be able to be negotiated regional variations and exemptions of up to 12 months for employers facing severe financial hardship.

Labour also committed to simplifying the Holidays Act which it says has failed to provide consistent leave entitlements or provide adequate leave for new workers. It would:

• Introduce legislation to simplify employers' leave calculations.


• Allow employees to take sick and annual leave when needed, and their leave would accrue over time instead of becoming available as a block when they reach 6 and 12 months' employment.

• Allow employees to take bereavement and family violence leave as needed.

And Labour would strengthen section 59b of the Employment Relations Act so unions don't have to establish the "intent" of employers who automatically pass on gains from collective bargaining to non-union workers.

Lastly, Labour committed to protecting vulnerable workers by:

• Legislating protections for dependent contractors.

• Recognising security guards as vulnerable workers to ensure their terms and conditions are protected.

• Raising the age for workers to be allowed to perform hazardous work to 16, and ensuring all workers have the right to elect health and safety representatives

• Ensuring that Seafarer Welfare Centres provide better services.

The Green Party said it supported the policy and said it would work with Labour to quickly implement Fair Pay Agreements and extended sick leave.

The Greens have already committed to doubling sick leave entitlements if re-elected and have long called for the implementation of fair pay agreements.

National leader Judith Collins said Labour would "cripple businesses as they battle the recession" by "piling the costs on".

She said the duo of increasing minimum wage and sick leave entitlements showed "how out of touch" Labour was with small businesses.

"Modern employers have bought in flexible working practices to ensure their workers' welfare and wellbeing.

"This policy is an old-fashioned approach to dictating employment conditions that doesn't reflect modern, flexible working practices.

"It will only make it harder for workers to keep their jobs."

Act leader David Seymour said Labour "isn't just cutting open the golden goose, they're wringing its neck" with the workplace policy.

Seymour said he'd seen no evidence that people were being asked to work while sick.

"We can only assume this policy is being driven by the unions who back Labour.

"Labour doesn't understand small business. It's only interested in helping its union mates."

Auckland restaurant Saaj Indian Cuisine ordered to pay nearly $50,000 for exploiting migrant worker
24 Sep, 2020 

The Employment Relations Authority ruled against Dansan Investments Limited, which operates as Saaj Indian Cuisine, and its two directors. Photo / 123RF NZ Herald

An Auckland restaurant and its owners have been ordered to pay nearly $50,000 in penalties and unpaid wages to a migrant worker.

The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) found Dansan Investments Ltd, which operates as Saaj Indian Cuisine, and its two directors, Mary George Varghese and Sheik Abdul Kader, were liable for $32,000 owed in wage arrears.

One third of the $16,100 in penalties is to be paid directly to the exploited worker, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) said today.

After a Labour Inspectorate investigation into Dansan Investments, the ERA heard how the worker was told to make a $6000 premium payment to the employers to secure an application for her work visa.

She borrowed money from friends to pay the employers, under the threat that the work visa application would not be supported without payment.

"This is yet another example of an employer using their position of power to exploit a migrant worker, who relies on them for a work visa and their right to continue to live and work in New Zealand," Labour Inspectorate national manager Stu Lumsden said.

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Lumsden said migrants should never have to pay a "premium" or any extra cost to secure a work visa from their employers.

"For employers to demand such a payment is illegal," he said. "The ERA also made it very clear that this type of offending will not be tolerated."

MBIE said the employment agreement showed the worker would work a minimum of 35 hours a week, and although she worked between 40 and 65.5 hours a week, she was only paid for between 28 and 33 hours.

There were also no holiday payments and time and a half for working on public holidays.

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Lumsden said Dansan Investments also had no clear wage records.

"This required the investigation to source alternative proof, in this case the use of public transport travel records, to disprove Dansan's claim that she didn't work at the restaurant during those times."

This was also not the first time that Dansan Investments has been investigated by the Labour Inspectorate. In 2015 a former employee complained about a failure to pay minimum entitlements and the inspectorate issues an improvement notice, which wasn't adhered to by the company.

Anyone concerned about the employment situation for themselves or someone they know can call MBIE's contact centre on 0800 20 90 20.

'Worst in history': Nearly 500 pilot whales stranded in Australia; 380 dead
24 Sep, 2020 

In this image made from aerial video shows numerous stranded whales along the coastline Wednesday near the remote west coast town of Strahan on the island state of Tasmania. Photo / AP

More pilot whales were found stranded in Australia yesterday, raising the estimated total to nearly 500, including 380 that have died, in the largest mass stranding ever recorded in the country.

Authorities had already been working to rescue survivors among an estimated 270 whales found on Monday on a beach and two sand bars near the remote coastal town of Strahan on the southern island state of Tasmania.

Another 200 stranded whales were spotted from a helicopter on Wednesday less than 10 kilometres to the south, Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service Manager Nic Deka said.

In this image made from aerial video shows numerous stranded whales along the coastline Wednesday near the remote west coast town of Strahan on the island state of Tasmania. Photo / AP

All 200 had been confirmed dead by late afternoon.

They were among 380 whales that had died overall, 30 that were alive but stranded and 50 that had been rescued since Tuesday, Deka said.

"We'll continue to work to free as many of the animals as we can," he said. "We'll continue working for as long as there are live animals."

About 30 whales in the original stranding were moved from the sandbars to open ocean on Tuesday, but several got stranded again.

About a third of the first group had died by Monday evening.

Tasmania is the only part of Australia prone to mass strandings, although they occasionally occur on the Australian mainland.

Australia's largest mass stranding had previously been 320 pilot whales near the Western Australia state town of Dunsborough in 1996.

The latest stranding is the first involving more than 50 whales in Tasmania since 2009.

Marine Conservation Programme wildlife biologist Kris Carlyon said the latest mass stranding was the biggest in Australia "in terms of numbers stranded and died."

Members of a rescue crew stand with a whale on a sand bar near Strahan on Tuesday. 

Photo / AP

Why the whales ran aground is a mystery. The pod may have been drawn into the coast to feed or by the misadventure of one or two whales, which led to the rest of the pod following, Carlyon said.

"It's really likely this was the one stranding event of a big group. This would have been one big group offshore," he said.

Members of a rescue crew stand with a whales on a sand bar near Strahan on Tuesday. 

Photo / AP

Marine scientist Vanessa Pirotta said there were a number of potential reasons whales might become beached, including navigational errors.

"They do have a very strong social system, these animals are closely bonded and that's why we have seen so many in this case unfortunately in this situation," Pirotta said.

Pilot whales lie stranded on a sand bar near Strahan on Monday. Photo / AP

And rescuing them doesn't always work "because they are wanting to return back to the pod, they might hear the acoustics for the vocalisations of the sounds that the others are making, or they're just disoriented and in this case extremely stressed, and just probably so fatigued that they in some cases don't know where they are," she added.

In New Zealand, more than 600 pilot whales washed up on the South Island at Farewell Spit in 2017, with more than 350 dying.

CAPITALISM WITH A COMMUNIST FACE
China’s new richest person is a bottled water tycoon

THE NESTLE OF ASIA

Image copyright GETTY IMAGES

The richest person is China is a bottled water tycoon, knocking Alibaba founder Jack Ma from his mantle.

Zhong Shanshan founded Nongfu Spring in 1996 in the Zhejiang province on China's Eastern coast.

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index now puts Mr Shanshan in top spot with wealth of $58.7bn (£46.2bn).

The recent stock market listing of his bottled water firm and a controlling stake in a vaccine maker have helped boost his fortunes.

Nicknamed the "Lone Wolf", Mr Zhong is now Asia's second-richest person behind India's Mukesh Ambani, the billionaire behind Reliance Industries.

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Mr Zhong now ranks 17th overall on its list of the world's top 500 richest people.

Most of China's new billionaires come from the tech industry. But rising tensions between China and the US over Huawei, TikTok and WeChat have pushed down valuations of Chinese tech stocks.

China's food and grocery sector is now vying with its tech industry in producing the country's richest business people.

In April, Mr Zhong's Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise listed on the Chinese stock market. His controlling stake in the firm saw his overall wealth jump as much as $20bn by August.

The pharma company says it has partnered with two universities to develop a candidate vaccine to fight Covid-19

.

GETTY IMAGES Zhong Shanshan founded Nongfu Spring in 1996

Red caps

Nongfu Spring shares jumped 54% on the first day of trading earlier this month when they were listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Nongfu Spring's red-capped bottles are sold nationwide from small stores to high-end hotels. The company also sells teas, flavoured vitamin drinks and juices.

The successful stock market listing propelled Mr Zhong into China's top three richest people alongside Alibaba's Mr Ma and Tencent boss Pony Ma.

But this week's downturn for tech stocks saw the Chinese tycoon move up the wealth rankings.

Mr Zhong may not stay ahead of Mr Ma, who has held the top spot for the past six years, for long.

Alibaba-backed Ant Group is due to list on Chinese and Hong Kong stock exchanges next month, which will boost the tech boss's wealth even further.

The online payments firm could net Mr Ma an estimated $28bn if the company achieves the $250bn valuation it has been targeting.

El Salvador frees woman jailed over miscarriage

AMERIKA POST ROE VS WADE

The 29-year-old woman had served six years out of a 10-year sentence for 'aggravated homicide' under El Salvador's abortion laws. She was eight months pregnant when she had a miscarriage in a shopping mall bathroom.


Authorities in El Salvador on Wednesday released a woman who suffered an apparent miscarriage but was convicted of killing her baby.

Cindy Erazo, 29, had served six years of her 10-year prison sentence for aggravated homicide, issued under El Salvador's strict abortion laws.

El Salvador: Miscarriages of justice

Erazo was eight months pregnant when she had a miscarriage in the toilets of a shopping center on the outskirts of the capital, San Salvador. She was then taken to hospital where authorities accused her of attempting to abort the fetus.

She said she had an involuntary miscarriage, but she was handed a 30-year sentence on charges of having had an abortion. The verdict was later changed to aggravated homicide and the sentence reduced to 10 years.

"Cindy's case brought international attention to the horrible reality of the extreme prohibition on abortion in El Salvador and the insidious culture of persecuting innocent women that it perpetuates," said Paula Avila Guillen, executive director of the Center for Women's Equality.

Read more:UN rights rapporteur raps El Salvador on killings, prisons 

El Salvador's abortion laws

Erazo's release "confirms that justice is possible if we unite," said Morena Herrera from the Citizens' Group for the Decriminalization of Abortion.

Human rights groups say that at least 18 innocent women are currently in prison for similar cases in El Salvador. The country's law criminalizes all abortions and subjects both women and doctors to prosecution.

Carmen Martinez from the Center for Reproductive Rights said El Salvador had received countless recommendations from international human rights organizations to improve the sexual and reproductive rights of women and girls.

Read more: El Salvador: Retrial for woman accused of abortion

Opinion: Bolsonaro lies to UN about pandemic, Amazon fires

President Jair Bolsonaro has claimed that Brazil is the victim of a campaign of lies about the Amazon. But, Thomas Milz writes, pictures of the fires there speak for themselves — as do Brazil's coronavirus statistics.



It is a tradition for Brazil to be the first country to address the UN General Assembly. In 2020, for the first time, the opening remarks were made via video because of the coronavirus pandemic. More than 137,000 people have died from COVID-19 in Brazil — the second-highest national total after the United States.

From the start of his speech, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro denied any responsibility. He said he had been the victim of Brazil's judiciary, which had hampered his fight against the pandemic by giving regional governors the authority to manage their own jurisdictions.

Thomas Milz

In reality, Bolsonaro had downplayed the pandemic early and then largely refused to fight it. What is worse, he promoted chloroquine, an anti-malarial that has been proved not to be effective against COVID-19 — and sometimes to be counterproductive or even dangerous — as a remedy and put the Health Ministry into the hands of a general who had previously organized the running of the 2016 Rio Olympics. Denying responsibility is simply part of Bolsonaro's mentality.

Read more: Can we adapt to live with wildfires?

Bolsonaro does glorify his own role if things go well. The coronavirus aid paid out to more than 65 million Brazilians had saved the economy from an even worse disaster, Bolsonaro said. That is indeed true. But what he did not tell his international audience is that it was Brazil's Congress that forced the government to provide the aid. And he lied straight out when he said people had received $1,000 (€856) — in fact, they got just half that amount.

Read more: In July, the Red Cross slammed the US's and Brazil's responses to the coronavirus pandemic

'Most brutal campaign'

Bolsonaro's denial of reality became even more obvious when he discussed the ongoing environmental destruction in the Amazon. Smoke clouds from the region can currently be detected in Brazil's far south. The spread of the fires can also be seen in satellite images from NASA. And the fact that Bolsonaro's government is preventing the environmental authorities from protecting the forests can be proved by the drastic cuts to the environment budget. Even government members openly admit that the responsible agencies are being hamstrung.

Despite this, Bolsonaro repeated his assertion that no country had protected the environment better than Brazil — and then complained that the international community had simply refused to recognize that fact. "As far as the Amazon and the Pantanal go, we are the victim of a most brutal campaign of lies," Bolsonaro said. He claimed that international institutions were taking part in dark machinations to damage his government, saying even "unpatriotic war profiteers" from Brazil were involved.

Read more: European nations warn Brazil over Amazon deforestation

Bolsonaro's words were directed not only at organizations such as Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund and activists such as the Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio, a UN messenger of peace on the topic of climate change — but also at the United Nations itself. The COP 25 climate change conference was meant to have been held in Brazil in the fall of 2019, but Bolsonaro was willfully obstructive. Instead, he repeatedly accused the United Nations of intending to use a climate agreement to confiscate the Amazon region from Brazil.

Read more: Pandemic deepens precarity for Brazil's domestic workers

An international conspiracy?

Bolsonaro is, of course, not concerned about Brazil's international reputation. In these times of global information networks and thanks to the alert reporting by various media, the world knows very well what is going on in Brazil's forests. Bolsonaro has nothing to gain by lying here. Instead, his remarks were directed at his Brazilians, to whom he must answer about the coronavirus deaths, Brazil's economic collapse during the pandemic and the environmental destruction that has occurred during his presidency. Some back home still buy his distortion of facts.

Supporters still believe Bolsonaro when he blames obscure powers from outside Brazil. He has depicted himself as the victim of international schemers by spinning the threats from EU member states to vetothe ratification of the free trade agreement between the European Union and the Mercosur Latin American commerce bloc on the grounds that Brazil engages in environmental degradiation and the destruction of Indigenous lands.

Read more: Illegal logging, mining threaten an Amazon river community

Two problems are currently shaking the world: the coronavirus pandemic and climate change. Both have global dimensions and can be solved only at the global level. Clever leaders use global institutions such as the United Nations to work toward solutions — especially those that fit the interests of their countries. But Bolsonaro does not think about solutions. He would rather blame imaginary enemies. There is nothing constructive to be expected from him.

This opinion piece was adapted from German by Tim Jones.


Date 23.09.2020
Author Thomas Milz
Related Subjects United Nations (UN), The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Amazon, Jair Bolsonaro, Coronavirus
Keywords United Nations, Jair Bolsonaro, Amazon, coronavirus, COVID-19

Permalink https://p.dw.com/p/3iuoN

Volkswagen to pay victims of Brazil dictatorship

The car giant has agreed to pay millions of dollars in compensation over its collaboration with Brazil's dictatorship. But representatives of the regime's victims have said the deal does not suffice.

    

German car manufacturer Volkswagen (VW) announced on Wednesday evening local time that it had signed a deal with prosecutors to compensate Brazilian workers who were affected by the company's collaboration with Brazil's former dictatorship. 

"We regret the violations that occurred in the past. For Volkswagen, it is important to deal responsibly with this negative chapter in Brazil's history and promote transparency," VW executive Hiltrud Werner told reporters. 

Employees who worked for the company during the military dictatorship, which lasted from 1964 to 1985, took VW to court in 2015 over alleged collaboration between the company's Brazilian security office and the junta. 

What does the deal consist of? 

In a deal signed with state and federal prosecutors, Volkswagen agreed to pay out 36 million reais (€5.5 million, $6.4 million) in compensation to the workers and their families, as well as various projects including a memorial to victims of the regime. 

A representative of the victims, Sebastiao Neto, criticised the agreement saying that VW had only talked to the judiciary and not to the affected workers themselves, he told KNA. 

A report published three years prior by historians investigating the activities of the dictatorship revealed that the collaboration consisted of making political arrests on factory premises as well as spying on Volkswagen workers. 

Read more: Volkswagen drops Mexico City dealership over Nazi-era images

Too little, too late for some 

The class action lawsuit against the carmaker represents around 60 people. But Neto said it was too late for the worst affected, including Lucio Bellentani who was tortured on the factory premises and died in 2019, age 74. 

"Volkswagen is concerned with its image and marketing. The donations to be made are presented by the company as charity and not as compensation for its complicity with the dictatorship. Seen in this light, Volkswagen is getting out of this mess in a clean way," said the victims' representative in a press statement. 

Read more: German auto giant Daimler to pay $1.5-billion fine in US

Investigations into the regime's crimes 

A National Truth Commission that was founded in order to investigate the crimes of the military dictatorship confirmed that at least 434 people were murdered or went missing during that period. 

They estimate that around 200,000 people were tortured. 

Read more: Opinion: Bolsonaro lies to UN about pandemic, Amazon fires 

Brazil's current far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, is an open admirer of the dictatorship having said that the military regime's mistake had been to torture its victims and not kill them. 

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Britain's economic recovery had lost steam even before virus crackdown, latest figures show

By LUCY WHITE FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED:  23 September 2020

Britain's economic recovery was slowing down even before the Government imposed new lockdown restrictions this week, figures suggest.

Growth in the manufacturing sector and its dominant services sector pulled back in September, according to IHS Markit's closely- watched Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI).

But the UK was faring better than the eurozone, where manufacturing activity only just kept its head above water and the services sector contracted sharply.

Slowdown: Growth in the manufacturing sector and its dominant services sector pulled back in September, according to IHS Markit's closely- watched Purchasing Managers' Index

In the UK, the services PMI recorded a three-month low reading of 55.1 in September, down from 58.8 the previous month.

Any reading above 50 indicates growth. The manufacturing PMI eased back to 54.2 from a 30-month high of 55.2 in August.

Part of the fall in the services sector was due to the Eat Out to Help Out venture ending on August 31. It had prompted diners to flock to buy discounted meals, with more than 100m claimed.

But Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, said: 'Demand for other consumer-facing services also stalled as companies struggled amid new measures to fight rising infection rates, and consumers often remained reluctant to spend.'



Services is expected to take more punishment as workers stay at home and a 10pm curfew is imposed on restaurants and pubs in England.

Confidence in future output was also low, with IHS Markit saying businesses cut jobs for a seventh consecutive month, the longest such run since 2010.

Williamson said: 'Jobs continued to be cut at a fierce rate, meaning unemployment is likely to soon start rising sharply from the current rate of 4.1 per cent.'

Thomas Pugh, an economist at Capital Economics, said the figures 'suggest that the recovery has already started to flatten out'.

Belarus: Protests in Minsk after Alexander Lukashenko sworn in at secret ceremony

After weeks of protest surrounding the disputed August election, the inauguration was unexpectedly brought forward. But civilians in the capital reacted angrily to the development, taking to the streets once more.



Belarus police fired tear gas at protesters in Minsk who took to the streets to demonstrate against President Alexander Lukashenko being sworn in for a sixth term on Wednesday.

More than 150 people were arrested across Belarus, including in the capital city and in the southwestern city of Brest, according to Viasna rights group.

The inauguration took place in secret and with no prior announcement; only government officials attended.

During the ceremony, Lukashenko placed his right hand on the constitution and swore to "serve the people of the Republic of Belarus, respect and protect rights and freedoms of people and citizens."

Alexander Lukashenko's motorcade heads to the inauguration ceremony on Wednesday in Minsk.

Calls for protest

Following the inauguration ceremony, the Belarusian opposition called for an "immediate civil disobedience campaign."

Pavel Latushko, an opposition politician, said the ceremony was like a secret meeting of "thieves."

"Where are the jubilant citizens? Where is the diplomatic corps?" Latushko said.

And it was not long before the people of Minsk reacted, taking to the streets to vent their frustration as police used water cannons to disperse demonstrators.

Some wore cardboard crowns and chanted "Long live Belarus" as riot police in green uniforms arrested protesters, a handful of whom were injured in the clashes.

Germany says proceedings illegitimate

German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Wednesday that the ceremony in Minsk has "no legitimacy" and that Berlin does not recognize Lukashenko as the president.

Seibert said that Germany supported activating sanctions against Belarusian officials as soon as possible, adding Berlin regrets that the EU's foreign ministers have yet to agree on moving forward. 

A proposed list of some 40 Belarusian officials to be hit with travel bans and asset freezes has yet to be approved by all member states, with Cyprus being the last holdout.  

Petras Austrevicius, standing rapporteur of the European Parliament on Belarus, welcomed the stance from Germany and said that Lukashenko's election opponent, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, was seen by many as the rightful president-elect.

"I appreciate a clear statement from the German government that they are not going to recognize this fake inauguration," Austrevicius said. "Belarusian people in great majority see Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya as a president-elect. She is a president of the people. We have to support her as well as the Coordination Council in all their efforts to achieve early elections. Early elections are needed as much as ever before."

Robert Biedron, Chair of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with Belarus, spoke out over the attempts to conceal the operation.

"A winner of election, a leader that enjoys real support of the society would not need to hold his presidential inauguration in secret. This only shows how scared Lukashenko is. Just to be clear: for us this self-proclaimed presidency is meaningless," Biedron said.

Read more:  EU response to Belarus protests hampered by internal divisions

Often dubbed 'Europe's last dictator,' Lukashenko has been in power for over two decades

Wednesday's ceremony would normally have been publicized in advance as a major state occasion. However, Lukashenko's disputed election victory on August 9 has unleashed weeks of mass protest across Belarus. 

Lukashenko has been in power for 26 years. The opposition says the recent election was rigged. Much of the international community also rejected Lukashenko's claim that he won the election with 80% of the vote.

jsi, wmr/msh (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)

Uncle Ben's rice unveils new name and logo after 'racial stereotyping' row

The brand has traditionally featured a picture of waiter Frank Brown, representing a fictional rice farmer, but after 70 years and a row over how race is presented in America, it's changing

FRANK BROWN WAS MODELED ON THE ROCHESTER CHARACTER IN JACK BENNY MOVIES, OR A TRAIN PORTER 

Ben's rice unveils new logo and name



Uncle Ben’s rice will change its name and branding after claims its logo was guilty of racial stereotyping.

It will now be known as Ben's Original instead, with packaging with the new name hitting stores next year.

The change was unveiled by parent firm Mars in an effort to address concerns the old logo was racist.

Mars Food president Fiona Dawson said: “We listened to our associates and our customers and the time is right to make meaningful changes across society.

“When you are making these changes, you are not going to please everyone. But it's about doing the right thing, not the easy thing.”

The current packaging features the fictional character "Uncle Ben" - whose name was first used in 1946 - as a reference to an African American rice farmer from Texas.

But the image used is of "a beloved Chicago chef and waiter named Frank Brown”, the company said.

The new-look packs will hit shelves next year (Image: Getty Images)

The new branding for Uncle Ben's

Mars announced several other initiatives as well.

These included a $2million investment in culinary scholarships for aspiring black chefs in partnership with the National Urban League.

It said it would also put a $2.5 million investment into nutritional and education programs for students in Greenville, Mississippi, the majority African-American city where the rice brand has been produced for more than 40 years.

The name and images are changing (Image: SIPA USA/PA Images)

Uncle Ben's isn't the only brand changing it's look in the current climate either.

Aunt Jemima pancake mix and syrup, owned by Quaker Foods, is looking at changes too.

Quaker's Kristin Kroepfl said: "We recognise Aunt Jemima's origins are based on a racial stereotype."

"As we work to make progress toward racial equality through several initiatives, we also must take a hard look at our portfolio of brands and ensure they reflect our values and meet our consumers' expectations."

In the statement, obtained by Adweek, Kroepfl added: “We are starting by removing the image and changing the name.

“We will continue the conversation by gathering diverse perspectives from both our organisation and the Black community to further evolve the brand and make it one everyone can be proud to have in their pantry.”

THE MIRROR