Ray Rogers (labor activist)
Encyclopedia
Ray Rogers is an American labor rights activist, labor union strategist and organizer as well as a major figure of prominence in the American labor and human rights movement. Rogers is credited with pioneering the strategy of the corporate campaign
, a tactic that has been used with success by labor unions, human rights advocates and environmental activist groups in their battles against corporations in the United States and all over the world.
The ultimate goal of the corporate campaign is to force the targeted company to change its behavior and act responsibly going forward. In some cases, that would require the targeted company to recognize the rights of its workers and their union; or, to stop polluting and clean up contaminated land; and, in certain cases, to make restitution to the victims, their families and communities. Rogers's battles on behalf of labor union members against companies such as J.P. Stevens & Co., Geo. A. Hormel & Co., International Paper Co., American Airlines, Inc., Campbell Soup Co. and Coca-Cola Co. led BusinessWeek
magazine to describe him as a "legendary union activist".
Rogers also has successfully adapted a corporate campaign approach to public sector battles between government workers' unions and politicians and government leaders, who often will target or attempt to scapegoat public sector unions. Rogers's groundbreaking campaign on behalf of New York City transit workers in 1999, for example, resulted in a new contract for employees, giving them what The New York Times
called "the largest annual raises received by any of New York City's public-employee unions in more than a decade."
Rogers also is the founder and director of New York City-based Corporate Campaign Inc. (CCI), which has championed labor, human rights and environmental causes for the past three decades.
Under the campaign, more than 60 colleges and universities in the United States and from around the world have either terminated their purchase contracts with the Coca-cola Co., or removed company products from their campuses all together. More than 45 Labor unions, in the U.S. and other countries, have announced their support of the Campaign to Stop Killer Coke. And in July 2006, the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association-College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF
) divested 1.25 million shares of Coca-Cola Co. stock and banned further purchases of Coke stock in its CREF Social Choice Account, one of the nation's largest socially responsible investing
funds.
Comprehensive campaign
A comprehensive campaign is labor union organizing or a collective bargaining campaign with a heavy focus on research, the use of community coalition-building, publicity and public pressure, political and regulatory pressure, and economic and legal pressure in addition to traditional organizing...
, a tactic that has been used with success by labor unions, human rights advocates and environmental activist groups in their battles against corporations in the United States and all over the world.
The Corporate Campaign
As developed by Rogers, the corporate campaign incorporates specialized research and a power analysis of a targeted company's corporate, financial and political ties, to design specific strategies and tactics that increase economic and political pressure on the company, its top executives, directors and those institutions that can influence them. Often, the corporate campaign will focus on individual parts of a company (i.e. its directors, executives, creditors, shareholders and other funding sources) as well as urge widespread boycotts of the company's products.The ultimate goal of the corporate campaign is to force the targeted company to change its behavior and act responsibly going forward. In some cases, that would require the targeted company to recognize the rights of its workers and their union; or, to stop polluting and clean up contaminated land; and, in certain cases, to make restitution to the victims, their families and communities. Rogers's battles on behalf of labor union members against companies such as J.P. Stevens & Co., Geo. A. Hormel & Co., International Paper Co., American Airlines, Inc., Campbell Soup Co. and Coca-Cola Co. led BusinessWeek
BusinessWeek
Bloomberg Businessweek, commonly and formerly known as BusinessWeek, is a weekly business magazine published by Bloomberg L.P. It is currently headquartered in New York City.- History :...
magazine to describe him as a "legendary union activist".
Rogers also has successfully adapted a corporate campaign approach to public sector battles between government workers' unions and politicians and government leaders, who often will target or attempt to scapegoat public sector unions. Rogers's groundbreaking campaign on behalf of New York City transit workers in 1999, for example, resulted in a new contract for employees, giving them what The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
called "the largest annual raises received by any of New York City's public-employee unions in more than a decade."
Rogers also is the founder and director of New York City-based Corporate Campaign Inc. (CCI), which has championed labor, human rights and environmental causes for the past three decades.
Killer Coke Campaign
Rogers has directed the Campaign to Stop Killer Coke since the campaign was launched in 2003. The Killer Coke Campaign is trying to hold the Coca-Cola Company, its bottlers and subsidiaries accountable for numerous acts of violence, including the kidnapping, torture and murder of union leaders and members of their families, in Coca-Cola bottling factories in Colombia and Guatemala. The campaign is "the largest anticorporate campaign since the one against Nike."Under the campaign, more than 60 colleges and universities in the United States and from around the world have either terminated their purchase contracts with the Coca-cola Co., or removed company products from their campuses all together. More than 45 Labor unions, in the U.S. and other countries, have announced their support of the Campaign to Stop Killer Coke. And in July 2006, the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association-College Retirement Equities Fund (TIAA-CREF
TIAA-CREF
Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association – College Retirement Equities Fund is a Fortune 100 financial services organization that is the leading retirement provider for people who work in the academic, research, medical and cultural fields...
) divested 1.25 million shares of Coca-Cola Co. stock and banned further purchases of Coke stock in its CREF Social Choice Account, one of the nation's largest socially responsible investing
Socially responsible investing
Socially responsible investing , also known as sustainable, socially conscious, or ethical investing, describes an investment strategy which seeks to consider both financial return and social good....
funds.
See also
- American DreamAmerican Dream (film)American Dream is a cinéma vérité documentary film directed by Barbara Kopple and co-directed by Cathy Caplan, Thomas Haneke, and Lawrence Silk....
(1990) a cinéma véritéCinéma véritéCinéma vérité is a style of documentary filmmaking, combining naturalistic techniques with stylized cinematic devices of editing and camerawork, staged set-ups, and the use of the camera to provoke subjects. It is also known for taking a provocative stance toward its topics.There are subtle yet...
documentary filmDocumentary filmDocumentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directedFilm directorA film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Barbara KoppleBarbara KoppleBarbara Kopple is an American film director, primarily known for her work in documentary film.-Biography:She grew up in Scarsdale, New York, the daughter of a textile executive and studied psychology at Northeastern University, after which she worked with the Maysles Brothers.Kopple has won two...
that, among other things, illustrate Ray Rogers's organizing work and tactics used.
- The Coca-Cola Case (2009) is a feature-length documentary film by Carmen Garcia and Germán Gutiérrez, co-produced by the National Film Board of CanadaNational Film Board of CanadaThe National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
, about the legal fight and corporate campaign to hold the Coca-Cola Co. responsible for anti-union violence at the company's bottling plants in Colombia and other countries.
External links
- Corporate Campaign, Inc.
- Campaign to Stop Killer Coke
- Ray Rogers interview (MP3) on Democracy Now!Democracy Now!Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...