30m; U.S.
Director: Barbara Kopple
Synopsis: Documentary examines lockout at the dispute between the Ravenswood Aluminum Company and Local 5668 of the United Steelworkers in Ravenswood, WV.
Category Archives: Outsourcing
Mickey Mouse Goes to Haiti: Walt Disney and the Science of Exploitation (1996)
U.S.
Director: National Labor Committee
Synopsis: An exposé on how Disney treats its workers in Haiti.
Contact: View the documentary here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_OXhtgHBxk
Nalini By Day, Nancy By Night (2005)
27m; India-U.S.
Director: Sonali Gulati
Synopsis (IMDB): A personal narrative documentary film told from the perspective of an Indian living in the U.S., the film journeys into India’s call centers where telemarketer’s acquire American names and accents to service the telephone support industry of the U.S. Nalini by Day, Nancy by Night incorporates animation, live action, and archival footage to explore the complexities of globalization, capitalism, and identity.
The New Rulers of the World (2001)
54m; U.K.
Director: Alan Lowery, John Pilger
Synopsis (IMDB): The myths of globalisation have been incorporated into much of our everyday language. “Thinking globally” and “the global economy” are part of a jargon that assumes we are all part of one big global village, where national borders and national identities no longer matter. But what is globalisation? And where is this global village? In 2001, John Pilger made ‘The New Rulers of the World’, a film exploring the impact of globalisation. It took Indonesia as the prime example, a country that the World Bank described as a ‘model pupil’ until its ‘globalised’ economy collapsed in 1998. Globalisation has not only made the world smaller. It has also made it interdependent. An investment decision made in London can spell unemployment for thousands in Indonesia, while a business decision taken in Tokyo can create thousands of new jobs for workers in north-east England..
Poto Mitan: Haitian Women, Pillars of the Global Economy (2009)
52m; U.S.
Director: Renée Bergan and Mark Schuller
Cast: Marie-Jeanne Solange Frisline Thérèse Hélène
Synopsis: The compelling lives of five courageous Haitian women workers give the global economy a human face. Each woman’s personal story explains neoliberal globalization, how it is gendered, and how it impacts Haiti: inhumane working/living conditions, violence, poverty, lack of education, and poor health care. While the film offers in-depth understanding of Haiti, its focus on women’s subjugation, worker exploitation, poverty, and resistance demonstrates these are global struggles. Finally, through their collective activism, these women demonstrate that despite monumental obstacles in a poor country like Haiti, collective action makes change possible.
Contact: TÈT ANSANM PRODUCTIONS 139 Clinton Ave. #4, Brooklyn, NY 11205 347-599-1116 (phone/fax) info@potomitan.net
The Killing Floor (1985)
118m; U.S.
Director: Bill Duke
Cast: Cynthia Baker, Dennis Farina and Clarence Felder
Synopsis (IMDB): During World War I, a poor black Southerner travels north to Chicago to get work in the city’s slaughterhouses, where he becomes embroiled in the organized labor movement. He becomes prominent as a leader of fellow African-Americans in the union, though many, including his best friend, view him as a sell-out.
Contact: Elsa Rassbach elsarassbach@gmail.com http://www.thekillingfloor-thefilm.com
Korea, Labor, and the FTA
Director: MediAct
Synopsis: Korean workers against the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement.
It’s An Attack (2008)
8m; U.S.
Synopsis: From Seattle and the WTO, to Mexico and the struggles of Los Mineros, to Colombia and the brutal murders of trade union activists, It’s an Attack highlights the global attack on workers and the ongoing activism of the United Steelworkers in fighting for the rights of all workers, in the U.S. and around the world. The video premiered at the USW 2008 Convention.
Indentured (2010)
10m; U.S./Iraq
Director: Cy Kuckenbaker
Synopsis: “Indentured” investigates the living conditions of South Asian laborers working on US military bases in Iraq. Thousands of nameless workers, called “Third Country Nationals” because they’re neither American nor Iraqi, toil inside US bases in Iraq as food servers, custodians, construction workers and more. But unlike American contractors who often make six figure salaries in Iraq, these men typically make less than two dollars an hour. Nepalese custodians talk about the illegal broker’s fees they had to pay to get their jobs on the base. Inside a company-run camp a Nepalese supervisor explains how they are brought into Iraq against Nepalese and Iraqi law.
The Industrial Workers (1970)
16m; U.S.
Director: Encyclopedia Brittanica Educational Corporation
Synopsis: An analysis of some of the implications of automation in a mass-production factory. The film points out that automation can free the worker but it poses a challenge to retrain and adjust to changing circumstances.
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