Nixon-era consumer advocate dies

By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

This week a consumer advocate who I admired greatly and who often attended heavily Democratic consumer conferences—even though she had worked for Richard Nixon—died. Her name was Virginia Knauer, and I regarded her as a friend and colleague. She was appointed to the post of Office of Consumer Affairs under President Richard Nixon in 1969, filling in a slot created by Nixon’s predecessor Lyndon Johnson. I introduced her a few times when I was on panels at consumer conferences and few in the audience remembered her.

Knauer won over critics and advocated for things consumers support now but that, sadly, no Republican in Congress today would ever support: she wanted consumers to have the right to bring class-action suits, not just in state, but in federal courts; she argued for a comprehensive system of product safety standards and simpler language in product warranties.

Knauer spoke her mind with her more conservative colleagues. She insisted that the fat content of hot dogs not exceed 30 percent, rather than 33 percent. Nixon took her side because, as he told her, “I’m on a low-cholesterol diet myself!”

In her day she was regarded by Ralph Nader and Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT) as without clout or power. They were right that she couldn’t make many of the legislative changes they sought, but her use of the bully pulpit on behalf of consumers in speeches around the country—including her common refrain that “the consumer is getting fed up with shoddy material, poor quality, unsafe products, bad service, weak warranties, lack of adequate information…” was very important; indeed, this is a voice that is sorely missing in today’s in political discourse.

Ginny Knauer helped to create the Federal Consumer Information Center to distribute low-cost consumer publications, a program that goes on today and that NCL uses to get our materials out.

Knauer called herself a “pipeline to the President for consumers.” We could use more of those people today. If only our own President Obama would appoint someone to the post Ginny Knauer held! The world would be a better place for consumers.

Buy worker-friendly treats this Halloween

Trick or treat? Soon children all across the country will cheerfully announce their presence at doorways hoping to receive sweet treats. While Halloween certainly belongs to kids, we adults, get to make some decisions too – costumes being weather- and age-appropriate and what kind of candy to stock for the big night. For costume decisions, we base it on weather conditions (how cold and wet will it be?) and the age of the kids (is a five-year-old too young to go as Snooki or Charlie Sheen?). But for candy, what should we look for?

This year, consumers can check out this list of union-made candy to rest assured that the majority of the companies listed are paying their workers a fair wage and decent benefits.

Unfortunately, one major union-made candy producer is, of late, not treating their workers so well. The Hershey Company has had more than its fair share of wage violations this year. Ranging from the exploitation of J-1 visa student workers from overseas working in its packing facility to the second class-action lawsuit being filed against the company for failing to pay its employees for overtime, Hershey has engaged in unethical and possibly illegal examples of wage theft.

With the economy still struggling to recover and Americans trying to keep their heads above water, advocates are urging consumers to make worker-friendly choices when spending money on candy for Halloween celebrations.

A good day for workers rights in California

By Michell K. McIntyre, NCL’s Special Project on Wage Theft

October 9 was not only a good day in California history, but also a good day in labor history, for Governor Jerry Brown signed some great workers’ rights bills into law. He signed the Wage Theft Prevention Act (AB 469), the Employee Classification Act (SB 459), a farm workers’ right bill (AB 243) and many others. These laws represent huge steps forward in the battle to protect workers’ rights in a difficult political climate.

While the majority in House of Representatives is looking to erode workers’ rights in favor of corporate interests, often under the mantle of ending “job killing regulations,” it’s encouraging to see three workers’ rights bills become law in a state that, in 2009, was the world’s eighth largest economy.

These laws strive to prevent wage theft, strengthen existing laws protecting workers’ rights and increase penalties on employers caught cheating their employees. Some of the main points of each of the new laws:

The Wage Theft Prevention Act (AB 469):

• Employers are to provide workers, at the time they’re hired, a written disclosure of their basic terms of employment – the pay rate, the pay day & the name and address of the legal employer
• Strengthens misdemeanor criminal penalties for employers who willfully fail to pay wages due in 90 days after final judgment
• Allows a worker to recover attorney’s fees to enforce a court judgment for unpaid wages

The Employee Classification Act (SB 459):

• Makes it unlawful for any person or employer to engage in willful employee misclassification – classifying an employee as an independent contractor rather than an employee
• Makes it unlawful to charge any fees or make any deductions in a worker’s paycheck for expenses such as space rental, services, repairs, goods or materials, where such deductions would have been unlawful had the worker been classified as an employee
• Increases penalties that can be assessed against any employer for willful employee misclassification.
• Requires employers who have been found to have committed employee misclassification to display a notice to its employees and the general public on their website and/or each location where it occurred

One of many farm workers’ rights bills signed into law was Assembly Bill 243 that requires farm labor contractors to disclose on workers’ pay stubs the name and address of the legal entity that secured the farm labor contractor’s services. Many farm workers do not know who their legal employer is nor whom they should be addressing with employment and payment issues.

These three laws are good practical examples of what can happen on a state level since the federal government is slower to move and faces larger lobbying efforts by big business and industry. Other state governments should take notice of these workers’ rights victories and try passing similar laws in their states.

Happy Food Day!

By Teresa Green, Linda Golodner Food Safety and Nutrition Fellow

Today is the first Food Day, a grassroots event organized by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).  Senator Tom Harkin (IA) and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT), both long-term supporters of healthy eating and the federal government’s nutrition programs, are Honorary Co-Chairs of the event.

Food Day is founded on six basic principles:

• Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy foods
• Support sustainable farms and limit subsidies to big agribusiness
• Expand access to food and alleviate hunger
• Protect the environment and animals by reforming factory farms
• Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids
• Support fair conditions for food and farm workers

Because Food Day is based on grassroots organizing, there are Food Day events being held all over the country today (find some in your area).  Whether you attend a restaurant serving up a special Food Day menu, play a Food Day game or simply cook a special meal for your family at home, everyone can participate in Food Day. It is an excellent opportunity to reflect on the important role that healthy, wholesome, affordable food plays in the lives of each one of us. Happy Food Day!

LifeSmarts, Visa score with Financial Football partnership

By Brandi Williams, LifeSmarts Program Manager

I admit it – I don’t know anything about football. When my colleagues talk about “the big game” over the weekend, or “that really awesome play” from last night’s sporting event, I struggle  to remember if the Washington Cardinals are a baseball or basketball team. I just nod, pretend to understand the sports-related conversation, and hope no one realizes it’s  all completely over my head.

So when I learned about Financial Football, Visa Inc.’s financial literacy video game, I was a little apprehensive. Actually, I was a lot apprehensive. I love video games, but I’m more of a “tap all the buttons and hope it turns into a combo” kind of player, so the idea of playing a video game that involved sports was intimidating. But I forged ahead, reminding myself that Financial Football, like NCL’s LifeSmarts program, while designed as a competition, was also meant to be fun.  And it was! After a few minutes, I was well beyond the confusion and, instead, actually enjoying the game.

That was a few years ago. Earlier this year, when Visa Inc. partnered with the National Consumers League to launch a financial literacy campaign in Washington, DC, I was super excited. After all, back in 2008 the DC Council passed legislation to require financial literacy education in DC public high schools, and Financial Football, like NCL’s LifeSmarts program, uses a fun and fast-paced competition set-up to educate teens about financial literacy issues and promote smart money-management skills.

With support from DC’s Executive Office of the Mayor and NFL’s Washington Redskins, NCL and Visa Inc. launched the campaign in DC on October 18 at Wilson High School with a live game of Financial Football. Mayor Vincent Gray and Washington Redskin Brian Orakpo led a team of 20 student athletes against a second team of 20 student athletes led by Gail Hillebrand, Associate Director of Consumer Education and Engagement for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Josh Wright, Acting Director for the Office of Financial Education and Financial Access in the Department of the Treasury.

The students were wary at first, but Coaches Gray, Orakpo, Hillebrand and Wright were so personable and friendly, and having such a great time themselves, that the students were immediately put at ease, and soon enough the teams were huddling to discuss 529 plans, telemarketers, checking accounts and auto insurance, with high-fives and shouts of “SCORE!” when the correct answer was given. Jason Alderman, Senior Director of Global Financial Education at Visa Inc., served as the dynamic quiz-master/referee and not only did he keep the game moving forward quickly, he kept the kids smiling and laughing, and encouraged them to discuss the questions and ask for guidance from their adult coaches. I knew the importance of financial literacy was getting through to these kids when one young man whispered to Mayor Gray, “Can you explain to me what a whistle-blower is?”

Despite the game’s football theme, it was still a simple format to follow – and if someone completely ignorant of sports (like me) can follow along, then anyone can – making Financial Football the perfect complement to the LifeSmarts program and a great resource for Personal Finance topics. In fact, NCL’s partnership with Visa Inc. is allowing LifeSmarts to expand its free Personal Finance educational materials.

I’d say this is a win-win for everyone. Goal!

Or maybe I meant touchdown?

Debunking the “fast food is cheaper” myth

By Sally Greenberg, NCL Executive Director

Cookbook author Mark Bittman’s enhanced presence on nutrition issues is a welcome addition to the discussion about healthy foods and the obesity epidemic in America. In a recent New York Times article, he dispels the myth that junk food is cheaper than real food.

He compares a $27.89 meal for a family of four at McDonalds – 2 Big Macs, 1 cheeseburger, 1 6 pc Chicken McNuggets, 2 medium and 2 small fries and 4 cokes – with what a comparable meal prepared at home would cost: a roast chicken, potatoes and salad for four would run $13.78; an even cheaper alternative – pinto beans and rice would run $9.26 for four. The at-home meals are healthier – have less carbohydrates and more protein than the McDonalds version.

Having debunked the “fast food is cheaper” argument, Bittman’s laments that Americans have gotten out of the habit of shopping and cooking at home; they are tired and hungry at the end of the day and go for the easiest alternative. “Somehow, no-nonsense cooking and eating – roasting a chicken, making a grilled cheese sandwich, scrambling an egg, tossing a salad – must become popular again,” he writes.

I’m with Bittman one hundred percent. The fact is that there is much joy in shopping and cooking and it can be done in relatively little time. It’s also a terrific learning opportunity for kids. They need to know how to shop for quality products; they need to know how to pick out ripe fruits and vegetables, quality meats and fish, bread that’s wholesome and fresh, and high quality dairy products. And kids like to help in the kitchen – they can wash lettuce, and other fruits and vegetables, help prepare a marinade for meat or fish, and I guarantee that they will like chopping things that aren’t too hard to prepare! They also keep you company!

Bittman’s simple research on cost of fast food vs. homemade meals reminds us of how far we’ve strayed from home cooked meals where the family enjoys dinner together. This is a good – no a great –tradition that we should try to reinvigorate for the next generation.

Sure, eating fast food from time to time is inevitable – even Julia Child admitted when she was on the road and had few other choices she enjoyed a Burger King Whopper! But fast food should not be a staple in our daily routines. It’s inevitably high sodium, high fat, expensive, and poor quality. Bittman’s recommendations for buying wholesome grocery store foods and cooking them simply and quickly, then eating together as a family, is a great place to start.

Augh! My New Phone Hates Me

By Lisa Hertzberg, LifeSmarts Program Director

I just renewed my cell phone plan and “upgraded” to a smartphone. Waaaah! I miss my old phone! Friends assure me I won’t miss it by tomorrow or the next day, but for now I think my new phone hates me and it might be mutual.

Here is a sampling of the challenges I encountered on the first day:

• Help, my phone went to sleep. Dropping it apparently does not wake it up.
• I can take a picture, oops—that was video. Now how do I send it?
• How do I answer a call – wait, people still make calls on these things?
• How do I type on this keyboard since my fingers are thicker than toothpicks?
• What are you talking about when you say, “drag the ring?”

I’m guessing the typical LifeSmarts participant could give me a 10-minute tutorial that would move me miles ahead in getting acquainted with my new phone. Cell phone penetration in the US is 96%, and while it’s hard to come up with numbers specifically for teen users, surveys report that at least 75% of American youth ages 10-17 have cell phones, and fully 45% of this group have smartphones which they use to text, go online, and even make the occasional phone call.

As I fight to type in recognizable English on my new keyboard, I see a statistic online that nearly half of teens report they can text with their eyes closed. Wow, in my current state I find that very impressive. Less cool – 34% of teens who text admit to texting while driving, 26% of teens with phones have been bullied by texts or phone calls, and 15% of teens have received “sexting” messages containing nude or nearly nude images of someone they know.

Like all things, there are pluses and minuses to cell phone technology and it’s important to understand what they are. Here’s hoping I get the hang of my new phone, so that in a couple of years I can go kicking and screaming to the next technological advancement.

Listeria outbreak highlights importance of a strong food safety system

By Teresa Green,  Linda Golodner Food Safety and Nutrition Fellow

An ongoing outbreak of listeria, a rare but potentially lethal foodborne pathogen, has sickened at least 100 people and claimed 18 lives. This current crisis is the most deadly outbreak of foodborne illness this country has seen in a decade. Rocky Ford cantaloupes from Jensen Farms have been linked to the illnesses. As the number of those impacted rises, food safety experts and members of the public are rightfully concerned and are asking themselves how such a widespread outbreak could occur.

What went wrong?

One issue that concerns consumer advocates is that there are currently no regulations for the safe handling of produce. While FDA and the industry have both released recommendations, these guidance documents do not establish legally enforceable responsibilities and thus the industry is not held to one standard of safety.

The second issue is how to react once contamination has occurred.  Historically, the responsibility of dealing with an outbreak has rested on the industry. When a product made people sick, the company would issue a voluntary recall, as was the case with Jensen Farms’ cantaloupes. However, the recall was not announced until September 14, nearly a month an a half after the first person fell ill, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

What is the solution?

As essential part of food safety is clear, concise regulations.  As part of the recently enacted FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the FDA will have to establish “mandatory, science-based, minimum standards” for the production of fruits and vegetables.  FDA plans to issue a proposed rule governing produce safety by the spring of 2012.  In light of the recent outbreak, the need for such regulations is clear and consumer groups such as NCL have led the charge in urging the FDA to begin rulemaking as quickly as possible.

Even with improved regulations, our food supply will never be completely safe from foodborne pathogens.  This means that we need a mechanism for rapidly responding to a foodborne outbreak. Recognition of this fact led the writers of FSMA to grant FDA mandatory recall authority.  Instead of waiting for the manufacturer to take action, FDA can now force a recall when it has reason to believe a product has become adulterated and could cause harm if consumed.

To avoid future recalls, FDA must be willing to act.  The agency must establish clear standards for produce safety and it must be willing to act decisively when those standards are not enough to protect American consumers. Hopefully, this combination of clear standards and quick action can help avoid future outbreaks of this scale.