The sportswear giant Adidas has reneged on its promise to demand the reinstatement of 33 workers dismissed from a big Indonesian supplier in a way the country's human rights commission has found to be illegal, Oxfam alleged on Thursday.
Several top players, including the World Cup captain of France, Zinedine Zidane, wear the German company's boots and promote footwear made at the Indonesian plant, Panarub.
"Adidas is the top sportswear sponsor at the World Cup," said an Oxfam campaigner, Kelly Dent. "But off the field the company deserves a red card for failing to support the human rights of workers."
Oxfam alleges that Adidas promised formally to press Panarub, after Indonesia's human rights commission ruled on May 31, in a non-binding decision, that there were insufficient grounds to dismiss 33 workers after a strike.
William Anderson, Adidas' regional head of social and environmental affairs, said Adidas was not willing to send a formal warning to Panarub, which supplies it with 650,000 pairs of shoes a year.
"If we do and the company refuses to comply, we would have no choice but to terminate relations with them. Eleven thousand people could then lose their jobs," he said.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two