With the September 15th deadline behind us and the current collective bargaining agreement expired, the NHL and the NHLPA have yet to reach a new deal for the 2012-2013 season.The main issue at hand concerns revenue distribution between the owners and the players. Under the previous CBA, the players took a 57% share of total revenue, with the owners taking in 43%. The NHL has been pressing hard for a new deal, which increases the owner’s share of revenue to roughly 54%. According to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, this is part of a plan to introduce revenue sharing into the league, meaning that NHL franchises who take in less money will be eligible to receive subsidies to sustain and improve their organizations. As Bettman puts it, “The fact of the matter is the players have been getting 57 per cent, we were getting 43 per cent — and we were paying all the expenses of running the game, running the league and running our clubs” (see article here).  With a full lockout now in effect, there is still little movement being made, however Bettman has reported that the NHL has been moving their proposals closer to a 50-50 deal.

Check out the most recent NHL video update here.

Last February, Apple CEO Tim Cook asked the Fair Labor Association (FLA) to investigate working conditions at Foxconn, Apple’s primary manufacturer. This request followed a series of worker suicides in 2010, with speculation that they were in protest of dismal working conditions. For more details about those conditions, click here. The FLA was happy to report that the electronics giant “had made significant improvements”, but they still found “at least 50 violations of local regulations at Foxconn plants in Chengdu, Guanlan and Longhua”.

Safety nets were installed at the Foxconn plant to prevent suicide.

This story poses difficult ethical questions concerning Apple’s business practices. Many would argue that 76-hour working weeks without full overtime pay is unacceptable, regardless of any other factors. However, an important question to ask is, would these people have a job if they didn’t work at Foxconn? The company employs about one-million people in China, a country where good work can be extremely difficult to find. Cutting hours means hiring more people, meaning existing workers will lose income (even if they don’t receive full overtime pay). It’s a difficult situation; it’s impossible to be sure which action will truly benefit the workers and improve their overall quality of life.

What do you think?

Check out the full article here.

Welcome to UBC Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!