Violence against women gets worse during disasters
By · CommentsPORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Natural disasters, says Denyse Cote, are when women’s rights matter most. Which is why the sociology professor at the University of Quebec in the Outaouais agreed so readily to be part of Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean’s small official delegation to Haiti this week.
The invitation came only a week ago, and Cote admits she was surprised by it. But with deep ties to Haiti’s women’s movement, she felt it was important to travel to the Caribbean nation.
Sexual aggression and violence against girls and women often go hand in hand with the breakdown of social order during a catastrophe such as the Jan. 12 earthquake that pulverized parts of Haiti.
“We’ve heard a lot of architects and urban planners but they don’t think about these things. They don’t necessarily think about how to build a city that would be women friendly or family friendly, where schools are close to homes” for instance, she said.
But leaders must move forward on women’s issues even during disasters so that greater equality gaps don’t result in the aftermath of the catastrophe, she said. Cote acted as the Canadian delegate to a roundtable on women’s issues that Jean was to attend Monday in Port-au-Prince.
Religion in alcoholic treatment sparks complaint
By · CommentsA Winnipeg man who has struggled with alcoholism for decades says he has filed a complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission over the lack of a treatment program that’s free of religious or spiritual elements.
Rob Johnstone said he has battled alcoholism for 40 years and can’t find a treatment program that doesn’t rely on religion or spirituality as part of the recovery process.
“I should not be forced to participate in someone else’s religious beliefs. I shouldn’t have to add to mine,” said Johnstone, who added he has been an alcoholic for 40 years.
“We get involved in mood-altering substances and mind-altering substances,” Johnstone said. “That means the person is very vulnerable when they come in and that person should not be subjected to someone else’s religion.”
He’s hoping his human rights complaint pushes the province to create a treatment program that’s free of spiritual or religious elements. The commission wouldn’t comment on the status of his complaint.
“Spirituality … is part and parcel of everyone’s life. For some people, their spirituality is more important than others, but it’s a dimension of all of our lives as human beings,” Goossen said.
“When they’re in … programming, we do want them to go look for a grain of something that will be helpful for them and disregard the rest,” Goossen added.
Other people who work with addicts agree.
“If you talk to the concept of spirituality, most social recovery models have a level of spirituality,” Hoeft said. “Really, spirituality is getting in touch with who you are.”
“Some degree of a spiritual component is common as these types of programs are believed to be more effective,” the spokeswoman said.
“It is important to recognize that spirituality is not the same as religion. People in recovery tend to benefit from self-reflection, examining their lives, where they’ve come from, who they are and where they’re going.”
WalMart Settles Gender Discrimination Complaint
By · CommentsWal-Mart Stores Inc. agreed to pay about $12 million in back wages and damages as well as hire more female applicants for warehouse jobs to settle a sex discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency announced Tuesday.
Wal-Mart’s London, Ky., distribution center denied jobs to qualified female applicants from 1998 through February 2005, and regularly hired male entry-level applicants for warehouse positions, the EEOC said.
“Wal-Mart regularly used gender stereotypes” for filling certain positions, the EEOC said in a statement.
Executives with hiring authority told applicants that order-filling positions were not suitable for women, and that they hired mainly 18- to 25-year-old men, the EEOC said. Excluding women from employment or excluding them from certain positions because of gender violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
As part of the settlement, WalMart agreed to pay $11.7 million in back wages and compensatory damages; its share of employer taxes; and up to $250,000 in administration fees. The settlement also requires Walmart to provide order-filler jobs, as they become available, to eligible and interested female class members, as determined by a claims administrator.
“We’re pleased the matter has been resolved,” said WalMart spokesman Greg Rossiter. “The claims do not reflect WalMart’s continuing commitment to build an even more inclusive workplace through hiring and training initiatives.”
Toyota chief was unaware of complaint
By · CommentsAkio Toyoda, the president of Toyota, did not know of the problems of sudden acceleration in his company’s cars that have been linked to more than 30 deaths in the US until the end of 2009, even though thousands of complaints had been pouring into the company and regulators for years.
Giving evidence to the Congressional Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Mr Toyoda issued a profound apology to the American people for Toyota’s safety failings and admitted that they had occurred because the company had expanded too quickly.
New quality control standards would be put in place, as well as mechanisms to enable the company to pay closer attention to customer feedback, he said.
Reading from a prepared statement, which had been issued to the media the day before, Mr Toyoda said: “My name is on every car. You have my personal commitment that Toyota will work vigorously and unceasingly to restore the trust of our customers.”
Mr Toyoda said: “I am deeply sorry for any accident Toyota drivers have experienced.”
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott today charged a finance company with violating the Texas Deceptive Practices Act by failing to deliver computers and related equipment to purchasers.
The customers, who were primarily people with poor credit ratings, had agreed to purchase computers through “Blue Hippo,” a company that advertises heavily on television, offering computers on payment terms.
According to the legal action taken by the state, Blue Hippo Funding, LLC and its sole shareholder Joseph K. Rensin of Maryland never registered to conduct business in Texas. Despite that, the company’s advertising, targeted Texans with poor credit who wanted computers, but whose limited financial resources led them to use the defendants’ “law-away plan.”
“According to customer complaints received by the Office of the Attorney General, the company failed to ship computers as they were contractually obligated to do, even though customers made the required number of consecutive layaway payments,” the AG’s Office said in announcing the legal action. “Complaints also indicate the defendants failed to ship, as promised, certain ‘free’ products, such as printers, software and televisions.”
Some customers repeatedly contacted the defendants by phone about Blue Hippo’s failure to deliver the partially purchased products. As a result, customers became frustrated, canceled their orders and requested that the defendants fully refund them. Instead of refunding customers’ installment payments, however, Blue Hippo referred customers to a clause in the layaway plan stating that cancellations would merely receive a “store credit.”
“After tiring of the defendants’ duplicity, customers grew so frustrated that they notified their banks to stop Blue Hippo’s automatic debit withdrawals from their checking accounts. However, Blue Hippo claimed that customers who stopped automatic withdrawals were subject to ‘default’ provisions in the ‘retail installment contract,’ which the defendants claimed allowed Blue Hippo to increase interest rates to 24 percent, or the highest interest rate allowable by law,” the AG’s Office noted. “Worse, the company maintained that the contract permitted it to continue withdrawing payments from customers’ accounts. As a result, the defendants essentially used the customers’ stop payment instructions as an excuse to increase interest rates and therefore simply ignored customers’ clear instructions to the contrary.”
The attorney general is seeking penalties against Blue Hippo of up to $20,000 per violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, as well as restitution to customers were financially harmed.
In 2001 I leased a credit card terminal from Northern Leasing Systems. They never sent anyone out to program it even after I contacted them. Frustrated with waiting, I just gave up and told them I wanted to cancel the contract and give back the equipment. I was told I couldn’t – I was obligated to a four-year contract. They continued billing me every month (even though I was not using their services). After they threatened to sue me, I ended up paying a total of $1,200 for a credit card terminal that never got taken out of the box.! To add insult to injury, I recently discovered they put a blemish on my credit report claiming I still owe them over $200.
I recently started another business and decided to use my terminal (with another credit card processing company) and was told by this other company that I couldn’t use the terminal because it was still under lease with Northern Leasing Systems.
It’s been almost SEVEN years since I signed that contract and this company still continues to give me grief. They are even holding my terminal hostage so I can’t use it anywhere else. I don’t understand why they are still in business? They should be shut down and prosecuted for fraud. I am urging other consumers – DON’T DO BUSINESS WITH THIS COMPANY!!!
Second-hand car dealers top list of consumer gripes
By · CommentsSecond-hand cars bought from independent dealers have provoked more complaints from consumers than any other goods or services four years in a row, statistics from Consumer Direct reveal.
The consumer advice line managed by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) received 50,790 calls and e-mails complaining about second-hand cars last year, 8 per cent more than 2008’s 47,026 complaints. Complaints mostly related to defective vehicles and services as well as potentially misleading selling.
The continuous high level of complaints about used cars prompted the OFT to launch a study into the second-hand motor market in May last year. The study is considering whether car buyers are being sufficiently and effectively protected from dodgy dealers. Full results are expected to be published in the spring.
After used-cars, problem televisions were the second most popular gripe, with Consumer Direct receiving 22,184 complaints, an increase of 9 per cent on 2008. This was closely followed by complaints about mobile phone service agreements.
Out of the top ten most complained about goods and services, laptops saw the biggest increase on 2008 – of 42 per cent.
In total Consumer Direct recorded 1.5 million calls and e-mails in 2009, the majority of which criticised traders.
David Fisher, director of Consumer Direct,said: “While total complaint levels dropped slightly in 2009, complaints about some goods such as laptops and TVs rose significantly. In some cases this may reflect growing sales for particular products rather than a higher percentage of faulty goods or services.”
My biggest complaint is the left-brainers think differently.They think everything is done a certain way,at a certain time,blah ! No creativity Writing left to right and not being able to see what I just wrote causes a problem.Also the reels on fishing poles wind backwards when I hold them upside down,to make it lefty friendly .Right-handed silverware makes me crazy,when the handles curve left poking my hand.Righties just don’t understand.We would have good penmanship if the situation were reversed,say writing from right to left,or if a freaking door nob actually opened on the correct side for once,or a light switch actually was there when you reached around a wall to flip it on.If this isn’t discrimination what is ? One day we will rise up,just to make things right-,er …LEFT, so you can see what it’s like to live in a bizzaro world where everything in everyday life is just a little out of kilter,just enough to drive drive you CRAZY !!!
I’m the only left handed one in my whole family and they all act like I’m weird when I write with my paper sideways and all of that other left handed stuff. I’ve told them time and again that being left handed is hard and that we lefties should qualify as disabled or something. I mean, they dont’ make anything for us, so why can’t we have the good parking spots?! lol
I’d say that my biggest complaints are three ring binders, notebooks, doors, the weird looks we get for using our left hands, and even the fact that the old can openers (the ones you have to twist yourself) are made for right handed people.
AT&T has filed a class action settlement in a New Jersey U.S. District Court regarding customer complaints about the company’s flat-rate early termination fees (ETFs). Although the document is dated Sept. 15. 2009, those involved in the lawsuit were notified Jan. 26.
The carrier has offered $16 million in cash, plus $2 million in “non-cash benefits” as a settlement to those who submit a claim by June 14.
“The Settlement Class includes all current or former customers of AT&T Mobility or its predecessor in the U.S. who paid or were charged a flat-rate ETF at some time during the period January 1, 1998 through November 4, 2009; and/or who have or had a contract for service with AT&T Mobility that included a flat-rate ETF…” a document posted to a site not run by AT&T states
The move follows government criticism of Verizon Wireless’ ETF, which the carrier announced on Nov. 5 would double, to $350, for certain subscribers who cancel their contracts early.
“Changing your wireless provider shouldn’t break the bank,” said Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar in a Dec. 3 statement. “Forcing consumers to pay outrageous fees bearing little to no relation to the cost of their handset devices is anti-consumer and anti-competitive.”
That day, Klobuchar, with three other senators, introduced a new piece of legislation, the Cell Phone Early Termination Fee, Transparency and Fairness Act, which would prevent carriers from charging ETFs higher than the discount that the carriers offer to consumers for entering into multiyear contracts.
The FCC legislation would additionally prorate ETFs, enabling customers who remained in their contracts longer to pay less. In this vein, the AT&T settlement offers repayment reflective of the amount of time left on a contract when an ETF was applied.
“The Court has not decided whether the claims in the lawsuit have any merit. However, if you are a member of the Settlement Class, you have a choice to make now,” states the settlement document.
At the urging of its new ombudsman, the City of Toronto plans to do a better job of telling citizens how to complain about problems they encounter with the city’s 50,000-person-strong bureaucracy.
In one of her first moves, ombudsman Fiona Crean asked all civic departments to forward copies of their processes for handling complaints from the public.
That was last December. She’s still waiting.
“We received good procedures from some, mediocre from others and none from yet others,” Crean told reporters Thursday. “Less than half the areas submitted processes or posted them on their website. Openness and accessibility was a problem even for those who had good procedures.”
Citizens must first seek redress from the relevant civic department before approaching the ombudsman’s office, on Elizabeth St. near city hall, but people often say the municipal public service just isn’t responsive to them, she said.
“I can’t tell you how many people said, `I never heard back from the city.’”
“So we’ll take the steps that are necessary to make sure that people have a well-understood point of access to approach the city with concerns they might have about a service, or a time frame in which a service was delivered. It’s completely reasonable.”
In 2009, the office received 1,057 inquiries and complaints and processed and closed 958 of them, or just over 90 per cent, she said.
As it began operations, the ombudsman’s office first focused on individual complaints. In 2010, Crean wants to turn her attention to solving systemic problems.
The first order of business is ensuring the government develops procedures to handle complaints and publicizes them.
People have been able to pursue complaints by speaking to a supervisor or, if that doesn’t get results, speaking to the division’s general manager, he said.
“There always has been a way to make your concerns known. What we’re doing now is formalizing that, making sure it’s documented and available publicly on websites and that the city communicates it more clearly.
“The goal, of course, is to deal with concerns people have as quickly as possible without the need to make a formal complaint.”
Ideally, municipal services should be provided in a way that doesn’t attract complaints, he added.