Firestone, no doubt the largest rubber plantations in the world, is also regarded as the most stable investment in Liberia. Cultivated more than 70 years ago in what was then Marshall Territory for 99 years, Firestone has not only outlived most other European and U.S. investments in the country, but it has also provided employment to thousands of Liberians at any given time with many others receiving retirement and pension benefits, something which even critics say the government of Liberia, perhaps the largest employer is unable to do.

The International Labour Rights Fund has filed a federal lawsuit in the United States alleging workers at Bridgestone Corp's Firestone rubber plantation in Liberia toil in virtual slavery.

Firestone, which has operated a rubber plantation in Liberia since 1926, relies on a poverty stricken and often illiterate work force to tap tons of raw latex from rubber trees using primitive tools and methods that expose them to dangerous pesticides and fertilisers, the group said.

By Danny Valentine

Carpal tunnel syndrome, back problems, faulty equipment, and the inability to unionize were the problems plaguing Betty Fuentes, a Colombian flower-plantation worker.

Across the Atlantic Ocean, Clementine Mthethwa of Swaziland, a factory worker, complained of drinking water shared with toilets and a dearth of safety equipment.

The main characteristic the two workers share: They both work for companies providing products to Wal-Mart.

Rep. Sander Levin (D-MI) yesterday (Nov. 10) said despite efforts by officials from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to seek more support from Democrats for free trade agreements, USTR has shown little willingness to compromise on labor issues.

USTR has not offered to change its long-standing position that FTA labor provisions should only require a country to enforce its own labor standards, which Democrats have rejected as insufficient, he said in an interview.