Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/990701
70 CINEMONTAGE / Q2 2018 LABOR MAT TERS BANGLADESH SAFETY SUPERVISION NOT PREPARED Five years after a factory collapse killed 1,100 workers in Bangladesh's worst industrial disaster, organizations representing Western brand-name manufacturers say that authorities there aren't up to the task of ensuring safety standards, writes Jon Emont in The Wall Street Journal in late March. Shortly after the Rana Plaza tragedy, North American and European retailers set up two parallel organizations to inspect Bangladeshi factories and order safety repairs. Both groups expected to phase out in 2018. Instead, the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Safety, backed by European brands, has announced plans to extend its efforts for up to three more years. On the other hand, the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, which includes North American companies such as Walmart Inc. and Gap Inc., will wind down its operations this year. It plans to establish a smaller safety- monitoring group to ensure that factories from which the Alliance's brands source are already up to code and continue to maintain current inspection protocols. AMPAS DISMISSES ALLEGATIONS AGAINST BAILEY The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has dismissed allegations of sexual harassment against its president, John Bailey, ASC, writes Gene Maddaus in Variety. "The Committee unanimously determined that no further action was merited on this matter," the Academy said in late March. "The findings and recommendations of the committee were reported to the Board, which endorsed its recommendation. John Bailey remains President of the Academy." The Academy also corrected earlier reporting that it had received three complaints, saying that only one was submitted. In a related development in early May, the Academy's Board of Governors voted to expel actor Bill Cosby and director Roman Polanski from its membership ranks, write Kristopher Tapley and Maddaus in Variety. The Academy also noted the resignation of producer and former studio executive Bill Mechanic from its board of governors in mid-April, write Glenn Whipp and Josh Rottenberg in the Los Angeles Times. Mechanic opposed efforts to reshape the organization with an eye toward diversity, calling it a "fractured environment." CA STUDENT ATHLETES SHOULD BE ABLE TO ORGANIZE The perennial debate over whether the NCAA is taking financial advantage of its amateur athletes has been taken up on California's legislative agenda, writes Alexei Koseff in The Sacramento Bee in late March. Assemblyman Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) announced a measure to loosen restrictions on professionalism in college sports; Assembly Bill 2747 would give California student athletes the right to organize and allow them to earn money from commercial sponsorships. "College athletes are currently playing in an exploitative situation," Holden said. "They are forced to pursue a higher education without the same rights or financial freedoms as any of the other students on campus." GAMERS EYE UNIONIZATION Thousands of game industry professionals gathered in San Francisco's Moscone Center in March to attend the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC), writes Chloi Rad in IGN (Imagine Games Network). Panels on game design, business and culture filled the daily lineup of talks and meetups, but one roundtable reignited a running conversation on one of the industry's most important questions: Should game developers unionize? The answer, according to attendees, was a resounding Yes. Jen MacLean, executive director of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) moderated the roundtable, called "Union Now? Pros, Cons and Consequences of Unionization for Game Devs." Earlier, there was tension in the room. Interviews published on websites like Kotaku and USGamer had looked into MacLean's stance on unionization — said to be a lukewarm caution that stood in contrast to the passionate pro-union feeling expressed by most roundtable attendees at the hour-long gathering. MacLean later clarified in an interview with ZAM that if game developers were to unionize, she would back them.