OpEdNews - Diary: Cast your vote for the worst offenders in the Corporate Hall of Shame

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All companies have a responsibility to respect human rights in their operations. But how many really do? Corporate Accountability International is now soliciting votes for its 2007 Corporate Hall of Shame, and you can help select this year's inductees. Straight from the official website, here are this year's nominees: Coca-Cola, for draining local water supplies in drought prone areas in India, allowing harassment of workers fighting for labor rights in Colombia, undermining public confidence in local water utilities, and falsely promoting itself as a socially responsible corporation. ExxonMobil, for refusing to pay $4.5 billion in damages from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill and spending millions to delay action on global warming, including funding "junk science" to confuse the issue. Ford, for awful fuel efficiency and pollution ratings, blocking government efforts to improve auto emissions, thwarting efforts by workers to unionize, and paying its CEO $28 million (for only four months of work) as they plan to cut 30,000 jobs. Halliburton, the nation's leading war profiteer, for grossly under-delivering-and shortchanging our troops-on more than $20 billion in lucrative government contracts and for planning to move its headquarters to Dubai, enabling them to shirk paying their full share of U.S. taxes. Kimberly-Clark, for using the same tree fiber suppliers -- after years of denial -- for its tissues that have contributed to the destruction of the world's remaining ancient forests in North America. Merck, for keeping Vioxx on the shelves for four years after learning that the pain medication was causing heart attacks, heavy-handed political tactics, and fighting government efforts in Thailand to allow generic versions of AIDS medications. NestlÃ©, for numerous abuses -- including use of child labor on cocoa farms, skirting responsibility for its role in the obesity epidemic, and draining community water supplies for its bottled water products. Wal-Mart, for failing to support its workers, who live close to the poverty line and often are not covered by the corporation's health plan, for displacing local businesses and for massive claims of sexual discrimination. >> Read more about the nominees. >> Vote for your top three choices for the 2007 Corporate Hall of Shame. (Write-ins also accepted, one per voter.) -----