Difference between revisions of "Alcoa"

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Alcoa (standing for Aluminium Company of America) is the world's third largest aluminium producer with operations in 31 countries.<ref>Alcoa website [http://www.alcoa.com/global/en/about_alcoa/overview.asp About, overview] Accessed 19/06/10</ref>
 
Alcoa (standing for Aluminium Company of America) is the world's third largest aluminium producer with operations in 31 countries.<ref>Alcoa website [http://www.alcoa.com/global/en/about_alcoa/overview.asp About, overview] Accessed 19/06/10</ref>

Revision as of 09:48, 23 August 2011

Mining-alcans-60px.jpg This article is part of the Mining and Metals project of Spinwatch
Global warming.jpg This article is part of the Climate project of Spinwatch.

Alcoa (standing for Aluminium Company of America) is the world's third largest aluminium producer with operations in 31 countries.[1]

Aerospace and Defense

Alcoa Defense (who's tag line is 'lighter, faster, stronger') controls the company's sales of aluminium for military and arms manufacture. Approximately 30% of aluminium is used for defence technology though this fact is well hidden by the aluminium industry[2].

Alcoa Defense contracts have included the F35 joint strike fighter[3], the replacement for the F16 (manufactured with Lockheed Martin and used by the Israeli army in Gaza[4]), parts for the F22 Fighter [5], as well as M1 Abrams tanks, BAE Systems' and M777 Howitzer artillery BAE Systems amongst others[6].

Environmental credibility

Alcoa's front page contains a large banner naming itself 'Eco-Alcoa' and makes much of its sustainability and human rights credentials. However according to Krater and Rose;

Alcoa has been convicted numerous times for toxic waste dumping in the US, old-growth and rainforest destruction and displacement of indigenous people in countries such as Brazil, Suriname and Australia. Alcoa has lost popularity in Iceland for its intimate association with the US military, which is categorically denied by Alcoa Iceland (although it has a website dedicated to it’s military products). In Honduras, an Alcoa car parts factory was accused of treating workers worse than sweatshops. The basic pay of 74 cents an hour covered 37% of an average family’s most essential needs, and in the last three years, wages fell by 13%. Workers would be forced to urinate and defecate in their clothes after being repeatedly denied to use the bathroom and women would have to take off clothes to prove they were menstruating. Protests by workers in 2007 led to 90% of the trade union leaders being fired.[7]

History

Affiliations

People

  • Alain Belda had a 40 year career with Alcoa; elected a vice president in 1982, executive vice president in 1994, vice chairman in 1995, and president and chief operating officer in 1997. In 2001 he became chairman and chief executive officer, and left in 2008[8]. In 2006 he was paid $298,687.00[9].

Funding

Clients

Publications

Contact

Resources

Notes

  1. Alcoa website About, overview Accessed 19/06/10
  2. Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan
  3. Alcoa Defense website Successes Accessed 19/06/10
  4. Colvin, Marie, Tony Allen-Mills and Uzi Mahnaimi. Israeli jets kill ‘at least 225’ in strikes on Gaza The Sunday Times, 28 December 2008. Accessed 19/06/10
  5. Dominic Gates Boeing sues Alcoa over parts for F-22 Raptor fighters 11 April 2008. Accessed 19/06/10
  6. Alcoa Defense website Successes Accessed 19/06/10
  7. Jaap Krater and Miriam Rose, 'Development of Iceland’s geothermal energy potential for aluminium production– a critical analysis',In: Abrahamsky, K. (ed) (2009). Sparking a World-wide Energy Revolution: Social Struggles in the Transition to a Post-Petrol World. AK Press, Edinburgh.
  8. Business Wire,June 25, 2008 Alcoa Chairman Alain Belda Elected to IBM Board of DirectorsAccessed 15/07/10
  9. Alain J Belda, Forbes Accessed 15/07/10
  10. Alcoa website About, Directors, Ratan Tata Accessed 19/06/10
  11. Alcoa website About, Directors, Bios Accessed 19/06/10