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The call center industry in Guatemala stands as a pillar of the nation’s economy but is also the cause of great emotional and mental health stress for the young people who work in it. Generating significant revenue and offering lucrative employment opportunities for bilingual, driven people, these opportunities enhance these workers’ language and communication skills. However, the toll on workers’ well-being is undeniable. An October 2023 report by Jeanelly Vasquez in Quorum, “El Costo Emocional y Mental al Otro Lado de la Línea,” uncovers student Gabriela’s experience in a Guatemala call center. Gabriela explains the harsh realities faced by many Guatemalan call center workers. These include the enduring mental strain of verbal abuse from clients, long shifts with zero to minimal breaks, and shortages of resources that would help the call center workers. 

There has been some call to action. After an outrage of the Guatemala student population not having their voice heard for better labor conditions, protests broke out on October 12, 2023, just after 10 days of national strike. Spirited demands from the people led to a nationwide expression, especially through social media, of the many problems occurring in call centers. This resulted in an inspection from the Guatemala Ministry of Labor. The investigation eventually moved forward, offering workers additional benefits and capacity to do their job in a healthy and sustainable way. 

But what has really changed beyond the realm of the Guatemala Ministry of Labor? While there have been protests for change, corporate and mainstream media continue to overlook these labor issues in Guatemala and Central America. Media has focused on the Guatemalan Presidency of Bernardo Arevalo and how it may affect relations with the United States, while stories of labor demands have been absent. However, in a March 2024 CBS News article, the authors highlighted how the United States has been hesitant in supplying financial resources to help development and overall functioning of Guatemala.

While the US government has supplied tax-payer relief to deter Guatemala citizens from arriving in the US illegally, it has not been enough. As President Arévalo suggests, the US should be an example of a state that continues the fight for adequate labor conditions and societal norms of healthy, sustainable living. The CBS News report does not mention labor conditions or the problem of the call centers, emphasizing instead the problem of corruption in the Guatemalan government.

The term “Call Centre Culture” has emerged to encapsulate the pervasive challenges within the call center industry, ranging from grueling work schedules to limited opportunities for advancement. Recent protests outside TELUS International, one of Guatemala’s largest call center companies, have brought these issues to the surface. Specifically, these protests coincide with a backdrop of national unrest, with widespread strikes and demonstrations demanding political accountability, economic benefits, and systemic change. 

In the context of our changing world, the COVID-19 pandemic has further exposed the shortcomings of the industry, with reports of workers falling ill at their desks due to a lack of accommodation for remote work or flexible scheduling. Activists also stress the importance of structured education to empower workers and to advocate for better conditions. Therefore, as discussions continue, there is growing recognition of the need for comprehensive reforms to address systemic challenges within Guatemala’s Call center industry. Gabriela’s story serves as a poignant reminder of the human cost behind the economic success of call centers and the urgent need for meaningful change. 

Source: Jeanelly Vásquez, “Call Centers: el Costo Emocional y Mental al Otro Lado de la Línea,” Quorum, October 17, 2023. 

Student Researchers: Alonzo Aguilar, Hannah Kauppinen, and Paige Poepping (College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University) 

Faculty Evaluator: Bruce Campbell (College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University)

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Business bosses welcomed an upbeat tone from UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and chancellor Rachel Reeves as they sought to rebuild momentum behind the government’s agenda to boost economic growth at Labour’s annual conference.  

In a speech on Monday, Reeves promised the government would unveil a new industrial strategy and highlighted steps ministers had already taken to try to boost growth, including plans to streamline the planning system and remove a ban on new onshore wind farms. 

Her speech came after grumbling from some executives that ministers had been too negative about the UK’s economic and fiscal position, and too slow to unveil detailed policies ranging from an industrial strategy to the finer points of the government’s worker rights reform. 

Shevaun Haviland, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said Reeves’s speech “was a vital moment to lift the tone and for the chancellor to champion the critical importance of economic growth, increased exports and investment”.

“Businesses will be keen to get more detail,” she added, including on potential tax rises.  

Rain Newton-Smith, boss of the CBI business lobby group, said companies would be “reassured to hear that while the government won’t duck difficult decisions, they will be taken in the context of a return to long-term sustainable growth”.  

A record 500 business people attended a sold-out “business day” at Labour’s conference on Monday.

Attendees paid £3,000 per ticket, and some said the event had a significantly less “VIP” feel than last year. 

Last year 200 attendees sat at round tables with shadow ministers but at Monday’s event, the furniture was removed to make space for more seats. 

Reeves’s speech in the main conference hall was live streamed into the business day venue, and the chancellor and Starmer subsequently participated in question and answer sessions with executives and company advisers, moderated by WPP’s former UK president Karen Blackett and Google’s UK boss Debbie Weinstein. 

Several attendees said they learned little from the discussions and noted that in a break from last year, there were no private sessions with Labour’s top team. Most acknowledged that it was difficult for ministers to give any details on tax or spending plans ahead of Reeves’s Budget on October 30. 

But business people welcomed the government’s positive tone towards private enterprise.

“Wealth creation is the number one mission,” said Starmer, as he reiterated his call for business to “partner” with the government to remove economy-wide barriers to growth such as skills development as well as sector-specific challenges.

He told executives that if they were struggling to get a response from the government or find the right person to talk to they should contact his office directly.  

Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds continued Labour’s enthusiastic wooing of business, which the party courted extensively before the July 4 general election.  

“I want you to invest in the UK and make a profit,” said Reynolds after taking questions from executives.

Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, whose trade union ties are a cause of concern for some executives, also spoke briefly at the business day. 

Business applauded Reeves’s pledge to publish a detailed industrial strategy.

It was vital that ministers move “without delay” to confirm the details of the strategy, said Stephen Phipson, chief executive of the manufacturers’ lobby group Make UK. 

Labour’s pitch to business has centred around nurturing economic and political stability as a foundation for growth, but some executives have become impatient at the lack of progress in implementing the government’s plans since July 4.

“We need to see some detail,” said one industry leader at the business day. Others complained about the government’s warnings of a tough Budget involving potential tax rises. 

Some attendees noted wryly the background music in the venue where the business day was held included Adele’s “Water under the bridge”, which contains the lyrics: “If you’re gonna let me down, let me down gently; don’t pretend that you don’t want me.” 

But other attendees said that while they wanted to see rapid progress on Labour’s agenda to boost growth, it was too early to judge the government.

One said ministers were “damned if they do and damned if they don’t”, because businesses favour the government taking time to consult on any reforms, but also want policies to be implemented rapidly. 

More than perhaps any other material, cement is the glue that holds the globalized world together—especially our cities. But producing it requires huge amounts of fossil fuels, and the industry is responsible for up to 8% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, according to a 2023 study in Nature.

Efforts to tackle the issue have historically centered on things like fuel and efficiency. But some companies have another option, which could be a win-win for the climate and the cement industry: creating carbon-negative building materials by storing excess carbon dioxide in concrete. 

Paebbl captures carbon from the atmosphere and combines it with ground olivine rock to create a rock powder or slurry. That can be used as an inert industrial filler or ingredient in building materials like concrete. The process, known as accelerated mineralization, can be done within an hour and potentially bring the carbon footprint of concrete down by up to 70%, says Paebbl’s co-CEO Andreas Saari. In nature, that process can take centuries.

“Not only are you storing carbon, but you are also substituting some of the [kiln-made] clinker which is the big carbon emitter in concrete,” he says. “It doesn’t require a high temperature to make; it gives off heat, which we can recapture and use as energy.”

Paebbl produces 200 kg to 300 kg of product each day at its pilot plant in Rotterdam, where it is also building a demonstration plant. By 2030, it aims to have three commercial-­scale plants operational across Europe and North America.

Other companies are storing carbon directly in concrete. CarbonCure injects carbon dioxide into fresh concrete during mixing. Once injected, the gas undergoes mineralization, permanently binding to the concrete. By using this form of concrete, companies can reduce their emissions by 3% to 5%. CarbonCure estimates it has saved around 450,000 metric tons of CO₂ to date.

Read More: How Cities Are Clamping Down on Traffic to Help Fight Emissions

One major roadblock in scaling up technologies like these is getting past prescriptive specifications in codes and regulations. Building codes are being updated to allow for newer forms of lower-emissions concrete. And in the U.S., the Federal Buy Clean Initiative has led to the specification of more than $2 billion for the procurement of lower-carbon construction materials, including cement, for federally funded projects. And companies like Paebbl and CarbonCure also see an economic incentive for their technology by selling credits for the carbon stored in construction materials.

For now, it is “a bridge solution,” Saari says. “We need to find a way to store billions of tons of CO₂. Where can we find a permanent home for that? Construction material is there.”

What happened?

AP

Who was killed and injured?

What is known about the attackers?

What is the bigger picture?

A police hunt is under way after a man absconded from an open prison in Lincolnshire.

Officers urged the public not to approach Aaron Wood, 54, who is on the run from HMP North Sea Camp in Boston.

He was reported missing from the jail shortly before 08:00 BST on Monday, Lincolnshire Police said.

People have been asked to call 999 if they spot Wood, who is believed to still be in the Boston area but may have connections in the Grimsby area.

He is described as about 5ft 8ins (1.73m) tall, of medium build with brown hair and blue eyes. He has a distinctive scar on his forehead and a tattoo with the words AC/DC on his right forearm.

Police did not provide details of Wood’s offending or sentence.

A major road remains closed after a large stretch was submerged by flood water.

National Highways said the A421 was closed in both directions between the A6 junction south-west of Bedford and the M1 (junction 13) south-east of Milton Keynes.

Footage from Marston Moretaine showed the dual carriageway was completely flooded underneath a bridge across the road bypassing the village to the north.

Drivers have been advised to expect delays, details of diversion routes were published on its website.