Business briefs 3/10/04

Organized labor fights for survival in tough times

BAL HARBOUR, Fla. -- Organized labor, facing setbacks in bargaining, membership and politics, is in the fight of its life to remain relevant to workers. Labor leaders meeting this week at a luxury seaside resort said Tuesday they must do a better job of organizing new workers to overcome steep losses in manufacturing and the current flood of white-collar jobs going overseas. About 400,000 new members were organized last year, he said. But membership is at an all-time low, with just 12.9 percent of the work force belonging to a union last year. That's down from 13.3 percent in 2002, according to the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the private sector alone, only 8.2 percent of workers were union members last year.

Stewart's future on board of company uncertain

NEW YORK -- Martha Stewart's felony conviction rattled through her rapidly eroding business empire as shares of her namesake company continued to fall, Viacom canceled her syndicated television show and she quit the board of cosmetic giant Revlon. But the big question that remained was the future of the domestic diva's bread-and-butter job as a leader within the company that bears her name. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia's board gathered Monday to discuss Stewart's future, according to a source close to the company who spoke on condition of anonymity. Stewart stepped down from her roles as chairman and chief executive after being indicted in June but remains as a board member and chief creative officer. With her conviction, the government will likely press to have Stewart removed from the board.

Israel, Jordan breaking ground on science center

KILOMETER 99, ON THE ISRAELI-JORDANIAN BORDER -- Israel and Jordan broke ground Tuesday on a joint science center that will straddle their border -- their most ambitious educational project since they signed a peace deal 10 years ago. Organizers said the 150-acre campus is a way of building peace from the ground up. The project has the backing of Israeli, Jordanian and American business people, as well as Cornell and Stanford universities in the United States. Israel and Jordan have torn down a stretch of the border fence between the Red and the Dead seas for the campus, which is to be paid for by private donors.

-- From wire reports