Sometimes the world just doesn't seem to make sense any more. Corporate America is now urging workers to exercise their rights ... to buy their products.
McDonald's ran an ad campaign called "It's Your Lunch. Take It," to promote the Premium Chicken Sandwich and the Angus Third Pounder Deluxe burger. The video above is run by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority to promote tourism. And Coca-Cola is sponsoring a contest called "Take the Year Off" to promote its Gold Peak Tea.
Their message: Commit small acts of rebellion to buy our products. (Note to Corporate America: Workers would have enough time and money to buy your products if you didn't work so hard to bust unions.)
The New York Times notes:
Marketers are adopting the theme of workers’ rights at a time when unions themselves are confronting declines in membership and influence. In effect, some labor experts say, they are turning a pro-worker theme on its head to serve the corporate interest.
“It’s an effort by management to co-opt the Occupy Wall Street spirit and redirect it to promote its product,” said Harry Katz, dean of the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations. “They are using it in a somewhat manipulative way.”
Ya think?
