Monica Wilson, associate director of employer relations at Dartmouth College, believes that passivity may be a symptom of shell shock.

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South Africa is ranked 125th in the world in terms of inflexible hiring and firing practices, and 121st when it comes to labour-employer relations.

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But in the category of "co-operation in labour-employer relations" - that is, how workers get on with their bosses - France comes bottom of the league, in 125th place.

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Some Republicans have called for the abolition of the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Labour Relations Board, which mediates employer-union relations.

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When the executive team, culture, and business make a positive contribution to society while making a profit, they tend to have fewer lawsuits, better employer-employee relations, a stronger environmental policy and safer products.

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Spartis' relations with his employer started to sour in 2000 when WorldCom's stock began falling.

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The National Labor Relations Board can also require an employer to rehire the laid off workers.

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Together with the 30-odd stockbrokers he has hired from Nomura, Japan's biggest stockbroker and his former employer, Mr Kitao runs a finely tuned investor-relations unit at Softbank, which puts out a steady patter of exciting news about the company's new ventures.

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In the United States, when unions win recognition ballots, they often end up returning to the National Labour Relations Board time and again to try to establish that the employer is acting in bad faith.

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