British authorities have revoked the license of a labor provider that made a group of fruit pickers from Latvia live and work in what was described as “appalling” conditions.

Citing a “shocking catalogue of failures,” the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) announced Aug. 11 that it had taken the action against Plus Staff 24 of Skelmersdale, which is in Lancashire northeast of Liverpool.

The more than 30 workers from Latvia were not paid the national minimum wage, had to live in filthy and dangerous houses, and were taken to work in the fields in an uninsured minibus that sometimes was driven by an underage driver, the GLA said in a press release.

The GLA began operating in 2005 to curb the exploitation of workers in the agricultural, horticultural, shellfish gathering and associated processing and packing industries.

The authority named Jose Rosa as the director of Plus Staff 24, but also said that Maria Baptista, whose license had previously been revoked, was involved in the business.

Plus Staff 24 racked up 242 non-compliance points, the GLA said, when 30 is enough to revoke a license. The revocation went into effect July 22.

In one case, a Latvian was left owing Rosa money because the worker had to borrow cash at a repayment rate of 6 percent. The GLA also accused Rosa of not recording holiday and sick pay, and with failing to record deductions to pay on wage slips given to workers.

“This is a flagrant abuse of power over workers,” GLA Chairman Paul Whitehouse said in the press release. “When a human being has worked hard for a month and gets paid nothing after deductions and even owes the gangmaster money, how are they supposed to survive?”

Since March 2007, the GLA has revoked the licenses of 113 labor providers. Among them was Baltic Work Team Ltd., run by Latvian gangmaster Andris Tiltnieks, whose license initially was revoked in March 2007. Tiltnieks unsuccessfully appealed the revocation. In February 2008 he unsuccessfully sued The Guardian for GBP 3.7 million, claiming he was libeled by the British newspaper’s coverage of his business.

The Bank of Latvia has issued a new 1-lat coin featuring an alphabet primer. The coin is meant for collectors and will not be put into circulation.

The coin, in both silver and copper-nickel alloy versions, commemorates the history of the ābece, or ABC, in Latvia. The coin’s front side depicts a scene in which country children are learning the alphabet. The reverse shows a rooster, a symbol that has been found on many primers through history.

The first Latvian ābece dates to 1683, according to an Aug. 12 press release from the bank. Uncut printer’s sheets of the primer, adorned with a drawing of a rooster, were found in 1941 in the library of the University of Tartu in Estonia.

“The rooster of the Latvian ABC grows out of an old tradition,” Ināra Klekere, head of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Department of the Latvian National Library, said in the press release. “It is often found also in the ABCs of other nations. The oldest known depictions of rooster have been found in the Polish and German ABCs of the 1570s. (The) rooster on the front cover of the ABC even in modern times has retained its pre-Christian symbolism: it is a herald of light who has set his sights eastward; the three ribbons that are featured also in the Latvian ABC probably symbolize the thrice repeated morning call of the rooster.”

About 200 different alphabet primers have been published in Latvia.

Just 5,000 pieces of the silver coin have been minted, while 10,000 piece of the copper-nickel version were made. Both coins were minted by Rahapaja Oy in Finland.

The coins were designed by graphic artist Arvīds Priedīte and mold maker Ligita Franckeviča.

The coins will be available for purchase at the Bank of Latvia in Rīga, as well as at souvenir and jewelry shops in Latvia.

Latvian bobsled athlete Jānis Ķipurs, whose Soviet team won Olympic gold in 1988, is the new driving coach for the American women’s squad, the U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Federation (USBSF) has announced.

“Jānis is a great addition to our coaching staff,” Darrin Steele, USBSF chief executive officer, said in an Aug. 10 announcement. “We are lucky to have him on the team. Jānis provides the driving experience we were looking for to round out the strengths of Dave Owens on the women’s coaching staff.”

Ķipurs, 52, began sliding in 1980 for the Soviet Union until 1990, and continued his career as a pilot with Latvia until 1992 following the collapse of the U.S.S.R.  Ķipurs’ athletic résumé includes Olympic gold and bronze medals from the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, three World Championship and two European Championship medals.

“I have a lot of nice memories from my sliding career, including winning Olympic gold,” Ķipurs said in the announcement. “There have also been many excellent moments in my coaching career when my athletes received Olympic and World Championship medals.”

Ķipurs coached the Swiss team for 10 years, and the French, Canadian and U.S. teams for two years each. Athletes he coached have earned eight Olympic and 12 World Championship medals.

“I am looking forward to seeing the athletes I will be working with and building plans for the next and following seasons until the Olympics in 2014,” Ķipurs said.

His main responsibilities as the U.S. women’s bobsled driving coach include pilot feedback during training and competitions, analyzing drive lines on the track, and managing video review.

Ķipurs, who is originally from Cēsis, has 21-year-old twins, a son and daughter, as well as a 26-year-old son.  He is fluent in Latvian, English, German and Russian, and served two years Soviet armed forces sports battalion before attending technical school in Rīga until 1980.