Walmart workers, community and labor supporters demand right to union representation

Source: Examiner.com

Ron Moore

Calling it a crusade to uphold their rights, gain a voice in the workplace, raise their living standards and help lift the economy and workers out of the recession, a group of Walmart employees today announced that their campaign to organize Washington, D.C., area stores of the retailing giant is gaining momentum.

Though Walmart earned nearly $13.5 billion in profits in 2007, making it the most profitable company in the world, and is the world's largest private employer, the company pays low wages and prices health benefits out of reach for nearly half its workforce.

"Because Walmart has 1.4 million employees across the U.S., its poor treatment of workers has driven down the American standard of living, helped shrink the middle class, and contributed to the reduced consumer purchasing power that is hurting the economy," said Jim Lowthers, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 400. "By empowering themselves through union representation, Walmart employees will give themselves better lives and give all Americans a more prosperous economy."

"Walmart disrespects and mistreats its employees," said Cindy Murray, who works at the Laurel, Md., store. "I can tell you first-hand that most of my colleagues want union representation because they know it's the only way they can earn a living wage and gain dignity on the job, but management is trying to intimidate and threaten us. Eventually, I am confident that our hopes will triumph over the fears Walmart is trying to stoke and we will overcome."


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should be able to at least extend living wages and other benefits to their employees. It's not asking too much and there is strength in numbers!

but in this economy, Mal-Wart can easily fire everyone who even thinks about joining a union, and just as easily rehire a bunch of people who would sign a pledge in blood that they'd never try to form a union.

There might be a chance of doing this if we ever get back to a full employment economy, but at this point, there would be a minimum of twenty people going for every scab job that a Wally's World would make available.

A Wally World job is better than no job. :(

Walmart closed a whole store because the store unionized, and they fired every butcher they had because one meat department unionized. The ONLY way you could unionize Walmart is to unionize the whole chain at the same time. They're probably not going to go out of business just to spite the unions.

in them. Support small local businesses and any future financial crises will be spotty depending on which communities practiced this effort the most. You may be saving money on the front end by buying less expensive (and cheaper) goods, but the cost is vastly more expensive.