What real people really say about Walmart

<a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart's</a> new CEO ought to take a good hard look at what people are saying about the giant retailer. He might reconsider his company's practice of impoverishing workers, retaliating against them if they speak out, selling cheap crap from China and <a href="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/10/10/1141724/-Walmart-fuels-inequality-epidemic-taking-advantage-of-our-safety-net" rel="nofollow">looting the public treasury</a>.<br /><br />Here's what a small sample of people posted about Walmart on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/teamsters" rel="nofollow">Teamsters Facebook page</a>.  <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Kevin McBride </b>I'm proud to say I haven't shopped at Walmart in nearly 5 years and don't miss it! I won't even accept products or goods as a gift if bought from there! </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Michael Paul Heverin</b> I worked at Walmart in high school making $8.00 an hour in 2000. Have a friend who was out of work and desperately needed work recently start at Walmart in Middletown Del. Making $7.50 an hour. Makes ZERO sense! This scumbag company needs to get it together and pay their employees a livable wage! Smh! </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Barbara Guzman</b> Wow, they only paid me 7.50 an hour as a Department Manager. And I was there for 7 years. I did so much for them! Wish they would just go under! </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Becky Hunter</b> People who shop Walmart may save a few pennies but they cheat themselves in the long run. While they may not give any thought to what they are doing to American competition, they are buying themselves into a hole of not being able to ever get fair wages in other jobs. Walmart drives down their competition and puts other companies that could pay people better wages out of business. Their motto is to sell cheap, drive the other guys out of business and monopolize the market place. Their customers have allowed them to do just that. Now their workers complain about low wages, the wages will only get lower, as time goes on they have no incentive to pay people more money why should they? They have driven so many companies out of business. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Sherry N Rick Pepper</b> Proudly Walmart free for TEN weeks now. I DO NOT need them! SUPPORT your local union affiliates business!! </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Ron Gwynne</b> I will not buy from Walmart until such time that you pay a fair and equitable wage. You can get richer off the backs of the poor without my contribution. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Mark Mancini</b> If consumers purchased goods made in the US and let the retailers know that's what they want.....hopefully the retailers will respond and find suppliers in this country. As long as the public is apathetic and concerns themselves with just a "low " price.....the retailers will continue to use foreign suppliers. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">What people don't know is that those " always low prices" come at a horrific cost in the long run in terms of unemployment...manufacturing capability .....and ultimately....national security! We are at the mercy if the Chinese government. Imagine what would happen if they embargoed this country. We would have very little to sell as there are so many companies that have shipped production there. It would take literally years to get our facilities up and running. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Buy American! </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Robert Worth Sr.</b> I refuse to give them another dime. Wish more people would wake up </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Cliff Ross</b> Pay a ' Living Wage,' Goddammit !!! You can surely afford it. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b>Donald Pringle</b> Oh come on if not for Walmart's and companies like them their wouldn't be enough greed to go around</blockquote>To find a Black Friday protest against Walmart near you, click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers" rel="nofollow">here</a>. <br /><blockquote><br /></blockquote>

low wage workers walmart What real people really say about Walmart

Walmart's new CEO ought to take a good hard look at what people are saying about the giant retailer. He might reconsider his company...

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Walmart CEO quits as more workers strike in Miami, St. Paul

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Ks9RZ5BLVJz4Ei0RLimuheOAf9ZqJkhrFDJn5nX_OJ55dvEMDRQJLDYRK-2CxUqNDpAFx0C0AFYL3wOUmRtUu9QWqGYQ9YnOaPjZzHjXUo6brrIrETiDeddrfOk6moC0-DDNCHNjUUFa/s1600/walmart+strikers+minnesota.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Ks9RZ5BLVJz4Ei0RLimuheOAf9ZqJkhrFDJn5nX_OJ55dvEMDRQJLDYRK-2CxUqNDpAFx0C0AFYL3wOUmRtUu9QWqGYQ9YnOaPjZzHjXUo6brrIrETiDeddrfOk6moC0-DDNCHNjUUFa/s400/walmart+strikers+minnesota.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walmart workers and supporters walk the picket line today in St. Paul, Minn. </td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart workers</a> went on strike this morning in Miami and St. Paul, the eighth and ninth such strikes in recent weeks as the company announced CEO Mike Duke is stepping down.<br /><br /> <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/mckesson-ceo-makes-943-times-average-workers-pay-wants-to-cut-social-security.html" rel="nofollow">Duke makes 6,132 times what the average Walmart worker earns</a>.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1603821#ixzz2lPicW4vy" rel="nofollow">International Business Times</a> reports,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The chief executive of giant US retailer Walmart has stepped down while the company battles with a series of clashes with workers. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Mike Duke, who is heading off to retirement, is to be replaced by company veteran Doug McMillon to take the helm of one of the world's largest companies in February next year.</blockquote>Walmart worker and <a href="http://makingchangeatwalmart.org/2013/11/25/our-walmart-statement-on-ceo-change/" rel="nofollow">OUR Walmart member</a> Tiffany Beroid put out a statement saying the change of leadership is a testament to the pressure the company is under:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">We’re happy to see Mr. McMillon acknowledge the hard work of associates in his statement this morning, and we hope that this appreciation translates into improving jobs for Walmart workers. Americans nationwide are looking to Walmart to improve jobs and strengthen our economy, and Mr. McMillon has an opportunity to be a leader in moving Walmart in the right direction, not just in offering more empty promises. We sincerely hope that Mr. McMillon will answer the country’s calls for Walmart to publicly commit to paying $25,000 a year, providing full-time work and ending its illegal retaliation against its own employees.</blockquote><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/11/25/2989051/walmart-strikes-miami-tampa-sacramento/" rel="nofollow">ThinkProgress</a> reported on today's strike in Miami: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Walmart workers went on strike on in Miami on Monday morning, following strikes in Tampa on Saturday and in Sacramento, CA on Friday. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Katie, who has worked at a store in Miami for three years and makes $8.75 an hour, told ThinkProgress she’s striking to improve conditions for both herself and her coworkers. “We’re going on strike for better benefits, for better pay for associates, and for respect,” she said.<br />The strikes make eight this month, coming after workers called out or walked off the job in Dallas, cities in Ohio, Chicago, Seattle, and Los Angeles. Workers also went on strike in Miami in October.</blockquote>And in St. Paul, the <a href="http://advocate.stpaulunions.org/2013/11/25/walmart-workers-go-on-strike-in-brooklyn-center-kick-off-week-of-action-for-better-wages/" rel="nofollow">Union Advocate</a> reports:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The nationwide wave of Walmart strikes hit Minnesota this morning, when three women who work at the Brooklyn Center store informed management they were going on an unfair-labor-practices strike. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison and Rev. Doug Mork of nearby Cross of Glory Lutheran Church accompanied the workers into the store, and dozens of supporters from faith, labor and community groups greeted them on their way out, ready to erect a picket line. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Andrea Williams, April Williams and Lillian Griffin said they decided to take a stand after attempts to organize for better wages, meaningful benefits and a voice on the job drew retaliation from store managers.</blockquote>Throughout the country, Walmart workers and supporters from the <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> and other unions plan to demonstrate against abuse and poverty wages on Black Friday. If you haven't found a Walmart protest near you, click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers" rel="nofollow">here</a> to find one.

CEO Pay low wage workers protest strike walmart Walmart CEO quits as more workers strike in Miami, St. Paul

Walmart workers and supporters walk the picket line today in St. Paul, Minn.  Walmart workers  went on strike this morning in Miami and St. ...

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McKesson CEO makes 943 times average workers' pay, wants Social Security cut

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExORV0ktOQEzzcIDryx2MLi2iJedIvpapryVQUiZN9VMJPd5seDXzUF2_EOd_aHD6PphRwXzv2wED6hD7s7483U8fwoE7YfqvvghvwbAFYCyhbHeOQ4UtRHiYKFb6PfTS5e1sG3wUd0ah/s1600/Hammergren.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExORV0ktOQEzzcIDryx2MLi2iJedIvpapryVQUiZN9VMJPd5seDXzUF2_EOd_aHD6PphRwXzv2wED6hD7s7483U8fwoE7YfqvvghvwbAFYCyhbHeOQ4UtRHiYKFb6PfTS5e1sG3wUd0ah/s320/Hammergren.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yay! I make 943 times what the average <br />worker makes at McKesson!</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/09/McKesson-CEO-jaw-dropping-pay.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson</a>, the pharmaceutical distribution giant, pays its CEO John Hammergren 943 times what the average McKesson worker makes.<br /><br />That puts <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McKesson_Corporation" rel="nofollow">McKesson</a> right behind <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT?fref=ts" rel="nofollow">Walmar</a>t when it comes to CEO plundering of a company and abuse of employees.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/15/walmart-retirement-pension_n_4283341.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart CEO Mike Duke makes 6,132 times</a> what the average Walmart worker earns, according to the Huffington Post. Walmart claims it cares for its workers, but it has a funny way of showing it: A <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/walmart-holding-food-drive-for-its-own-employees.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart store in Ohio is running a Thanksgiving food drive for its own employees </a>who are so underpaid they need charitable donations to have a holiday dinner. Yum, canned peas!<br /><br />Hammergren empathizes with his employees the same way Duke does. In <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/07/teamsters-protest-mckesson-retaliation.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson's Lakeland, Fla., warehouse, workers don't earn enough to afford health insurance</a>. The workers voted to join the <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a>, and now the company is threatening and harassing them in a by-the-book union-busting effort. <br /><br />Hammergren's signal achievement at <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/McKesson-shareholders-reject-CEO-pay.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson was racking up nearly $1 billion in fines for price-fixing and Medicaid fraud</a>. Now he claims he's concerned about government debt (he's not) and wants to lower it. Presumably he wasn't too worried about contributing to the government debt while he was looting the Treasury.<br /><br />Hammergren belongs to that uniquely loathsome group, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/01/fix-debt-is-full-of-crap.html" rel="nofollow">Fix the Debt</a>, which wants to cut your Social Security. <a href="http://www.ips-dc.org/reports/platinum_plated_pensions" rel="nofollow">The Institute for Policy Studies</a> found three of the Fix the Debt CEOs who want to impoverish millions of retirees have pensions of more than $100 million each. Hammergren  has the largest retirement fortune of the three: $144.3 million.<br /><br />Another group aiming to throw millions into poverty, the Business Roundtable, is made up of CEOs whose retirement savings are 1,200 times bigger than the average worker's.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thenation.com/blog/177251/ceos-massive-retirement-fortunes-push-social-security-cuts#" rel="nofollow">The Nation</a> recently exposed the shocking cruelty of Fix the Debt and the Business Roundtable. Reports The Nation:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">These CEOs aren’t just trying to short the average American retiree; they’re throwing their own under the bus. While raising alarm about the federal debt, Business Roundtable CEOs have run up massive deficits in their employees’ pension funds. According to the report, ten companies led by members of Business Roundtable have shortfalls in their employee pension funds of between $4.9 and $22.6 billion. The largest of those belongs to General Electric, run by Business Roundtable and Fix the Debt member Jeffrey Immelt, the prospective beneficiary of a $59.3 million retirement fund. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">GE stopped offering traditional pension plans for new employees in 2011, forcing workers to switch to 401(k) plans. Many other companies have shifted the burden of retirement savings to their employees in this way in recent years, and that’s been a significant driver of the retirement crisis. Just 18 percent of workers can expect traditional pensions today, compared with 38 percent in 1985. Instead of getting a fixed check, retirees are at the mercy of the market—making the assurance of Social Security benefits even more essential.</blockquote>How did we ever let this happen?<br /><br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"> </blockquote><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />

CEO Pay Hammergren low-wage workers McKesson walmart McKesson CEO makes 943 times average workers' pay, wants Social Security cut

Yay! I make 943 times what the average worker makes at McKesson! McKesson , the pharmaceutical distribution giant, pays its CEO John Hammerg...

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Colbert takes on employee food drive at Walmart (video)

<embed allowfullscreen="true" allownetworking="all" allowscriptaccess="always" bgcolor="#000000" flashvars="autoPlay=false" height="247" src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:cms:video:colbertnation.com:430680" style="display: block;" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="288" wmode="window"></embed><br /><br /><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/teamsters-support-walmart-black-friday-strikes.html" rel="nofollow">Teamster Nation</a> told you Monday about the Walmart in Ohio that's running a Thanksgiving food drive over the holidays -- for its own employees. Now we bring you comedian Stephen Colbert, who pokes fun at the retailer in his inimitable way.<br /><br />We bring you Colbert as a reminder that <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> are supporting <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT?fref=ts" rel="nofollow">Walmart workers</a> in Black Friday protests. To find an event near you, click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

low-wage workers strike walmart Colbert takes on employee food drive at Walmart (video)

Teamster Nation told you Monday about the Walmart in Ohio that's running a Thanksgiving food drive over the holidays -- for its own emp...

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This week: Walmart protests go global

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98v2pDkVtEmqvyKJQ5f6P1s5t-AdBBhNDeBn4EcagB1UUvbZem0yzWW_TbxXGPLuwM2xgSUg_3BbXRgfG_lvSw0oqPw0ZsS-hKfeT7MSSe4al0TwUUgCiLnA7tLcsSfJPobGnmXzOqiiv/s1600/All-Workers-Deserve-Respect_small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh98v2pDkVtEmqvyKJQ5f6P1s5t-AdBBhNDeBn4EcagB1UUvbZem0yzWW_TbxXGPLuwM2xgSUg_3BbXRgfG_lvSw0oqPw0ZsS-hKfeT7MSSe4al0TwUUgCiLnA7tLcsSfJPobGnmXzOqiiv/s200/All-Workers-Deserve-Respect_small.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>‘Tis the season for strikes at Walmart and workers worldwide are catching the spirit. On the heels of increasing strike activity this month, workers are gearing up for <a href="http://blackfridayprotests.org/" rel="nofollow">Black Friday protests</a> with a <a href="http://www.uniglobalunion.org/news/walmart-week-global-action-18-24-november" rel="nofollow">global week of action against Walmart</a>.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.uniglobalunion.org/" rel="nofollow">UNI Global Union</a> – an international federation of 900 unions in 140 countries – has put out the call for global protests demanding respect and good jobs throughout Walmart’s supply chain:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Workers around the world will come together November 18-24 for a global week of action… Workers and their unions in countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, South Africa, the United Kingdom, Bangladesh and the United States are joining together to demand better pay and working conditions for the 2.2 million Walmart workers and countless supply chain workers. </blockquote>UNI <a href="https://actionnetwork.org/groups/walmart-global-campaign/files/1085/download" rel="nofollow">passed a resolution</a> last month in support of the Walmart campaign, creating the UNI Alliance @ Walmart. Its demands include that Walmart allow workers to organize without fear of retaliation and pay workers a living wage with decent working conditions.<br /><br />The global union wants Walmart to sign a “<a href="http://www.unglobalcompact.org/issues/Labour/Global_Framework_Agreements.html" rel="nofollow">Global Framework Agreement</a>” with UNI that guarantees the rights of Walmart workers around the globe. It’s also calling on Walmart to sign the <a href="http://www.bangladeshaccord.org/" rel="nofollow">Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh</a> and to compensate the victims of factory disasters at <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/05/investors-to-wal-mart-gap-no-more.html">Tazreen, Rana Plaza</a> and Aswad – three factories (or “<a href="http://usas.org/2013/10/16/we-need-a-contract-to-end-deathtraps-in-bangladesh/" rel="nofollow">death traps</a>”) that produced apparel for Walmart stores.<br /><br />According to UNI: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Walmart must pay its 2.2 million global workforce plus countless supply chain workers a fair wage and treat them with dignity. Workers and union members within the UNI Walmart Global Union Alliance will be taking their legitimate grievances to the street, demanding that the Walton family which controls Walmart finally wakes up and changes the company’s culture.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">As part of the Global Action Week a petition and letter are being sent to the Walmart board cataloging a culture of unfair scheduling, low wages and retaliation against employees who have the temerity to speak out.</blockquote>The Walmart Week of Global Action is the latest in a wave of low-wage worker strikes crashing Walmart’s busiest shopping season. The past few weeks have seen strikes in Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Dayton and Cincinnati.<br /><br />Yesterday <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/port-drivers-who-haul-for-walmart-strike-in-la-with-Teamster-support.html">port drivers who haul Walmart goods launched a 36-hour strike</a> in California to protest Unfair Labor Practices, including port companies’ payroll fraud by calling drivers “independent contractors.” The drivers have been joined by <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/LA-warehouse-workers-describe-horrifying-conditions-join-strike-line.html">workers at two warehouses that move Walmart products</a> where working condition are horrendous.<br /><br />Teamsters are standing strong with the port drivers and warehouse workers.<br /><br />The momentum for change at Walmart is building steam beyond the streets, too. Walmart is being <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/walmart-to-be-charged-by-nlrb-for-illegally-retaliation.html">charged by the NLRB</a> with illegally retaliating against 117 workers. Plus, Walmart is getting slammed in the media with reports about an employee <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/walmart-holding-food-drive-for-its-own-employees.html">food drive in Ohio to help “Associates in Need”</a> buy Thanksgiving dinner and a Demos report that says Walmart <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/11/19/wal_mart_could_pay_every_us_employee_14_89_just_by_not_buying_its_own_stock/" rel="nofollow">could afford to pay all of its U.S. employees $14.89</a> an hour if it stopped buying its own stock.<br /><br />With Black Friday on the horizon, now is the time to get involved and support Walmart workers. And while you’re protesting on Black Friday (click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers">here</a> to find an action near you), don’t forget to support the international campaign for fairness at Walmart by <a href="https://actionnetwork.org/groups/walmart-global-campaign/files/1084/download" rel="nofollow">sending a copy of the UNI letter to Walmart’s HQ</a> and <a href="https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/walmart-workers-around-the-world-demand-respect" rel="nofollow">signing the online petition</a> to support Walmart workers worldwide.<br /><br />The globalization of Walmart labor unrest is welcome news for workers in the U.S. We need nothing less than a global movement of workers to take on a global giant like Walmart.

garment factories low wage workers misclassification port strike port truck drivers retail walmart warehouse workers This week: Walmart protests go global

‘Tis the season for strikes at Walmart and workers worldwide are catching the spirit. On the heels of increasing strike activity this month,...

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L.A. warehouse workers describe horrifying conditions, join strike line

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9ABiyYePSo1LfZEFLV9K7t6pQBItq27JIffI-S0GNTYFzC88nPWbhBIiNglBsilyvd_5a9ggRIZS0-RJHvEFcaijL-uAtA4_T6aaq9GmZGh3Z0HC2Q9CkWKs2m-eaeQNi9pkb6vt_ym4/s1600/Teamster+warehouse+workers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9ABiyYePSo1LfZEFLV9K7t6pQBItq27JIffI-S0GNTYFzC88nPWbhBIiNglBsilyvd_5a9ggRIZS0-RJHvEFcaijL-uAtA4_T6aaq9GmZGh3Z0HC2Q9CkWKs2m-eaeQNi9pkb6vt_ym4/s400/Teamster+warehouse+workers.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warehouse workers, striking port drivers and Teamsters walk the line yesterday.</td></tr></tbody></table>Workers at two dangerous California warehouses that move <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart</a> goods marched with <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> and port drivers striking their facility yesterday. The port drivers walked off the job in their fight against payroll fraud and poverty wages, while the warehouse workers joined the picket to protest their horrific working conditions.<br /><br />Our friends at <a href="http://www.warehouseworkersunited.org/lalong-beach-port-warehouse-workers-at-massive-walmart-contracted-facilities-face-daily-danger/" rel="nofollow">Warehouse Workers United</a> tell us about those conditions: workers trapped inside containers, blocked exits, men and women sharing one bathroom and inadequate safety gear. On Friday, the workers filed complaints with  the <a href="http://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/" rel="nofollow">California Division of Occupational Safety and Health</a>, or Cal/OSHA. On Monday they spoke out. It was the first time non-union warehouse workers exposed working conditions in the port area.<br /><br />The two warehouses are in Carson, Calif. They are Pacer International, Inc., and American Logistics International, Inc. <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/port-drivers-who-haul-for-walmart-strike-in-la-with-Teamster-support.html" rel="nofollow">Port drivers, supported by Teamsters</a>, walked off the job at American Logistics International yesterday.<br /><br />According to Warehouse Workers United:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Warehouse workers are told to clean a mysterious oil-like substance, men and women must share a single bathroom and workers are forced to illuminate dark shipping containers with the light on their cell phones at massive Walmart-contracted warehouses near the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles... </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“We deserve a safe work place where we are treated with dignity and respect,” said Susan Gutierrez , who is a warehouse worker at American Logistics.</blockquote>It was a bad day for Walmart. Not only were port drivers who haul Walmart goods on strike, but it was announced the <a href="http://nlrb.gov/" rel="nofollow">NLRB</a> would prosecute the retailer for retaliating against 117 Walmart strikers, workers walked off the job at Walmarts in Pennsylvania and Ohio and news spread widely about a <a href="http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=11039" rel="nofollow">Walmart's food drive for its own employees</a>.<br /><br />Couldn't happen to a nicer company.<br /><br /><br />

hunger port drivers strike walmart warehouse worker safety L.A. warehouse workers describe horrifying conditions, join strike line

Warehouse workers, striking port drivers and Teamsters walk the line yesterday. Workers at two dangerous California warehouses that move  Wa...

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Woot! Walmart to be charged by NLRB for illegally retaliating against 117 workers

The federal labor board is prepared to prosecute Walmart for violating workers' rights on a day when the company faces <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/port-drivers-who-haul-for-walmart-strike-in-la-with-Teamster-support.html" rel="nofollow">strikes by drivers who haul its goods in California </a>and retail employees in Ohio. The news media is also reporting that a <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/walmart-holding-food-drive-for-its-own-employees.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart store is holding a food drive for its own employees</a> and that a Walmart subcontracted warehouse exposes its workers to horrifying conditions.<br /><br />Call it <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart's</a> terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.<br /><br /><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/11/18/2962751/nlrb-walmart/" rel="nofollow">ThinkProgress</a> spoke to representatives of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">OUR Walmart</a>, the group helping to organize workers:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The group says the NLRB will prosecute the company for illegally firing and disciplining more than 117 workers, including some who went on strike last June. It also includes threats by managers and spokespeople meant to discourage workers from striking. Workers could potentially see back pay, reinstatement to their former positions, and the reversal of disciplinary actions...</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">...workers have repeatedly claimed that they are fired or disciplined for going on strike. The company itself has also admitted to threatening workers who look into forming unions that their benefits could disappear if they organize.</blockquote>And even as <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> walk the strike line with port drivers outside of American Logistics, warehouse workers inside are telling the press about filthy restrooms, blocked fire exits and chemical odors. Josh Eidelson at <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/11/18/breaking_wal_mart_faces_warehouse_horror_allegations_and_federal_labor_board_complaint/" rel="nofollow">Salon</a> spoke to several employees of a Walmart warehouse subcontractor:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">“There is only one restroom for both genders”; “Emergency exits are often blocked”; and “Workers are constantly exposed to hazards, specifically falling boxes and forklifts driving in the same areas as workers who walk.” At Pacer International, workers’ allegations include “Fire exits are often blocked”; “Forklift drivers routinely drive into the dark trailers and containers while workers are inside, presenting a risk of workers being hit by forklifts”; and “There is a constant propane smell in the facility, resulting in workers feeling dizzy, nauseous and overwhelmed. There is no ventilation in the facility.”  </blockquote>And Black Friday is just around the corner. If you'd like to come and and support Walmart workers, click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers" rel="nofollow">here</a> to find an action near you.<br /><br /><br />

nlrb port strike walmart Woot! Walmart to be charged by NLRB for illegally retaliating against 117 workers

The federal labor board is prepared to prosecute Walmart for violating workers' rights on a day when the company faces strikes by driver...

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Walmart holding food drive for its own employees

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqiZMDh2bHdH85z4zBVH4My_jT3yqOHoO9vR2rB8XCmxzvqBGRmn8LffPMgpINZQAK05K5G5uMKrJ8-f8k45tMgamAkRv2GJYP2EFtY5PBhCMInRpYqxn5UgCYI_fg8Gat8ZEbj1BSsWp9/s1600/walmart+food+drive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqiZMDh2bHdH85z4zBVH4My_jT3yqOHoO9vR2rB8XCmxzvqBGRmn8LffPMgpINZQAK05K5G5uMKrJ8-f8k45tMgamAkRv2GJYP2EFtY5PBhCMInRpYqxn5UgCYI_fg8Gat8ZEbj1BSsWp9/s400/walmart+food+drive.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />A Cleveland-area <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart</a> is asking its low-wage employees to donate food so the other low-wage employees can have a nice Thanksgiving.<br /><br />We're not making this up.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2013/11/is_walmarts_request_of_associa.html" rel="nofollow">Cleveland Plain Dealer</a> broke the story:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The storage containers are attractively displayed at the Walmart on Atlantic Boulevard in Canton. The bins are lined up in alternating colors of purple and orange. Some sit on tables covered with golden yellow tablecloths. Others peer out from under the tables. </blockquote><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeNUca3vkA8393o7Dsqb51f-i-TgKVWA_DE7mooJCxpyC65vHJ34PoTjemtF4mrLz9f4_OeDTADGODUEBr4yp7VjkcCGVl1ohKPgJ7YXHDTgyi2gPCoOLDZThXqE4DFCSUgI9OSlJnWTe/s1600/walmart+dayton+strike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeNUca3vkA8393o7Dsqb51f-i-TgKVWA_DE7mooJCxpyC65vHJ34PoTjemtF4mrLz9f4_OeDTADGODUEBr4yp7VjkcCGVl1ohKPgJ7YXHDTgyi2gPCoOLDZThXqE4DFCSUgI9OSlJnWTe/s320/walmart+dayton+strike.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walmart strike today in Dayton, Ohio</td></tr></tbody></table><blockquote class="tr_bq">This isn't a merchandise display. It's a food drive - not for the community, but for needy workers.</blockquote>The newspaper calls the food drive an "element in the backdrop of the public debate about salaries for cashiers, stock clerks and other low-wage positions at Walmart."<br /><br />Ya think?<br /><br />As the story spread about the food drive, more Walmart workers went on strike in Cincinnati and Dayton today, following strikes in Los Angeles, Seattle and Chicago over the past few weeks. Today, another group of low-wage workers -- port truck drivers -- walked off the job in a surprise 36-hour strike at the Port of Los Angeles.<br /><br /><a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> are supporting low-wage worker strikes because -- well, because an injury to one is an injury to all. Because the only way to rebuild the middle class is by raising wages. Because it's the right thing to do.<br /><br />In Los Angeles, three Teamsters were among the 54 arrested for acts of civil disobedience during a Walmart protest. Seattle Teamsters came out to represent for Walmart strikers in the Northwest. And today Teamsters have been walking the strike line at the Port of Los Angeles since 5 a.m.<br /><br />Meanwhile, a Walmart spokesman defended the food drive. He told the Plain Dealer:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">This is part of the company’s culture to rally around associates and take care of them when they face extreme hardships.</blockquote>Never mind that Walmart's low wages are the cause of the hardship.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />

low wage workers port strike walmart Walmart holding food drive for its own employees

A Cleveland-area Walmart is asking its low-wage employees to donate food so the other low-wage employees can have a nice Thanksgiving. We&#...

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Whoa! Port drivers who haul for Walmart strike in LA with Teamster support

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vmUBKxQChg4et6CKVaBuQGKm4NgkNPL4AWrL-iRwsjURwCNra0WOUstUwr5v5SBdCLT__eN-C6x1-E1nS80ARYMi6mMBYBILavcn8ji4zr_ju7QLk8Jbq_3xDnF9OVQi_VG6sRFio_3C/s1600/Teamster+port+strike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vmUBKxQChg4et6CKVaBuQGKm4NgkNPL4AWrL-iRwsjURwCNra0WOUstUwr5v5SBdCLT__eN-C6x1-E1nS80ARYMi6mMBYBILavcn8ji4zr_ju7QLk8Jbq_3xDnF9OVQi_VG6sRFio_3C/s400/Teamster+port+strike.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Out in force at Green Fleet Systems today. </td></tr></tbody></table>The latest wave of low-wage worker strikes is upon us, and it begins today with Teamster-supported port drivers who haul goods for Walmart at the Port of Los Angeles. At 5 a.m., port drivers took up "Stop this unlawful war on workers signs" and hit the picket lines in a surprise short strike. Teamsters are marching in solidarity with the drivers.<br /><br />Local television, print and radio crews came out to cover the job action. The advisory informs us port truck drivers at three companies are walking off the job for 36 hours to protest Unfair Labor Practices, including harassment, intimidation, and other violations of Federal labor laws. According to advisory:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Striking drivers at two of the companies – <a href="http://www.greenfleetsystems.com/index.htm">Green Fleet Systems</a> and <a href="http://www.americanlogisticsintl.com/">American Logistics International</a> – are bona fide employees of these trucking companies. Region 21 of the National Labor Relations Board has received charges detailing unlawful retaliations against the drivers at these two companies in their efforts to organize a Union with the <a href="http://www.teamster.org/">International Brotherhood of Teamsters</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.pac9.com/">Pac 9 Transportation</a> misclassifies their full-time, exclusive drivers as “independent contractors.” Those drivers are demanding recognition as employees and have suffered harassment and intimidation from Pac 9 in their efforts. Charges for unlawful retaliation are pending before Region 21 of the <a href="http://www.nlrb.gov/">National Labor Relations Board</a>. This is the first time in decades that port truck drivers classified as “independent contractors” have gone on strike. Their efforts are significantly bolstered by the fact that more than 50 Pac 9 drivers, and hundreds of others have filed claims for wage theft with the <a href="http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/">California Labor Commissioner</a>.</blockquote>Josh Eidelson at Salon wrote a terrific story about the <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/11/18/breaking_truckers_who_haul_for_wal_mart_and_forever_21_plan_surprise_strikes_today/" rel="nofollow">strike</a>, titled, "Truckers who haul for Wal-Mart and Forever 21 plan surprise strikes today." The subhed is even better: "Hundreds of workers will defy vengeful companies and laws that deny they're even employees." Eidelson writes,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">In labor’s latest challenge to a low-wage economy and a legal system that excludes huge swathes of the workforce, hundreds of non-union Port of Los Angeles truck drivers plan to stage surprise strikes against three companies Monday. The workers transport goods from the port to companies including Costco, Forever 21, Sketchers and Wal-Mart. They allege their companies — Green Fleet Systems, American Logistics International, and Pac 9 — illegally punished workers for organizing and exposing wrongdoing. While drivers striking at GFS and ALI (starting at 5 a.m. PST and 4 p.m. PST respectively) are legally employed by those logistics companies, the workers at the third company, Pac 9, are among the growing ranks of so-called “independent contractors” who legally aren’t employed by anyone at all. They plan to walk (or drive) off the job at 5 p.m. PST Monday. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“I’m demanding what a worker deserves,” Pac 9 driver Jose Galindo told Salon in Spanish in a pre-strike interview. Wal-Mart, Sketchers, Costco, Forever 21, GFS, ALI and Pac 9 did not provide comment on the workers’ allegations in response to Friday inquiries (Pac 9 referred Salon to a communications firm, which did not respond to a Friday request for comment). </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The port truckers, backed by the <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> union, are the latest to take up tactics that have characterized a wave of low-wage, non-union strikes since 2012. Like strikes targeting the <a href="http://www.salon.com/2012/10/09/walmart_strikes_spread_to_more_states/">Wal-Mart supply chain</a> and the <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/08/29/largest_fast_food_strike_ever_today_50_cities_will_be_affected/">fast food industry</a> (also significantly supported by affiliates of the same union federation, Change to Win), the truckers are mounting one-day strikes rather than indefinite ones, and framing their protests as a response to illegal retaliation – two tactics with some potential to maximize public scrutiny on bosses while reducing the ever-present risk that the striking workers lose their jobs. And like fast food workers or Wal-Mart warehouse staff, the Pac 9 truckers are facing down a “Who’s the Boss” problem: Subject to the will of one corporation (McDonald’s, Wal-Mart, Pac 9), but legally employed by someone else: a fast food franchisee, a warehouse company or, in the case of Monday night’s strikers, putatively self-employed.</blockquote>More to come. <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">: </blockquote>

misclassification strike walmart Whoa! Port drivers who haul for Walmart strike in LA with Teamster support

Out in force at Green Fleet Systems today.  The latest wave of low-wage worker strikes is upon us, and it begins today with Teamster-support...

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Next wave of Walmart, low-wage strikes is here

Another massive wave of low-wage worker strikes may be upon us as labor unrest is rising at the Port of Los Angeles and Walmart workers walked off the job in three cities over the past 10 days.<br /><br />Yesterday, 20 port drivers at Total Transportation Service Inc. in Rancho Dominguez took a petition to management demanding they be recognized as employees and entitled to medical benefits. TTSi driver Jose Rosales told La Opinion,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">In reality we are employees, but we have no benefits, not even my kids, or my wife.</blockquote>The publication also reported:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Drivers complain that the company charges them for insurance and parking charges, and leaves the costs of maintenance and fuel on his shoulders. “The truck is not mine, but I am paying maintenance," said (Dennis) Rosales.</blockquote>Earlier this week, drivers filed a lawsuit against Southern Counties Express Inc. alleging the drivers don't earn a fair wage, nor do they have time to eat and rest, all because they were misclassified as independent contractors. The lawsuit was filed before the Superior Court of Los Angeles County.<br /><br />Throughout the United States, workers trapped in low-wage jobs are revolting against a system that lavishly rewards a tiny sliver of the population and consigns more than half the U.S. population to near poverty. An <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/05/income-inequality-crisis_n_4221012.html?utm_hp_ref=business" rel="nofollow">analysis by Social Security released Tuesday </a>showed more than half of U.S. wage earners take home less than $30,000 a year. T<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">he </span><a href="http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/12poverty.shtml" rel="nofollow">federal poverty line</a> for a family of five in 2012 was $27,010.<br /><br />Meanwhile <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/stink-tanks-exposed-as-fronts-for-kochs.html" rel="nofollow">billionaire-funded propaganda</a> paints low-wage workers as lazy handout seekers and <a href="http://mediamatters.org/research/2013/08/02/report-foxs-month-of-inaccurate-minimum-wage-co/195192" rel="nofollow">Fox News</a> drives home the message. The real handouts go to companies like Walmart and McDonald's. In the U.S., <a href="http://usilive.org/walmarts-ruthless-rush-to-the-bottom-has-to-be-stopped/" rel="nofollow">18 percent of all food stamp recipients</a> and the largest group of people enrolled in Medicaid work for Walmart. In fact, the average Walmart worker receives $1,000 in government assistance because pay is so low. McDonald's has a “<a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-10-25/a-help-line-voice-saying-what-mcdonalds-wont-fast-food-workers-need-aid">McResource</a>” line that helps employees and their families enroll in various state and local assistance programs.<br /><br />Walmart employees since Black Friday have <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/teamsters-support-walmart-black-friday-strikes.html" rel="nofollow">ratcheted up community</a> pressure on the retailer by exposing the ways it <a href="http://www.ilsr.org/study-finds-walmart-increases-poverty/" rel="nofollow">devastates people's lives</a>, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-walmart-brought-southern-wages-north.html" rel="nofollow">their communities</a> and their <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-13/how-mcdonald-s-and-wal-mart-became-welfare-queens.html" rel="nofollow">government treasuries</a>. Workers in the Walmart supply chain -- in <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/walmart-warehouse-workers-get-raise.html" rel="nofollow">warehouses</a>, on the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-port-truck-drivers-strike-20130826,0,7653965.story" rel="nofollow">ports</a> and in <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/02/hey-wal-mart-lets-call-it-what-it-is.html" rel="nofollow">food processing plants</a> -- are walking off the job to protest the degradation and poverty that Walmart foists on them. Teamsters, SEIU, UFCW and other allies have been with them every step of the way. Last week, 54 people, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/teamsters-support-walmart-black-friday-strikes.html" rel="nofollow">including three Teamsters</a>, were arrested in peaceful acts of disobedience, to support striking Walmart workers in Los Angeles.<br /><br />And now the ports are restive again, just weeks after the first-ever one-day walkout by drivers at <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/LA-port-drivers-strike.html" rel="nofollow">Green Fleet Systems.</a> Discontent is only increasing at fast-food restaurants and for low-wage government contractors as employers have resisted calls for higher pay. And Walmart workers are ready to strike on Black Friday.<br /><br />This could be a long, cold, strike season. If you'd like to show your support for striking workers and a more equal America, click <a href="http://www.teamster.org/content/teamsters-support-walmart-strikers" rel="nofollow">here</a> and scroll to the bottom of the page to find a Black Friday Walmart protest near you.

inequality strikes walmart Next wave of Walmart, low-wage strikes is here

Another massive wave of low-wage worker strikes may be upon us as labor unrest is rising at the Port of Los Angeles and Walmart workers walk...

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Teamsters support Walmart Black Friday strikes

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcfrFcZSzX12ItCY9ho2b18w2wPEn1mIDn9UNqR5Gm7JPmkiStilErhuWhTa7NIAFyoi0-3Z8GZAC44ZoNoCemMbYUE5Oxp1xAAjDIlikUXRfkjdh2NIBof9StL1i5A3cqBeDiQ70TjnLL/s1600/Teamsters+Seattle+Walmart+strike.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcfrFcZSzX12ItCY9ho2b18w2wPEn1mIDn9UNqR5Gm7JPmkiStilErhuWhTa7NIAFyoi0-3Z8GZAC44ZoNoCemMbYUE5Oxp1xAAjDIlikUXRfkjdh2NIBof9StL1i5A3cqBeDiQ70TjnLL/s320/Teamsters+Seattle+Walmart+strike.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teamsters in Seattle yesterday</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> are out front supporting <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart worker protests</a> in the run-up to nationwide strikes on Friday, Nov. 29, also known as Black Friday.<br /><br />Yesterday our Teamster brothers from Local 117 in Seattle protested Walmart's union-busting and poverty wages. They were supporting workers who went out on a one-day strike. Josh Eidelson at <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/11/12/breaking_wal_mart_workers_strike_as_target_workers_threaten_to_join_black_friday_walkout/" rel="nofollow">Salon</a> reported yesterday:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The one-day strike is the latest in the lead-up to a larger day of strikes and protests planned for Black Friday, the high-profile post-Thanksgiving shopping day at the end of this month. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">“I don’t know if I’ll see it in my lifetime,” Washington Wal-Mart employee Mary Watkines told Salon in a pre-strike interview, but  “I want all of the associates, including myself, to be able to walk into our workplace, you know, this place that they call our family … and not be physically ill, not just feel like you want to throw up or pass out or even just turn around and walk out” over “intimidation and humiliation.” Watkins added, “I want people to be able to live better, you know, like the commercial says … Nobody lives better except for the Waltons now.” </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">Today’s strike is the latest by the non-union worker group OUR Walmart, which is closely tied to the </span><a href="http://ufcw.org/" rel="nofollow" style="line-height: 20px;">United Food & Commercial Workers</a><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"> union.</span></blockquote>Just now, the <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/11/13/2935161/walmart-strike-chicago/" rel="nofollow">Walmart strikes spread to Chicago</a>, with a rally planned for 4 pm local times.<br /><br />Last week, at least one and possibly more of our Teamster brothers were arrested in Los Angeles as part of the largest peaceful civil disobedience action against Walmart ever. Several dozen Walmart workers walked off the job Thursday and Friday, the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/08/walmart-arrests_n_4227411.html?view=print&comm_ref=false" rel="nofollow">Huffington Post</a> reported:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Surrounded by about 100 police officers in riot gear and a helicopter circling above, more than 50 Walmart workers and supporters were arrested in downtown Los Angeles Thursday night as they sat in the street protesting what they called the retailer's "poverty wages." </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">...The 54 arrestees, with about 500 protesting Walmart workers, clergy and supporters, demonstrated outside LA's Chinatown Walmart. Those who refused police orders to clear the street after their permit expired were arrested without incident. Those who fail to post $5,000 bail would be jailed overnight, Detective Gus Villanueva, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman, told The Huffington Post... </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Their primary demand to Walmart: pay every full-time worker at least $25,000 a year.<br />One of the protesting Walmart workers, Anthony Goytia, a 31-year-old father of two, said he believes he will make about $12,000 this year. It's a daily struggle, he said, "to make sure my family doesn't go hungry." </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">"The power went out at my house yesterday because I couldn't afford the bill," Goytia told HuffPost. "I had to run around and get two payday loans to pay for my rent from the first" of the month. "Yesterday we went to a food bank." </blockquote>A large, national strike is planned against Walmart on Black Friday, and Teamsters are encouraged to join in actions supporting the workers. It's very easy to find out what's going on near you. Just click on the <a href="http://blackfridayprotests.org/">BlackFridayProtests.org</a> website and type your zip code in the giant box.

strike walmart Teamsters support Walmart Black Friday strikes

Teamsters in Seattle yesterday Teamsters are out front supporting Walmart worker protests in the run-up to nationwide strikes on Friday, N...

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How Walmart brought Southern wages to the North

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_A_MHGmbs5aiP2ECvOZMxR6RKtin7ZWJ-i7upx5JLUl23DuZSrXS_6YsCfmaJkhBNn0ebw0pGueVVND4JXW2bcuu4D18x5nDX9G3AqFZurv7buN3X0nY_yDL5fJmsSLfYAdm9wMzi0OHk/s1600/walton+states.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_A_MHGmbs5aiP2ECvOZMxR6RKtin7ZWJ-i7upx5JLUl23DuZSrXS_6YsCfmaJkhBNn0ebw0pGueVVND4JXW2bcuu4D18x5nDX9G3AqFZurv7buN3X0nY_yDL5fJmsSLfYAdm9wMzi0OHk/s320/walton+states.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walmart lowers everybody's wages. </td></tr></tbody></table>When Walmart opens a new store in a community, it doesn't just lower wages for retail workers. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT" rel="nofollow">Walmart</a> lowers them for <b><i>all</i></b> workers until they're as much as 4.8 percent below wages in counties without Walmarts.<br /><br />It's not as if Walmart can't afford to pay better wages. Stephen Gandel at <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/11/12/wal-mart-pay-raise/" rel="nofollow">Fortune Magazine</a> reported recently that Walmart could easily pay its workers 50 percent more. Here's how Gandel calculated:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Wal-Mart has a book value of $76.7 billion. Take 15.4% of that, and that means investors are looking to get paid $11.8 billion a year. That leaves $101 billion to pay employees. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Wal-Mart paid its top executives and board members $66.7 million last year. The rest of the money has to be split among Wal-Mart's remaining roughly 2.2 million employees. Of those, about 1.4 million work in the U.S. Assume that Wal-Mart spends about 2/3 of that on the salaries of its U.S. employees, because salaries are generally higher here. That leaves $66.6 billion for the U.S. workers, or $47,593. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 30% of the average U.S. workers' total compensation is spent on benefits. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">That means the average Wal-Mart employee's take home pay should be $33,315. Wal-Mart doesn't say what its actual average salary is. But Payscale estimated it to be just over $22,000 at the end of last year.</blockquote>Of course, Walmart management won't do that. <a href="http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/11/12/wal-mart-pay-raise/" rel="nofollow">Walmart CEO Mike Duke has to earn 1,034 times more</a> than the company's average worker.<br /><br />Harold Meyerson points an accusing finger at Walmart for bringing Southern pay practices North. He gives a brief history in an <a href="http://prospect.org/article/40-year-slump-mobile-version" rel="nofollow">American Prospect</a> essay about the decline in American wages that began in 1974. (Thanks, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon" rel="nofollow">Richard Nixon</a>.)<br /><blockquote>The definitive Southern company, and the company that has done the most to subject the American job to the substandard standards of the South, has been Wal-Mart, which began as a single store in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1962. That year, the federal minimum wage, set at $1.15 an hour, was extended to retail workers, much to the dismay of Sam Walton, who was paying the employees at his fast-growing chain half that amount. Since the law initially applied to businesses with 50 or more employees, Walton argued that each of his stores was a separate entity, a claim that the Department of Labor rejected, fining Walton for his evasion of federal law. </blockquote><blockquote>Undaunted, Wal-Mart has carried its commitment to low wages through a subsequent half-century of relentless expansion. In 1990, it became the country’s largest retailer, and today the chain is the world’s largest private-sector employer, with 1.3 million employees in the United States and just under a million abroad. As Wal-Mart grew beyond its Ozark base, it brought Walton’s Southern standards north. In retail marketing, payroll generally constitutes between 8 percent and 12 percent of sales, but at Wal-Mart, managers are directed to keep payroll expenses between 5.5 percent and 8 percent of sales. Managers who fail at this don’t remain managers for long. While Wal-Mart claims the average hourly wage of its workers is $12.67, employees contend it is several dollars lower... </blockquote><blockquote>By controlling a huge share of the U.S. retail market, including an estimated 20 percent of the grocery trade, Wal-Mart has also been able to mandate reduced prices all along its worldwide supply chain. In response, manufacturers have slashed the wages of their employees and gone abroad in search of cheaper labor. The warehouse workers who unload the containers in which the company’s goods are shipped from China to the U.S. and repackage them for sale are retained by low-wage temporary employment agencies, though many of those workers have held the same job for years.  </blockquote><blockquote>Shunting its workers off to temp agencies is just one of the many ways Wal-Mart diminishes what it sees as the risk of unionization. When the employees in one Canadian store voted to unionize, Wal-Mart closed the store. When butchers in one Texas outlet voted to go union, Wal-Mart eliminated the meat department in that store and in every other store in Texas and the six surrounding states. But Wal-Mart’s antipathy to unions and affinity for low wages merely reflects the South’s historic opposition to worker autonomy and employee rights. By coming north, though, Wal-Mart has lowered retail-sector wages throughout the U.S.</blockquote>Read the whole thing <a href="http://prospect.org/article/40-year-slump-mobile-version" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

walmart How Walmart brought Southern wages to the North

Walmart lowers everybody's wages.  When Walmart opens a new store in a community, it doesn't just lower wages for retail workers. Wa...

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Walmart: Sceptre 32" Class LCD 720p 60Hz HDTV . $189.00 + FREE Shipping!

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhldg4MxaRoYla7MofXCKUTH3z7F6gre63KPnt1yvKiCXTSDojJVubYa6iw56YIbe9xD7ocGQMgIZWAN6NtZ3naCaiYm5PJs7QxLkOz_vGZegahHgYktgpmL8N68G9eW9Fd9VUSkU4_F6I/s1600/0079234323252_300X300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhldg4MxaRoYla7MofXCKUTH3z7F6gre63KPnt1yvKiCXTSDojJVubYa6iw56YIbe9xD7ocGQMgIZWAN6NtZ3naCaiYm5PJs7QxLkOz_vGZegahHgYktgpmL8N68G9eW9Fd9VUSkU4_F6I/s1600/0079234323252_300X300.jpg" /></a></div><center><br /></center><center><br /></center><center>Walmart Deal!</center><center><br /></center><center><a href="http://linksynergy.walmart.com/fs-bin/click?id=ieeCJFIcszE&subid=&offerid=223073.1&type=10&tmpid=1082&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.walmart.com%2Fip%2FSceptre-32-Class-LCD-720p-60Hz-HDTV-X322BV-HD%2F15739136" target="_blank">Sceptre 32" Class LCD 720p 60Hz HDTV . $189.00 + FREE Shipping!</a></center><center>Regularly: $299.99</center><center><br /></center><center>Comparable to Black Friday Price!</center><center>According to The Krazy Coupon Lady, this price is $0.99 cheaper than Best Buy during Black Friday 2012.</center><center><br /><br /><br /><br /><img align="center" src="http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y483/thesavingasian/sig_zps2858aa20.png" style="border: 0;" /><br /></center>

asian black friday free shipping saving sceptre the the saving asian walmart walmart deal Walmart: Sceptre 32" Class LCD 720p 60Hz HDTV . $189.00 + FREE Shipping!

Walmart Deal! Sceptre 32" Class LCD 720p 60Hz HDTV . $189.00 + FREE Shipping! Regularly: $299.99 Comparable to Black Friday Price! Acco...

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Walmart: Early Bird Online Specials

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmDz114s-vRMq1A7JoMJ1YN7OJf3rbouN-5LeDLUgS4tLqMk615wgwEVZ1E1FSx5GHwOHPqpRZs27ZEiUDvGeyR3CwpHbWintcxsi1N-JCMnXzX_AFdChgjW6BvZTmYblhNpURniCOfuU/s1600/26973-40142-POV_wk41_808x381_rotational.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmDz114s-vRMq1A7JoMJ1YN7OJf3rbouN-5LeDLUgS4tLqMk615wgwEVZ1E1FSx5GHwOHPqpRZs27ZEiUDvGeyR3CwpHbWintcxsi1N-JCMnXzX_AFdChgjW6BvZTmYblhNpURniCOfuU/s320/26973-40142-POV_wk41_808x381_rotational.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Walmart is ready for the Holidays!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">They have already started with their Early Bird Online Specials!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Click <a href="http://www.walmart.com/browse/online-specials/all-online-specials/1085632_1099259_1099264/?_refineresult=true&facet=price%3A0+-+%2410%7C%7Cprice%3A%2410+-+%2420%7C%7Cprice%3A%2420+-+%2450%7C%7Cprice%3A%2450+-+%24100%7C%7Cprice%3A%24100+-+%24150%7C%7Cprice%3A%24150+-+%24200%7C%7Cprice%3A%24200+-+%24250%7C%7Cprice%3A%24250+-+%24500%7C%7Cprice%3A%24500+-+%24750%7C%7Cprice%3A%24750+-+%241%2C000&povid=cat1159708-env550951-moduleshelf11012013-lLinkGiftsbyPrice&search_sort=4" target="_blank">HERE</a> to view it!!!</div><center><br /><img align="center" src="http://i1277.photobucket.com/albums/y483/thesavingasian/sig_zps2858aa20.png" style="border: 0;" /></center>

asian black friday early bird saving the the saving asian walmart walmart deals Walmart: Early Bird Online Specials

Walmart is ready for the Holidays! They have already started with their Early Bird Online Specials! Click HERE to view it!!!

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True stories from Walmart hell

<a href="http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2012/03/walmart-sales-energy-use-statistics" rel="nofollow">Walmart</a> abuses its employees, let there be no doubt. The world's largest retailer keeps wages at poverty level by fighting hard against union organizing. As a result, many <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/04/news/companies/walmart-medicaid/index.html">Walmart employees rely on public assistance to survive</a>. Call it corporate welfare.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2012/07/walmart-heirs-waltons-wealth-income-inequality" rel="nofollow">six Walmart heirs</a> -- Sam Walton's widow, Christy, Jim Walton, Alice Walton, S. Robson Walton, Ann Walton Kroenke, Nancy Walton Laurie -- <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/jul/31/bernie-s/sanders-says-walmart-heirs-own-more-wealth-bottom-/" rel="nofollow">own more wealth than 42 percent of the American people</a>.<br /><br />If all that doesn't make you sick to your stomach, Hamilton Nolan's true stories from Walmart hell will. He posts them periodically to the online publication <a href="http://gawker.com/" rel="nofollow">Gawker</a>. Here are a few samples: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Wal-Mart no longer pays a dollar above minimum wage; they start cart pushers and people greeters at minimum wage and everyone else based on what job they have. As a cashier, I am "level 3," so I started at $7.65 when minimum wage was $7.25. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The worst part is the benefits. We have to work all holidays except Christmas, and we don't get paid any extra. ... They refuse to make anyone full-time, but I never work less than 32 hours, and frequently work 39. I don't complain because I need the money.</blockquote>Or this:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">...overtime was never and will never be approved, ever. If you should work any hours over 40 in one week, even if called in or requested or threatened by management that you must work, you will not get overtime pay. They will just cut your hours or say "take a 4 hour break today." which, for a 5 hour shift, was stupid and a waste of my own time at that point.</blockquote>Treatment of injured workers is about what you'd expect:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">I was loading boxes into a cupboard under a cash register at the front of the store one day when I caught my hand on an exposed nail or screw or something. I yanked out my hand in surprise and suddenly there was a huge pool of blood on the floor. The floor manager rushed over and immediately ushered me into a nearby washroom. "Get him away from the customers!" was the unspoken but obvious goal. We haphazardly swaddled my profusely-bleeding hand in paper towels and then the HR manager drove me to the hospital in her car, but not before they made me sign...something. Presumably promising that I wouldn't sue them. </blockquote>Sam's Club is just as bad:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Cashiers at Sam's club have it worse than cashiers at Wal-Mart as they are forced to make people upgrade their memberships. Sam's cashiers go through meetings called One on One's where the supervisor tells you how shitty you are doing. Those who fail to reach appropriate number of upgrades, renewals, etc. are usually yelled at. The worse part — you don't get any commission for convincing Wendy Whorebag to upgrade her membership. Sometimes management favors you with a reward — a McDouble from McDonald's, something that you can afford yourself....oh, that's right you can't afford a McDouble from McDonalds because you work at Sam's Club.</blockquote>It's comforting to know there are journalists like Nolan standing up for workers. Here's something he wrote last year, titled "<a href="http://gawker.com/5916267/why-we-need-unions" rel="nofollow">Why We Need Unions</a>."<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Companies know that unions represent a sort of power for their workers that their workers will otherwise never have. That power translates to better working conditions and higher wages. That, in turn, eats into a company's profits, as all expenses do. A union does not throw off the balance of power in the workplace—lack of a union does. The most basic sense of decency and respect for human rights dictates that there must be some mechanism by which the workers—the humans—can assert their interests. Otherwise, they will be crushed by the machine. It's all very plain to see. To despise unions is to despise workers. To despise workers is to despise people.</blockquote>If only all journalists believed that ...

low-wage workers unions walmart True stories from Walmart hell

Walmart  abuses its employees, let there be no doubt. The world's largest retailer keeps wages at poverty level by fighting hard against...

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100 arrested protesting Walmart nationwide

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUryH9_kWyXzqQ5-XReO7NxpkJ92B46-ox3zpSgN8zKxua6f7hGF_bdhTWhnSz8_qqf85xsTV0N9kGBCftJBrG4smEuXvsEKyra4lXt5DAEHYf1umThZJ93WwlqWkkBH3g7rMk5vTqePEU/s1600/swat+team.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUryH9_kWyXzqQ5-XReO7NxpkJ92B46-ox3zpSgN8zKxua6f7hGF_bdhTWhnSz8_qqf85xsTV0N9kGBCftJBrG4smEuXvsEKyra4lXt5DAEHYf1umThZJ93WwlqWkkBH3g7rMk5vTqePEU/s320/swat+team.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Isn't that a little much?</td></tr></tbody></table>One hundred Walmart strikers and their supporters in 11 cities were arrested yesterday in a wave of nationwide protests against the company, according to OUR Walmart, which organized the demonstrations.<br /><br />Teamsters and other union members came out to rallies in 15 cities to demand Walmart pay its full-time workers at least $25,000 a year and to obey the law. The company illegally disciplined 80 workers, firing 20, because they exercised their legal right to walk off the job to demand an end to retaliation for trying to form a union. More than<a href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-09/06/c_132698760.htm"> 100 unfair labor practice charges</a> have been filed with the <a href="http://nlrb.gov/">National Labor Relations Board</a>.<br /><br />Despite the news media's general indifference to the story, we tracked down most of the arrests, all of them for things like blocking entrances, sitting on the sidewalk or holding up traffic.<br /><br />Three protesters in New York City were the first to be arrested for nonviolent civil disobedience. One former and two current Walmart employees planned to deliver a petition with 200,000 signatures to Walmart board member Christopher Williams. Williams' assistant said he wasn't in, and he refused media requests to comment, according to <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-05/wal-mart-protesters-arrested-outside-director-s-manhattan-office.html">Bloomberg News</a>.<br /><br />At the <a href="http://www.teamsterslocal391.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters Local 391</a> hall in Raleigh, N.C., a forum on labor was held and then participants marched through a nearby Walmart. According to<a href="http://www.technicianonline.com/news/article_5dc6e74e-16aa-11e3-b385-0019bb30f31a.html"> N.C. State University Technician</a>,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Armed with a petition of more than 171,000 signatures, several protesters entered the Glenwood Avenue Walmart with no intention of shopping Thursday afternoon.</blockquote>Next came the Seattle area, where 11 people with more courage than <a href="http://www.willcap.com/">Christopher Williams</a> were arrested by police. According to <a href="http://www.rentonreporter.com/news/222596611.html">The Renton Reporter</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Among those arrested were current Walmart employees who got on stage earlier in the protest, wearing sandwich boards identifying their stores. Husband and wife, Walmart workers, Edie and Larry Slowey, of Port Angeles; Betty Shove and Deborah Williams, both Mount Vernon store staff; Gerry Paladan, recently fired from Federal Way Walmart and Patricia Locks, Federal Way store staff were among those arrested by police at the protest.</blockquote><div>Their arrests followed a rally against cheap goods and corporate greed by Teamsters, community members, church representatives and singing grannies.<br /><br />Then came Los Angeles, where 21 people, including nine Walmart employees, were arrested, according to the Huffington Post. Seven hundred Walmart strikers and supporters rallied outside of the company's Los Angeles headquarters, demanding Walmart pay them enough to support their families. <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-21-arrested-walmart-protest-20130905,0,5416580.story" rel="nofollow">Los Angeles police</a> said the arrests were for <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">"suspicion of failure to disperse."</span><br /><br />In Sacramento, nine <a href="http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2013/09/05/nine-arrested-in-sacramento-wal-mart-protest/">Walmart workers and supporters</a> were arrested. <a href="http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2013/09/05/nine-arrested-in-sacramento-wal-mart-protest/">CBS 13</a> reported:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">As police arrested the protesters outside Cesar Chavez Plaza for civil disobedience, others yelled out “Hero.”</blockquote>A Walmart flack told the news media that the protesters weren't Walmart employees. Surprise! That was a lie.<br /><br />San Francisco protesters took arrests after a rally outside the Four Seasons hotel in San Francisco, where Marissa Mayer, Yahoo CEO and Walmart board member, has a penthouse apartment, according to <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/sep/05/walmart-workers-strike-us-thursday">The Guardian</a>. You can see at least four people getting arrested for sitting on the sidewalk <a href="http://qik.com/video/59693779">here</a>, but another photo indicates there were eight. The San Francisco news media didn't think multiple arrests in a nationwide protest against the country's largest employer was worth mentioning (though the Chronicle did pick up an<a href="http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Arrests-made-at-Sacramento-Wal-Mart-protest-4792205.php"> AP story</a> about the Sacramento arrests. Nice going.).<br /><br />Seven were arrested in Orlando for blocking an entrance to a Walmart, according to the <a href="http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/morning_call/2013/09/7-arrested-during-local-wal-mart-protest.html">Orlando Business Journal</a>.<br /><br />In Chicago, a<a href="http://telly.com/1616C60"> brief video</a> shows eight people -- including a woman who uses a wheelchair -- being arrested, but we're not sure, as the Chicago media appears to be as lame as San Francisco.<br /><br />Outside of Washington, D.C., in Hyattsville, Md., three Walmart workers and three supporters were arrested for civil disobedience and held over night -- according to a Twitter feed from @ChangeWalmart. The local<a href="http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Several-Arrested-at-Walmart-Protest-in-Hyattsville-222603641.html"> NBC News report</a> said they were arrested for blocking traffic.<br /><br />In Dallas, <a href="http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/business/Dallas-Joins-Walmart-Workers-Protesting-Across-the-Country-Thursday-222543281.html">11 protesters were arrested</a> and removed from Skillman Ave. after they blocked traffic.<br /><br />Watch The Ed Show segment on the protests below (but first you'll have to watch news about a panda and auto sales).<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="245" id="msnbc79daee" width="420"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=52931017&width=420&height=245" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc79daee" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="420" height="245" FlashVars="launch=52931017&width=420&height=245" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></span></div><div><div style="background: transparent; color: #999999; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-top: 5px; text-align: center; width: 420px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Visit NBCNews.com for <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; color: #5799DB !important; font-weight: normal !important; height: 13px; text-decoration: none !important;">breaking news</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032507" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; color: #5799DB !important; font-weight: normal !important; height: 13px; text-decoration: none !important;">world news</a>, and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; color: #5799DB !important; font-weight: normal !important; height: 13px; text-decoration: none !important;">news about the economy</a></span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></div>

Protests strikes walmart 100 arrested protesting Walmart nationwide

Isn't that a little much? One hundred Walmart strikers and their supporters in 11 cities were arrested yesterday in a wave of nationwide...

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Dozens of Walmart workers, supporters arrested in mass protests (UPDATE)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj772CKzlcFQ9HB4lx_yBWLi9vbF9-s3PXMz8mcKAC9FOYTpmV3Ri5PdCS9qtmQW0yx-YzOCR0U2mvw2m0UJ1N6tvzRSazXWXIeiVtyWy69HG_XV-YipETEv2NqFPMXgJqxTAN62cDEUrSu/s1600/walmart+protest.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj772CKzlcFQ9HB4lx_yBWLi9vbF9-s3PXMz8mcKAC9FOYTpmV3Ri5PdCS9qtmQW0yx-YzOCR0U2mvw2m0UJ1N6tvzRSazXWXIeiVtyWy69HG_XV-YipETEv2NqFPMXgJqxTAN62cDEUrSu/s200/walmart+protest.png" width="197" /></a></div>UPDATES with four new grafs 1-5 with news of arrests.<br /><br />At least a dozen Walmart strikers and supporters were <a href="http://changewalmart.tumblr.com/" rel="nofollow">arrested today for acts of civil disobedience</a>. They were protesting Walmart management for retaliating against workers and for paying them poverty wages.<br /><br />Police have<a href="http://makingchangeatwalmart.org/" rel="nofollow"> began to arrest about 20 Walmart strikers </a>and supporters after 700 people rallied outside of the company's Los Angeles headquarters, demanding Walmart pay workers enough to support their families.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"></blockquote>In front of a Walmart store near Seattle, at least a half-dozen people were arrested by police in SWAT gear. Our brother and sister <a href="http://qik.com/video/59690745" rel="nofollow">Teamsters came to show their support</a>.<br /><br />In New York City, three protesters were arrested for trying to meet with a Walmart board member.<br /><br />Protests and acts of civil disobedience by Walmart workers are spreading across the country into this evening. Strikers and supporters are demanding that Walmart pay its workers at least $25,000 a year and reinstate 20 workers who were fired for standing up for their rights.<br /><br />Activists arrested last month while protesting Walmart's retaliation against workers set a Labor Day deadline for the company to meet the demands. They promised intensified action if Walmart didn't follow through.<br /><br />Today the workers are making good on that promise in what they say is the biggest day of action since last year's <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2012/11/wal-mart-strikes-in-100-cities-46-states.html">Black Friday strikes</a>.<br /><br />Our brothers and sisters at<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/our-walmart-labor-forum-in-north-carolina" rel="nofollow"> Teamsters Local 391 in North Carolina</a> are holding a forum at their hall in Raleigh, and an action -- we don't know what yet -- will take place at a Walmart store nearby.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.alignny.org/" rel="nofollow">ALIGN NY</a> reports that three Walmart protesters were led away by New York City police officers for trying to meet with a Walmart board member.<br /><br />According to the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/05/walmart-protesters-arrested_n_3873791.html?utm_hp_ref=tw" rel="nofollow"><em>Huffington Post</em></a>,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The protesters planned to deliver a petition to company board member Christopher Williams at the time of their arrests, Making Change At Walmart spokesperson Evan Yeats said...<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01RssXVZWTAc4woohsAJHaatNpiWpVBtGI5KwigUDrdrTmK3pXB_tlbaLYDIRjh1FpomPYctAViAKuNLPDRicE22642V2GIErWrqp_2lSaDJumQ_dpYZiT8EtB8fXiHGolTkGl5Z_SXF/s1600/walmart+raleigh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01RssXVZWTAc4woohsAJHaatNpiWpVBtGI5KwigUDrdrTmK3pXB_tlbaLYDIRjh1FpomPYctAViAKuNLPDRicE22642V2GIErWrqp_2lSaDJumQ_dpYZiT8EtB8fXiHGolTkGl5Z_SXF/s200/walmart+raleigh.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forum at the Teamsters hall.</td></tr></tbody></table>Barbara Gertz, a current Walmart employee in Denver, Colorado, was among those arrested, Yeats said. Lucas Handy, a former Walmart associate from Iowa who was fired for speaking out against the company, and Susan Gulick, a former Walmart associate from South Carolina, were also arrested, according to Yeats.</blockquote>Actions are beginning in <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/enough-is-enough-stand-with-the-walmart-60-thursday-september-5th-national-day-of-action-in-maryland" rel="nofollow">Hyattsville, Md.</a>, near the nation's capital; in <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-up-with-walmart-workers-in-dallas" rel="nofollow">Dallas</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/respect-us-or-expect-us" rel="nofollow">Orlando</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/rally-for-respect-at-the-capitol" rel="nofollow">Baton Rouge</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-sacramento-march-to-the-capitol" rel="nofollow">Sacramento</a>,<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-the-bay-area-rally-in-support" rel="nofollow"> San Francisco</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-chicago-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow">Chicago</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-denver-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow">Denver</a>, and<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-boston-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow"> Boston</a>.<br /><br />The photo below shows protesters getting ready for the demonstration outside of a Renton, Wash., Walmart (near Seattle).<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZWBVOv2q6hzJwTqP3Kb8xq9MOhOinpcomypvwWwQQ5goftsYTbG6IfNuS-DFmob7lPXOr36Av10ooYB3_X5urOv8YAIl5J-kwyh1IobGf-MS4v9Q4lwHgxTPF-wLBZi4lUEJ-Gj8hJGO/s1600/renton+walmart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZWBVOv2q6hzJwTqP3Kb8xq9MOhOinpcomypvwWwQQ5goftsYTbG6IfNuS-DFmob7lPXOr36Av10ooYB3_X5urOv8YAIl5J-kwyh1IobGf-MS4v9Q4lwHgxTPF-wLBZi4lUEJ-Gj8hJGO/s320/renton+walmart.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peacekeepers prepare for Walmart protest in Washington.</td></tr></tbody></table>Actions reported so far this afternoon have popped up in several cities, including New York, Boston, Raleigh, N.C., Los Angeles and Seattle.<br /><br />Today's actions follow strikes against Walmart back in June. <a href="http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/09/05/muted-labor-protests-amid-fears-of-walmart-retaliation/">MSNBC reports</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">In late May and early June, <a href="http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/05/28/walmart-employees-escalate-low-wage-workers-campaign-with-longest-strike-yet/">roughly 100 Walmart employees</a> affiliated with OUR Walmart engaged in what they said was an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike against the company. Strikers are <a href="http://www.nlrb.gov/strikes">protected from termination</a> by the National Labor Relations Act</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Dominic Ware, an OUR Walmart member and former Walmart employee based in the Bay Area, said he was fired in early July and that management told him specifically it was because of his participation in the May-June strike.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">In addition to the 20 workers which OUR Walmart claims have been wrongfully fired, they say another 50 or so have been disciplined for organizing.</blockquote>Today's protests represent another step forward in the movement to empower and raise standards for low-wage workers like those at Walmart. Hundreds of workers are turning up the heat on today and showing that they will not be bullied by the company.<br /><br />Show your support by signing this petition <a href="http://action.changewalmart.org/page/s/ARealWage?source=Twitter" rel="nofollow">here</a>. View photos of the action as it develops <a href="http://changewalmart.tumblr.com/" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

low-wage workers strikes walmart Dozens of Walmart workers, supporters arrested in mass protests (UPDATE)

UPDATES with four new grafs 1-5 with news of arrests. At least a dozen Walmart strikers and supporters were arrested today for acts of civil...

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Abusive employer Marquez Brothers gets the OK from Walmart

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlWHjokOafhYvFvGpVWttWmefNuxn3Uuk1768c5Gt5K92jJ6oquHUiv802PE3HkDMGWfBnSM5b66nDUBkFdNblFljETpft60WlVRYJ0YQhWXCPPSkg2ySwFwvlcaKLxv7_xrTEcLZtqOE/s1600/Marquez+bros+contract+vote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlWHjokOafhYvFvGpVWttWmefNuxn3Uuk1768c5Gt5K92jJ6oquHUiv802PE3HkDMGWfBnSM5b66nDUBkFdNblFljETpft60WlVRYJ0YQhWXCPPSkg2ySwFwvlcaKLxv7_xrTEcLZtqOE/s400/Marquez+bros+contract+vote.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marquez Brothers workers after voting down the contract proposal in May. </td></tr></tbody></table><div class="MsoNormal">Marquez Brothers, the California cheese plant with the horrific record of mistreating workers, recently got approval by an "independent auditor" to continue as a Walmart contractor.<br /><br />No one should be surprised by this. Getting approval to be a Walmart contractor involves passing a very low bar indeed. Marquez Brothers joins <a href="http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2013/08/21/US-Bangladesh-Safety-Plan-Implementation-082113.aspx" rel="nofollow">Bangladeshi garment factories</a> and <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2012/oct/18/walmart-supply-chain-agencies-accused-wage-theft" rel="nofollow">warehouses accused of massive wage theft</a>.  And it was only when a disgusted public and suppliers put pressure on Walmart did it sever its relationship with <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/business/wal-mart-suspends-seafood-supplier-over-work-conditions.html?_r=0" rel="nofollow">C.J.'s Seafoods</a>, a Louisiana seafood processor that enslaved its workers.<br /><br />Marquez Brothers is a horror story in its own right. The company's employees voted last year to join the Teamsters, but management is spending heavily on a nasty law firm to bust the union. The company made a ludicrous contract proposal in May that was voted down 119-2.<br /><br />Retaliation against workers is common, and union supporters have been fired. In March, one of the <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/03/boss-to-workers-if-you-go-to-sacramento.html" rel="nofollow">Marquez Brothers' low-wage workers went to testify at a hearing</a> in the state capitalabout its intimidation of immigrant employees. The company's pricey lawyers to follow the worker to the hearing room in Sacramento and intimidate her in front of lawmakers.<br /><br />Wages are as low as minimum wage. Employees who have worked at Marquez Brothers for 10 years are making $9 an hour, while health care for a family is more than $600 a month. We are told management gave employees a penny an hour raise and told them they should be grateful.<br /><br />You can imagine what their working conditions are like. Workers who cook cheese are given gloves so cheap their hands get burned. Workers injured by slipping in the freezer aren't given light duty. If workers apply for workers comp or unemployment benefits, Marquez Brothers tries to block them. One worker in his 40s was told by his supervisor that he should quit because he's too old and no longer useful to the Marquez Brothers.<br /><br />Walmart recently sent an "independent" auditor to assess the company's labor practices. You can guess how it happened. The auditor didn't speak Spanish, so the human relations manager active in busting the union did the translation.<br /><br />Marquez Brothers got a passing grade from Walmart. We hope they're proud of it.<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>

Marquez Brothers walmart Abusive employer Marquez Brothers gets the OK from Walmart

Marquez Brothers workers after voting down the contract proposal in May.  Marquez Brothers, the California cheese plant with the horrific re...

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