Walmart Workers Threaten Black Friday Action

[cory777]

Source: ABC News

The latest news in the Walmart labor protests — which have included walkouts and marches in Dallas, San Diego, Chicago and Los Angeles — is the threat of a strike on Black Friday. That’s the day after Thanksgiving, widely considered the busiest, and most lucrative, retail day of the year.

Some 200 angry protesters showed up at a meeting of investors and analysts earlier today at Walmart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Ark. Under discussion at the meeting was Walmart’s intent to go head-to-head with Amazon and offer same-day delivery.

Walmart is the world’s largest private employer and has long been a target of workers’ rights groups, who advocate higher wages, more flexibility in hours and an end to the punishments (reduced shifts, for instance) they claim are meted out to workers seeking to unionize.

Evelin Cruz, a department manager at Walmart in Pico Rivera, Calif., told ABC News that for many years she kept quiet about what she views as the company’s unjust labor practices because she feared she would be fired if she spoke up.



Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/walmart-worker-protests-spread/story?id=17445295#.UHZnk1EYwii

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Breaking Activist News - http://activistnews.org/

[Bullionwar]

1. Walmart in India

Why is Walmart and other giant retailers coming to India? There is total choas for foreign direct investment (FDI) in India.

[fasttense]

4. I thought the legislation to allow Wal-Mart had not passed in India yet? n/t

[MrSlayer]

2. Oh yeah. You have to hit when it's hot.

It would be great if this happened nationwide. Hold these fuckers to account. Get the same rights that Walmart workers have in other countries.

It would be nice to see labor stand up for itself more often. We're getting fucked big time and have been for thirty years.

[AndyTiedye]

3. Good! Then Nobody Will Get Trampled Trying to Get One of their "Doorbuster Specials"

[CBHagman]

8. I hate what has happened in retail, particularly in the holiday season.

Full disclosure: I worked retail for many years, though never at a big box store. I found the holiday shopping season stressful but also felt satisfaction when I could match a customer up with the right product.

But it simply appalls me when people spend Thanksgiving day plotting to get up in the wee hours to go to some mall or big box store, and it's even more appalling to hear Christmas music played in stores throughout November and watch ads turning up about the same time.

As for the Wal-Mart workers, all the best to them. I hope there's a sea change in this country regarding corporations.

[PavePusher]

15. Which isn't any particular fault of WalMart....

so much as it is stupid fucking people engaging in herd-mob behavior. This is why I don't go anywhere near any retail facility that entire weekend.

[AndyTiedye]

16. I Blame the Retailers Too

[font color=red size=8]DOORBUSTER SPECIAL
BELOW COST
5 PER STORE[/FONT]

Who could predict that shoppers would bust down the door and trample the poor temp employee we just hired to open it?

[PavePusher]

17. How about holding people accountable for their animalistic behavior?

If someone gets injured/killed due to mob behavior, arrest the entire mob and put them away for life.

Or through a wood chipper, your choice.

Thin the herd and improve the breed.

[LeftyMom]

18. It is their fault. Crowd management isn't complicated.

If you want lines (they're handy for getting free advertising on local TV, otherwise you're better off avoiding them) you set up an orderly line, supervise it, and then let people into the store a few at a time. If you don't want lines all night you give out raffle tickets and then pick a number at random a few minutes before the store opens to head the line and line people up in order of ticket number behind that, or you give out tickets for each of the limited quantity items and draw the tickets when you open and never have any line at all.

[PavePusher]

19. Conversely, the "customers" could refrain from acting like brainless animals.

Or is that too much to ask?

[LeftyMom]

20. Of large groups of people? Yes. There's a lot of research into how and why that is,

it's interesting and I'd encourage you to read it.

[PavePusher]

21. No, there is no excuse, merely explaination.

People are capable of rational thought and of not turning it off for a whim. Do NOT defend idiocy, it's not at all approriate here.

[fasttense]

5. Wal-Mart shows all their new employees anti-union films

when they are first employed.

They hate unions and violate the law to keep them out.

[Cobalt Violet]

6. Are the films against the law?

I know of other chains that use them too.

[AAO]

10. Walmart employess are proving you don't need a union, just be ORGANIZED! Give it to WAL-MART! n/t

[BadSaratoga]

7. I Certainly Hope This Continues to Gain Momentum

WalMart needs this wake-up call.

[progressoid]

9. That would be fucking awsome.

[leftyohiolib]

11. they should have kept their mouths shut about it and just did it. instead now walmart

has a chance to come up with a plan b for the day after thanksgiving's greed fest

[socialist_n_TN]

12. I think that the reality is RE: strike actions.........

ESPECIALLY when it comes to officially unorganized workers that it's impossible to have a "secret" strike plan that will work. You have to get the word out in advance. In addition, if you get the word out, you might get some community activist support. Finally, transparency is usually the word in this type of action. Now, if the Teamsters or some other union wanted to join in the action somehow (blocking entrances, etc.) then THAT would be something that might be more effective kept under wraps until the last minute.

[leftyohiolib]

13. im sure it would be hard to keep it quiet. but now that walmart knows this may be coming

the could train replacments and have them ready making a black friday strike pointless.

[Politicub]

22. The part about the teamsters would be awesome

Very proud of the people standing up to Walmart!

[socialist_n_TN]

24. Yep, it would.........

NOt that I'd expect it mind you, it's just what a united labor would do to support other workers. Of course, it's also HIGHLY illegal in this country because it's a militant tactic that would work.

[WilliamPitt]

14. Back-seat protesting

That's a new one.

Or not.

[Politicub]

23. The Walmart associates have the right to join a union

It's heartening to see people standing up to Walmart. The movement has to start somewhere.