Friday, November 23, 2012

Hi Walmart, I see you’ve met Alan Grayson; joins the protest, leads demonstrators in a chant

Article Mirror

November 23, 2012
By 

Walmart is playing down their workers’ strike, but from watching it unfold, the protest is on. Walmart protesters were joined by Rep.-elect Alan Grayson (D-Fla), who just rejoined the House. After citing statistics on Walmart employees, whose children are on Food stamps, the fiery Congressman ended his speech with, “The people united, will never be defeated” which led a chorus of protesters to join the inspirational chant.

Walmart employees planned the walk off from work to occur on Thursday evening, while shoppers began to arrive early for “Black Friday.” Protesting crappy wages and a clear lack of benefits, Occupy joined forces with the workers.

Grayson is everywhere. 

Thursday, Grayson accompanied a Walmart worker as she walked off her job in St. Cloud as part of a nationwide protest against the country’s largest employer.

OUR Walmart and Making Change at Walmart, along with watchdog group Corporate Action Network, have called upon on the retailer to end what they call retaliation against employees who speak out for better pay, fair schedules and affordable health care.

According to the company’s internal pay plan, obtained by The Huffington Post, employees can work at Walmart for decades before they make much above minimum wage.

in Dallas, where there is an unfriendly attitude toward unions, the city has become a main center for the strikes, along with Los Angeles and Chicago. This isn’t just a strike. It’s a point. When politicians dismiss the need for a minimum wage increase, giving the justification of it being unhealthy for small businesses, Walmart impact on small businesses has been significant.

A study concludes:

The joint review of key research papers from the past seven years indicates that the opening of a Wal-Mart in New York City would likely eliminate more jobs than it creates, result in the loss of independently owned small businesses, and create an increased burden on taxpayers.

“The history of the last decade tells us that Wal-Mart stands to be our City’s Trojan Horse,” said Public Advocate Bill de Blasio. “Wal-Mart’s record of driving small businesses out of town and paying below-poverty line wages to its employees will only exacerbate the current decline of New York City’s middle class. We must do everything we can to spur job creation in New York City, but that does not include opening our doors to a proven job-killer.”

Don’t look for the man behind Walmart’s curtain. He’s actually a toxic ‘corporation, my friend’.

Strike on, Walmart workers.