Wal-Mart Gets a Taste of The Picket Line - 06/28/06

http://www.laborradio.org/node/3606

Wal-Mart Gets a Taste of The Picket Line - 06/28/06

By Jesse Russell

Wal-Mart is about to experience its first strike line. Disputes over pay and collective bargaining are at issue for Asda, a British supermarket chain owned by the world's largest retailer. A five-day walkout has been planned starting Friday for 20 Wal-Mart-Asda distribution centers in Great Britain. The strike comes just in time for England's World Cup quarter final match on Saturday - representatives of the company say the strike will have little impact on stores. The chain was fined $1.5 million U.S. dollars in February by a labor tribunal who found that the company promised a 10 percent raise to employees who would be willing to give up collective bargaining rights. The union has also threatened to file suit against firms that supply temporary workers to the distribution centers. According to that country's Recruitment and Employment Confederation, it is illegal for temporary workers to be supplied during industrial action. The union has also vowed to arm employees at the gates with video cameras to make sure no labor laws are broken. Meanwhile Asda is filing an injunction today to try and prevent the workers from walking off the job alleging that former employees of the company were included in the strike vote.

I can just see those guys closing down the entire store for the next week--while refusing to pay any of the employees from there. They ARE that evil.

It's too far to go to picket, but I sure wish I could be on THAT line.


Regards!


Laura

by its employees. It is making a ton of money in profits, it would cost the company very little in comparison to take care of their employees by giving them decent, affordable health care, better working conditions and schedules, and pay them better.

This would eliminate a lot of the problems facing Wal-Mart today. They are just a big, greedy corporation that doesn't care about anything but profits. I don't shop there, never have, and never will.

... I wonder why more people don't join. I know that USDAW will welcome anyone who works in the retail industry as a member even if the place isn't unionized in the way we see it over here. Collective bargaining only comes into play if enough people at the place of employment are members.

Mark.