Category: walmart

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Terrific Coverage from Staten Island’s Paper of Record

Union members distribute fliers protesting plans for 2 local Wal-Marts

By ROB HART
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE
Friday, May 13, 2005

A Queens resident who helped derail Wal-Mart’s attempt to build a store in his borough joined union members and volunteers yesterday in protesting the big-boxer’s plans to build on Staten Island.

Shaun Richman, along with members of Local 342 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, handed out small orange fliers to late-afternoon commuters at the St. George Ferry Terminal

“[Wal-Mart comes] in and all the small shops close down,” contended Richman. “They’re welfare cheats and they produce jobs that don’t pay
enough.”

The retail behemoth is eyeing industrial tracts in Mariners Harbor and Richmond Valley. Either would be the first Wal-Mart in New York
City.

Besides the alleged detriment to small businesses, the fliers accused Wal-Mart of poor labor practices in regard to health care, discrimination against women and the disabled, and tax evasion.

“I don’t think it’s a good thing for Staten Island,” said Michael Santorella of Port Richmond, who was clutching a flier while waiting for the next boat. “They don’t seem to do the right thing, and I don’t think I would shop there.”

Martha Rohman of West Brighton agreed: “This company has a history of discriminating against its workers, especially women. I would be much happier if they never built it, and I’m glad there are people out here talking about how bad an idea it is.”

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Love Mom, Not Wal-Mart

The Wake Up Wal-Mart campaign is taking the opportunity this Mother’s Day to highlight Wal-Mart’s discrimination against women in their employ. Of course, I should have posted this story weeks ago, but who ever does anything early for Mother’s Day?

Visit the site, sign a pledge that you will not buy any Mother’s Day gifts at Wal-Mart while they discriminate against all the moms who work for them, forward to everyone you know and then buy your mom some flowers.

I’m not buying any gifts. I’m cooking my mom a nice dinner. Crab-stuffed mushrooms and calamari in a red wine sauce (I may post that recipe later).

Once again, I’m organizing a few people to help the Wal-Mart Free NYC Coalition leaflet at the Staten Island ferry during rush hour on Thursday. Let me know if you can join us. The Wal-Mart Free people will be leafletting during rush hour every Tuesday in May, on the Manhattan side of the SI ferry, and every Thursday in May on the SI side, so try to help out at least once.

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Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart

A new-to-me website called Wal-Mart Watch is countering Wal-Mart’s “Made in America” rhetoric with details on Wal-Mart’s sweatshop factories in China. More good ammo as you take on Wal-Mart.

They ask people with websites to link to them using the word Wal-Mart. See, Google and other search engines base their result, at least partly, on how many instances a certain term is linked to a certain URL. Websites that expose the true costs of Wal-Mart’s cheap underwear should rank highly when people search the web for Wal-Mart.

Say it with me. Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart.

Try it at home. Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart.

For that matter, Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart.

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Wal-Mart Free NYC

Vornado Realty has dropped Wal-Mart from its Rego Park development plans. This happened the night after Newsday published my letter, so clearly I was the straw that broke the camel’s back. In all seriousness, the plan was killed by some very effective, aggressive lobbying by the city’s labor unions, particularly UFCW 1500 and the Central Labor Council. The initial plans for that failed Wal-Mart were announced in December, and the plan was dead by late February. In that short time, organized community opposition in the form of coalitions of small business, civic and religious activists, students and shoppers did not have a chance to develop. They are still sorely needed. Wal-Mart has already announced plans to move into Staten Island and to beef up their presence on Long Island.

The Wal-Mart Free NYC Coalition has launched an excellent website full of resources so that you can recruit your civic and activist organizations into the fight to keep Wal-Mart out of our city. I urge you to visit the website and and join the coalition. Also, be sure to join SEIU’s Purple Ocean membership organization, dedicated to fighting Wal-Mart on the national level.