The Ideal Workplace of the New American Century

[richardf8]

According to The New York Times(free registration required), Walmart has been locking its overnight workers in, with no way of getting out, and admonishing them never to use the fire exit unless there is an actual fire

Comments

[morgan1]

I am stunned. This is almost precisely the working conditions faced by workers at the turn of the last century. The parallels between this and the Triangle situation are chilling. In 1911 the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in NYC caught fire, and 148 women, many of them immigrants died. There was only one usable fire exit in the building, and it was quickly made inaccessible by the flames. The other exit door was locked during the day to prevent employee theft. At the end of their shift, workers would line up at this door and have their purses searched before being allowed to leave. The factory was on the upper floors of a nine or ten story building, and firefighters didn't have ladders long enough to reach the upper floors. Many of the dead jumped out the windows to escape the flames. No one was ever really held responsible for the deaths or the conditions that lead to them, but the incident spurred calls both for new building codes and better workplace safety protections

[lordrunningclam]

I must admit that I shop at Wal-Mart all the time. Its just too cheap and convenient. However

[richardf8]

Perhaps Thomas can refresh my memory on this, but wasn't there a grocery strike in CA that had as one of its concerns the effect that an incoming Walmart would have on wages?

I also believe I recall hearing that attempts to organize Wal-Mart workers have failed because Wal-Mart ensures that such attempts meet with, er, repercussions for those who attempt it.

Ah, here's a link for you -- happened right in your backyard too. This site is very illuminating if you go through some ot the other stuff on it.

http://www.ksworkbeat.org/Issues/Walmart_s_Opinon_of_Union_Memb/More_Walmart_Stories/more_walmart_stories.html

So don't imagine the unions aren't working at this, but it's a huge enemy to fight, and the current political climate is not one in which Unions can reasonable expect to gain much ground.

[morgan1]

And from the same site (this took a bit of hunting to get to, so I thought an outright link might be in order):

http://www.ksworkbeat.org/Issues/Walmart_s_Opinon_of_Union_Memb/walmart_s_opinon_of_union_memb.html

[lordrunningclam]

My point is that I think the political climate is fairly conducive to it right now. Resentment of GW and his corporate commandoes is extremely widespread, even here in the South.

Actually, I think that article is encouraging. I will look into unionization and Wal-Mart a little more, when I get a chance.