Congressional Democrats Take a Stand and Defend WalMart Workers on Black Friday

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Congressional Democrats are lending their support to Walmart workers Black Friday action, and demanding that the company pay a living wage and stop trampling workers’ rights.

In a statement Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Ed Markey (D-MA), along with Representatives JanSchakowsky (D-IL), Judy Chu (D-CA), William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Gwen Moore (D-WI), and Jim McDermott (D-WA) said,

Across the country, there are countless Walmart workers who are paid poverty wages, cannot get enough hours, and have erratic work schedules that make it difficult to survive. Worse yet, as the National Labor Relations Board confirmed last week, Walmart has systematically and illegally retaliated against workers who have had the courage to stand up to improve working conditions.

We stand with the courageous Walmart workers who are demanding better wages and an end to illegal retaliation. Walmart, the largest private employer in the United States, has a responsibility to their employees and our country to respect workers and their rights. No one should have to fear losing their jobs just for speaking up.

With as many as 825,000 Walmart workers making less than $25,000 a year and a single Walmart store costing taxpayers nearly $1 million in public assistance, the need for change is clear. Taxpayers should not have to pick up the tab because Walmart refuses to pay workers a living wage.

This holiday season we are proud to stand with the Walmart workers and their supporters who are protesting and calling on the company to do better. It is time that Walmart pays its workers a fair wage and stops trampling on their rights.

Unlike the shameful 39 House Democrats who voted with Republicans to kill the ACA, the Democrats who released this statement are providing leadership that America can be proud of. They are echoing the values of the Democratic Party.

The situation at Walmart provides a clear example of the difference between Democrats and Republicans. The Republican Party thinks that it is perfectly fine for Walmart to act like labor laws don’t exist. They support the fact that Walmart’s profits stay at the top with the Walton family and the shareholders. Walmart is the Republican economic ideology fully realized. The Walton family are the makers, and the workers are the takers.

The only thing that Republicans would change for Walmart is that they would take away Walmart employees’ access to Medicaid and food stamps, but the economic philosophy of Walmart is the Republican Party. The real issue isn’t the ACA or website. It’s inequality.

Republicans hate the ACA because it addresses the inequality of access to healthcare in this country. The reason why they think health care reform is socialism is because it gives millions of people on the bottom access to something that those at the top already enjoy.

The real issue that will define the elections of 2014 and 2016 isn’t the ACA. The big issue is inequality. The congressional Democrats who released this statement are not only taking a stand for the workers of Walmart. They are also standing up against inequality.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association