Women take on Wal-Mart

[struggle4progress]

Journalist Liza Featherstone speaks at St. Paul labor series

by Lydia Howell

<snip> Featherstone’s new book, “Selling Women Short: The Landmark Battle for Workers’ Rights at Wal-Mart,” documents the largest civil-rights case in U.S. history: a class-action lawsuit representing 1.6 million women working there. Men were paid more than women for doing the same jobs, the book said, and women consistently reported being passed over for promotions for years as they trained men who had far less experience.

“Wal-Mart’s discrimination against women is consistent across time and region, while race discrimination seems to vary according to region,” Featherstone clarifies.

“Selling Women Short” is an inspiring David versus Goliath story where “ordinary” women, many of them divorced or single mothers, fight the world’s largest retailer. Topping the Fortune 500 list, Wal-Mart’s 2003 sales were $244.5 billion. As of March 2004, 2,600 American towns and cities have at least one Wal-Mart or Sam’s Club, named after company founder Sam Walton. Half of the world’s 10 richest individuals are Walton family members.

While Wal-Mart promotes itself as a “family values” company, the book reports, the mostly-male managers often have “business meetings” at Hooters restaurants and strip clubs. The “company culture” at Wal-Mart is a time machine back to the 1950s, where women are actively discouraged from seeking management jobs by being told that “women’s main responsibility is raising children.” Some class-action plaintiffs are also suing based on race, saying a “plantation mentality” continues at the Bentonville, Arkansas-based company. <snip>

http://www.pulsetc.com/article.php?sid=1813

[benevolent dictator]

1. "Love Mom not Wal-Mart"

It's the latest campaign by www.wakeupwalmart.com . They're getting people all across the country to pledge not buy their mother's day gifts there, and they're going to send Wal-Mart a huge card with all the signatures on it.

[struggle4progress]

2. Thanks for telling me! I signed immediately! It's a good site to know!

[HockeyMom]

3. CVS too

There were a number of incidents at CVS stores of pharmacists also refusing BC. Has there been anything involving Eckert? They are the only ones where I live (Walgreens, CVS, Eckert). 99% of the small Mom and Pop type drug stores have all gone the way of the local ice cream shop. Sad.

How about the mega Supermarket Chains? Most of them nowadays also have a pharmacy section. I haven't heard anything about them either.