UFCW activists take global protest to Walmart headquarters and Toronto store

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Toronto – November 20, 2014 – Canada’s union for Walmart workers joined with activists from around the world for the Global Day for Decent Work at Walmart. On November 19, UFCW Canada activists protested at Walmart Canada headquarters and one of the largest Walmart supercentres in the Greater Toronto Area.

The 2014 Global Day for Decent Work at Walmart included hundreds of Walmart workers and supporters coordinating actions in more than 10 countries, including Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, South Africa and the United States. The campaign is led by UNI Global Union and asks Walmart to immediately implement three key demands: $15 minimum wage, full-time jobs, and no retaliation for collective action.  

Walmart has been nominated for the Public Eye Lifetime Award as the “Worst Corporation Ever”. Walmart receives this nomination for refusing to address the safety concerns of garment workers in Bangladesh and failing to compensate families of those who died in the Rana Plaza disaster. You can now vote online for Walmart as the Worst Corporation Ever.  

UFCW Canada activists began the day with a surprise visit to Walmart Canada headquarters where they presented the company with the Public Eye nomination. Later in the day, community members joined with UFCW Canada to protest inside and outside a Walmart supercentre in Toronto. Protestors were led into the store by the New Tradition Music drumming troupe and set up shop in the middle of the supercentre for a globally inspired demonstration. The group chanted and performed live performances depicting factory workers in Bangladesh and Walmart associates forming a union.

Store associates and customers alike gave a warm reception to the activists - taking leaflets, filming the performances, and dancing throughout the drumming.

UFCW Canada is the only union to have successfully unionized Walmart workers in Canada. As the leading voice for retail workers, the union has also won Supreme Court cases against Walmart. With your support, and more than a quarter million members across the country, UFCW Canada will win respect and good jobs for Walmart workers.