Frustrated in their fight to unionize, workers at retail giant Wal-Mart, have shifted to a more grassroots, nonunion effort to claim improved wages and benefits. The new organization, called OUR Walmart, has signed up thousands of employees in the last several months, funded in part by the United Food and Commercial Workers. While the group would not have the authority to negotiate with Wal-Mart, organizers hope that OUR Walmart will serve as a first step in giving employees a voice in company policy and standards of pay. Company officials say the new tactic is merely a transparent attempt to push unionization from within and gain traction for the UFCW's political agenda.
See "Wal-Mart Workers Try the Nonunion Route", Steven Greenhouse, The New York Times, June 14, 2011