WHILE adament UPA-II issued a notification to introduce FDI in India on September 20, an effort is done to know the pros and cons of FDI say Wal-Mart. The survey is telling almost the reverse story what our ruling leaders and their supporting parties are narrating to Indian people. It is observed that before issuing notification none of our learned leader ever tried to poke in the world where it is bitterly opposed. If they have done so, then a serious judicial inquiry could expose the truth behind this notification.
India is not a lone wolf to oppose Wal-Mart, many countries in the world are in the list.
Another big scam is supposed to roll behind this notification.
Have a look on Los Angeles Times, dated July 1,2012
"Several union and civil rights activists speak at the event opposing a new Wal-Mart store in Chinatown, and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello plays 'This Land Is Your Land.'
Several thousand people, led by a banner that read "Wal-Mart= Poverty," marched through Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles Saturday to decry the giant retailer's plans for a neighborhood grocery store and the chain's low-end wage scale and non-unionized workforce.
"We believe small business will be hurt. Some will close down and there will be layoffs," King Cheung, a member of the Chinatown Committee for Equitable Development, told the crowd. "We just can't support a Wal-Mart who has no heart and no morals. We don't want you in Chinatown. We don't want you in Los Angeles."
New scientific theory says death isn't the end RobertLanzaBiocentrism.comWal-Mart intends to build a 33,000-square-foot store on the ground floor of an existing apartment building at Cesar Chavez and Grand avenues. The Los Angeles City Council approved a moratorium on big-box stores in March, but Wal-Mart was granted building permits for the store just a day before the vote.
Further angering those who oppose the retail giant: A few weeks ago an employee of a public relations firm hired by Wal-Mart was caught posing as a reporter at a news conference hosted by a group of critics. Wal-Mart has since dropped the firm.
A Wal-Mart official downplayed Saturday's demonstration, saying "the special interests fell well short of their goal" in terms of turnout.
"Clearly, the vast majority of customers see Wal-Mart as part of the solution when it comes to things like jobs, healthier foods and sustainability," Steven V. Restivo, senior director of community affairs for Wal-Mart, said in a statement. "We remain committed to serving customers here and look forward to opening new Walmart Neighborhood Market stores soon in Panorama City, Altadena and downtown Los Angeles."
Wal-Mart, although reeling from allegations of corruption in its Mexican subsidiary, reported a profit of $3.74 billion for the three months that ended April 30, up about 10% from a year earlier.
Saturday's march and rally, which was largely backed by labor groups, began at Los Angeles State Historic Park and ended under the dragon gates at Broadway and Cesar Chavez Avenue. Several civil rights and union activists delivered anti-Wal-Mart speeches, and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello energized protesters with a version of Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land."
"We are here to say no to low-wage jobs," shouted Maria Elena Durazo, executive secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.
"Wal-Mart is how the 1% hurts the 99%, and we won't stand for it in L.A.," she said, to resounding cheers. "Until you stop selling poverty, we don't want you in L.A."
Mercy For Animals protestors have held demonstrations against Walmart's pork suppliers. Courtesy Mercy for Animals.
Protesting against what they call "shocking animal abuse," a group of approximately 25 protestors held a demonstration in New York City on Thursday, hoping to raise awareness over what they say is Walmart's pork suppliers' alleged practice of confining pregnant sows to small gestation crates.
Walmart stores across the county -- including a location in Riverhead -- are allegedly dealing with pork suppliers that confine the pigs to the crates, protestors said.
According to the animal rights' group, Mercy for Animals, an "undercover investigation" in July revealed alleged animal abuse at a major Walmart pork supplier.
Mercy for Animals representatives charge that Walmart has "refused to follow the lead" of other major retailers including Costco, Kroger, and Safeway, who have put the brakes on suppliers who use gestation crates, which, animal advocates say, are "inherently cruel."
Phil Letten, MFA's national campaign coordinator, said Walmart is "dragging their feet." Basically, every other food provider, he said, has turned their back on gestation crates.
Protests have been organized, he said, to raise awareness. "We definitely feel consumers have a right to know where their food comes from, and how animals are treated, so they can make informed decisions."
Walmart spokeswoman Deisha Galberth Barnett responded on Friday: “This is a complicated issue and there are different points of view. We currently offer gestation crate-free pork products in a number of stores across the United States and will continue our ongoing discussions with suppliers, non-governmental organizations and food safety experts to increase that number," she said. “We hold our suppliers to the highest standards and do not tolerate animal mistreatment."
Galberth Barnett encouraged customers interested in learning more about how grocers and restaurants source pork products to contact the National Pork Board.
Eric Wells, owner of Wells Farm on Sound Avenue in Riverhead, also raises pigs. Regarding the debate of Walmart suppliers, Wells said, "Without seeing exactly what they’re doing, I can't say what they're doing is right or wrong."
Wells added that in order to make a "better judgment call," he'd have to see the suppliers' facility and, in order to make a fair assessment, he'd have to see the pens used for pigs and how many pigs were put in each pen. "If the pigs are overcroweed, yes, that's wrong," Wells said.
What's most important, Wells said, is raising healthy animals; he said using hormones, as some do, is not an approach he supports. "As long as they're healthy, that's what counts."
On the Wells Farm, pigs were originally fed corn -- owners raise 150 acres of corn on the property. But, Wells said, the pigs weren't getting enough nutrition, so now, the corn is mixed with all-natural duck grower pellets. "It gives them a more nutrition-based diet," he said.
In addition, Wells Farm pigs are kept in a barn on cement floors. "Every single day, we go in there and completely clean out the pens," Wells said. The pigs, he said, receive new feed every day. "In my opinion, that is one of the better ways of raising pigs."
Also on the Wells Farm, pigs are able to graze in a two-acre fenced-in swamp. "We let the pigs loose in there," Wells said. "There's fresh water to drink and they just go around grazing, eating natural shrubs."
The pens in the barn, Wells said, are "empty" compared to other facilities. Smaller bigs are kept in 10 x 20 pens, with 15 pigs at the most kept inside. Larger pigs are kept in 20 x 20 pens, with 15 to 20 pigs inside. Although technically, up to 50 pigs could fit, Wells said that would be "overcrowding."
dt September 21,2012, writes
by Beth Moszkowicz Staff writer
Photo from Richmond John Nelson, 7, of Accokeek, a second-grader at John Hanson Montessori School in Oxon Hill, holds a sign up at a rally Thursday to protest plans to build a Wal-Mart near the school.
Chanting “no Wal-Mart, save our community,” John Hanson Montessori School students, their parents and Oxon Hill community members held a rally Thursday evening to protest plans to build the super store.
Roughly 40 adults and children attended the rally, held at the proposed site on Oxon Hill Road and Md. 210. They worry that building a Super Wal-Mart less than 100 yards from the school would lead to increased traffic, and would pose safety and health concerns, said Nicole Nelson, vice president of the school’s parent-teacher-student association.
“I would be devastated if it gets built,” said Harriet Richmond of Fort Washington, whose son is in the sixth grade at the school. “It will create so many safety issues and wreak havoc on our school.”
The Prince George’s County Planning Board approved building the Wal-Mart in June. Parents appealed the approval in July, and a hearing before the county’s District Council is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.
Kimberly Jones of Fort Washington filed a request to postpone the hearing on Friday. She claims that the Planning Board failed to notify she and 90 other parents of the hearing.
Parents cite health concerns highlighted in a report by the Prince George’s County Health Department. In the February report, released by the health department’s Environmental Engineering Program, the county said an increase in traffic at the site “could impair cognitive development in children.”
The report also said that there is an “emerging body of scientific evidence indicating that fine particular air pollution from traffic is associated with childhood asthma.”
The Peterson Cos., a Virginia-based developer, is calling the project the Potomac Business Park. In addition to a 101,000-square-foot Wal-Mart, the development would include office space and a fire station.
The Wal-Mart is slated to open in summer 2013, according to the company’s website.
Taylor Chess, the company’s senior vice president, wrote in an email to The Gazette that The Peterson Cos. and Wal-Mart will continue to dialogue with the adjacent property owner to address their concerns — as they have throughout the development process.
“We look forward to introducing the first new significant retail project in this area of the Oxon Hill corridor in over 15 years, which will result in significant job creation, a state of the art fire station, a new entrance to Oxon Hill High School, improved pedestrian infrastructure and expanded retail offerings for area residents,” he said.
School board member Edward Burroughs III (Dist. 8), whose district includes John Hanson Montessori and Oxon Hill High, said that as it stands now, he has a lot of reservations about the project.
“There will be a large influx of customers and right there is a playground,” Burroughs said. “It will be a nightmare for the school to keep students safe during recess.”
bmoszkowicz@gazette.net
5:31 PM, Sep 19, 2012
Protesters organized by New Brunswick-based New Labor stand in solidarity with workers in California and Illinois who claim unfair labor practices in warehouses contracted by Walmart. The protest was at the chain's North Brunswick location. / NEW LABOR PHOTO
mailto:bmakin@njpressmedia.commailto:bmakin@njpressmedia.com
Written by Bob Makin
NORTH BRUNSWICK — A group of about 50 workers, area residents and local activists conducted a protest at the local Walmart on Monday.
The protest was called by the New Brunswick-based New Labor organization in solidarity with nonunionized temporary workers from Walmart-contracted warehouses in California and Illinois. The workers have conducted a work stoppage over claims of unfair labor practices.
“Warehouse workers within Walmart’s supply chain have complained about unsafe working conditions, poverty wages and sometimes unpaid wages, and a lack of respect or threats to workers that have tried to address the situations,” New Labor spokesman Lou Kimmel said.
“We are concerned about the practices of Walmart-contracted warehouses,” added Alberto Jandete, a local warehouse worker and member of New Labor. “We sometimes buy products here. Warehouse workers that get the goods here should be respected and treated with dignity. We will fight for safe and healthy workplaces.”
A Walmart spokesman said the labor claims are unfounded or have been addressed, and that other steps have been taken to ensure better conditions.
In California, warehouse workers walked off the job last week to call for an end to what they claimed to be retaliation and unfair labor practices committed by their Walmart-contracted employers. The warehouse workers launched a 50-mile pilgrimage to bring to light the working conditions. They claim inadequate access to clean water, scorching heat that reaches over 100 degrees, no regular breaks for heat, little access to basic health care, and a lack of properly functioning equipment.
They also cited workplace injuries and low wages of $8 per hour, which translates to an average of about $320 for a 40-hour week, or $16,640 per year.
Shortly after the Southern California work stoppage, nonunionized warehouse workers in the Chicago suburb of Elwood, Ill., walked off the job because of alleged retaliation against speaking out about labor practices, according to New Labor.
(Page 2 of 3)
Walmart spokesman Dan Fogleman confirmed that the temporary workers in California and Illinois are not Walmart employees. They are contracted by third parties, he said.
A recent tour of contracted warehouses in both states by Walmart executives found that conditions were at the same high standard as Walmart’s own 100 warehouses, Fogleman said. Those conditions include free and easy access to water, a fan in the workplace and an air-conditioned break room, he said.
“We take allegations in the workplace seriously and take action when appropriate,” Fogleman said. “In this case, we conducted a thorough review of the situation to take concrete steps to make sure all workers in the supply chain are treated with dignity and respect. The most common condition was the high heat we had this summer. The work area for warehousing is an ambient environment. The dock doors are open, so the temperature inside reflects the conditions of the day. If it’s hot outside, it’s going to be hot inside. This is true of any dock structure in the country. That’s the nature of the business. Based on the conversations with the third-party contractors and observations of the working environment, we believe the issues raised are unfounded or, if legitimate, have been addressed.”
Fogleman said he thought the nonunionized warehouse workers in California and Illinois were urged to walk off their contracted temporary jobs by unions seeking their membership.
The unions are the Southern California-based Warehouse Workers United and the Chicago-based Warehouse Workers for Justice, he said.
“The more members they have join their unions, the more money they have to spend on their political agendas,” Fogleman said. “In the end, their efforts don’t reflect a genuine concern for workers that they put in the public spotlight.”
A letter was drafted by the warehouse workers in California to address issues, Kimmel said. In the letter, a meeting between Walmart board members and executives, and the workers and their supporters, has been requested, he said.
(Page 3 of 3)
A contingent from New Labor delivered a copy of the letter with more than 35,000 signatures of support to a North Brunswick Walmart store manager, Kimmel said.
“He said he would scan them and forward them to Walmart CEO Michael Dukes,” Kimmel said.
While a meeting between Walmart executives and third-party temporary workers has yet to happen, Fogleman said, the retail chain will conduct a contract review of health and safety requirements to ensure facilities of contracted warehouses are improved. Walmart also will conduct random inspections of those facilities through an independent third-party organization, he said.
“They will have the expertise to ensure the warehouses are in compliance with Walmart standards and the law,” he said. “Walmart doesn’t manage these buildings or employ these workers, but we believe we’ve taken the steps to ensure standards in the supply chain. This issue is not about Walmart at all, but we’re working hard to strengthen our commitment to those workers.”
Germania Hernandez, a former warehouse worker and a member of New Labor, said harsh labor conditions are endured in New Jersey warehouses.
They include dangerous working conditions and wage theft, she said.
“There’s no respect,” she said. “We have to organize to make sure there is accountability.”
In addition to its own 100 warehouses, Walmart works with 25 contracted warehouses throughout the country, but none in New Jersey dedicated to the chain, Fogleman said.
Walmart does work with grocery distribution facilities in the state that funnel products to its stores, as well as several other chains, he said.
bmakin@njpressmedia.com
The New Brunswick Labor Movement group joined in a protest at Walmart on Sept. 17 in solidarity with nationwide protests over worker treatment.
• September 20, 2012
Worker advocacy group New Labor is pictured at a Sept. 17 protest at Walmart in North Brunswick.Credit New Labor
New Brunswick-based worker advocacy group New Labor joined in a Sept. 17 protest at Walmart to show solidarity with national protests of the major retailer over worker treatment.
According to a press release from the organization, the group of about 50 people protested outside Walmart's North Brunswick location on Route 1 over Walmart warehouse worker complaints in New Jersey, Illinois and California, alleging dangerous working conditions, disrespect to workers, and wage disputes.
“We support the workers in California and Illinois” said Germania Hernandez a member of New Labor and former warehouse worker, in a prepared statement. “We go through the same things here: dangerous working conditions, wage theft, no respect. We have to organize to make sure there is accountability.”
According to New Labor, California warehouse workers walked off the job last week to protest their treatment by their Walmart-contracted employers, and went on a 50 mile pilgrimage to share claims of worker abuse. Illinois warehouse workers claim retaliation for speaking out against worker abuse, according to New Labor.
Sep 22, 2012
12:29 AM Local: Virginia
September 17, 2012
8:00 pm
Members of the national animal rights organization Mercy For Animals, joined by a 10-foot-tall pig, bloody with sores and locked in a narrow crate, greet shoppers outside an Alexandria Walmart. The organization was protesting Walmart's practice of confining pregnant pigs on factory farms where they are unable to turn around or lie down. (Taylor Holland/Examiner photo)
Taylor Holland
Staff writer
The Washington Examiner
Animal-rights activists, toting a 10-foot inflatable pig, arrived in Northern Virginia this week to protest Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and its pork suppliers, charging in a national protest tour that the retail giant is mistreating hogs.
With the bloodied blow-up pig standing in a too-small cage, Mercy For Animals led a protest outside the Walmart on Richmond Highway in Alexandria Monday, waving signs that read "Walmart Tortures Pigs" and "Walmart Supports Animal Abuse."
Phil Letten, the group's national campaign coordinator, charged that the pigs are being "abused, neglected and sentenced to lives of extreme confinement and deprivation" in crates in which they can't turn around, walk or lie down comfortably.
"Most people oppose animal cruelty, so when they learn of the egregious abuse that the pigs endure before winding up on Walmart shelves, they're horrified," Letten said.
The nationwide protest comes just weeks after activists released what they said was a hidden-camera film of mistreated pigs at one Walmart pork supplier. The supplier denied charges of animal cruelty, however, saying images from the video "are dated and are intentionally taken out of context."
Christensen Farms CEO Robert Christensen said properly caring for the pigs was "essential to the success" of their business and that they have "continually challenged" themselves to improve pig-caring practices.
Still, activists such as Louise Filkins, a District resident who joined the Mercy For Animals protest, said people need to speak out against Walmart because "all animals deserve to be treated humanely."
Letten said the group has been in touch with Walmart's top officials, but said they're "dragging their feet" about the matter.
He plans to continue talks with them, however, and said he would cut Mercy For Animals' nationwide protest tour short if Walmart decided to join Safeway, Kroger, Costco and McDonald's in changing the way they handle animals.
Walmart did not immediately reply to questions.
The protesters are leaving Northern Virginia for Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York.
tholland@washingtonexaminer.com
Paul Harris in New York
• guardian.co.uk, Thursday 13 September 2012 16.39 BST
California workers say they've filed labour complaints over lack of access to drinking water and alleged bullying by managers
NFI Crossdock warehouse in Ontario, California is part of the Inland Empire, a massive collection of warehouses. Photograph: Robert Yager for the Guardian
A group of workers at a warehouse that supplies Walmart stores have gone on strike to protest what they say are dangerous labour conditions and retaliation by management against employees who complain about them.
Organisers for the activist group Warehouse Workers United, which is working in the booming warehouse industry that has grown up in the Inland Empire region of southern California, say at least 20 workers had walked off the job and were protesting outside the gates of a warehouse run by transport firm NFI.
Labour abuses in the Inland Empire's warehouse industry have recently been highlighted in various media and academic reports. Experts say the industry, which is thought to employ some 110,000 people, is often staffed by poor, immigrant workers who toil for long hours with little pay and in unsafe conditions. One recent survey by the WWU and the University of California interviewed 101 workers and found that 83 of them said they had suffered a job-related illness.
The striking workers at the NFI facility have filed an official complaint with California labour authorities on conditions that they say show inadequate safety protection, not enough access to drinking water in warehouses that can reach 125F on a hot day, and a management culture that bullies them.
They also say that workers listed in their legal complaint have since been retaliated against by things such as demotions or reduced hours, and the threat of losing their job.
One of the strikers, David Garcia, 29, said he had walked out of work in order to fight for better conditions. "We were told we would lose our jobs if we did not shut up," he said.
The workers are not members of a union and risk dismissal by refusing to work. "I am willing to risk it for the rights of myself and my co-workers," said Garcia.
The strike comes as WWU begins a six-day "pilgrimage" of warehouse workers who will walk 50 miles from the high desert of the Inland Empire to downtown Los Angeles.
The march will aim to use the route taken by the shipping containers that arrive by boat in LA and are then driven to the vast warehouse hub of the Inland Empire, where they are unpacked and then reloaded for entry into the distribution networks of major retailers.
In its actions the WWU has specifically targeted Walmart warehouses due to the company's scale, which many experts say dictates the practises of the rest of the entire industry. "We are hoping Walmart will intervene. They must be aware of these problems," said Guadalupe Palma, a WWU director.
Neither NFI or Walmart responded to requests by the Guardian for comment.
Previously, NFI has disputed the specific claims of workers. It is contesting the official complaint. It says it does not retaliate against workers and adheres to safety standards. Walmart, meanwhile, has said that it expects all its the companies in its supply chain to conform to "the highest standards" and take corrective action if abuses occur.
India is not a lone wolf to oppose Wal-Mart, many countries in the world are in the list.
Another big scam is supposed to roll behind this notification.
Have a look on Los Angeles Times, dated July 1,2012
"Several union and civil rights activists speak at the event opposing a new Wal-Mart store in Chinatown, and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello plays 'This Land Is Your Land.'
Several thousand people, led by a banner that read "Wal-Mart= Poverty," marched through Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles Saturday to decry the giant retailer's plans for a neighborhood grocery store and the chain's low-end wage scale and non-unionized workforce.
"We believe small business will be hurt. Some will close down and there will be layoffs," King Cheung, a member of the Chinatown Committee for Equitable Development, told the crowd. "We just can't support a Wal-Mart who has no heart and no morals. We don't want you in Chinatown. We don't want you in Los Angeles."
New scientific theory says death isn't the end RobertLanzaBiocentrism.comWal-Mart intends to build a 33,000-square-foot store on the ground floor of an existing apartment building at Cesar Chavez and Grand avenues. The Los Angeles City Council approved a moratorium on big-box stores in March, but Wal-Mart was granted building permits for the store just a day before the vote.
Further angering those who oppose the retail giant: A few weeks ago an employee of a public relations firm hired by Wal-Mart was caught posing as a reporter at a news conference hosted by a group of critics. Wal-Mart has since dropped the firm.
A Wal-Mart official downplayed Saturday's demonstration, saying "the special interests fell well short of their goal" in terms of turnout.
"Clearly, the vast majority of customers see Wal-Mart as part of the solution when it comes to things like jobs, healthier foods and sustainability," Steven V. Restivo, senior director of community affairs for Wal-Mart, said in a statement. "We remain committed to serving customers here and look forward to opening new Walmart Neighborhood Market stores soon in Panorama City, Altadena and downtown Los Angeles."
Wal-Mart, although reeling from allegations of corruption in its Mexican subsidiary, reported a profit of $3.74 billion for the three months that ended April 30, up about 10% from a year earlier.
Saturday's march and rally, which was largely backed by labor groups, began at Los Angeles State Historic Park and ended under the dragon gates at Broadway and Cesar Chavez Avenue. Several civil rights and union activists delivered anti-Wal-Mart speeches, and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello energized protesters with a version of Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land."
"We are here to say no to low-wage jobs," shouted Maria Elena Durazo, executive secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.
"Wal-Mart is how the 1% hurts the 99%, and we won't stand for it in L.A.," she said, to resounding cheers. "Until you stop selling poverty, we don't want you in L.A."
Animal Advocates Blast Walmart Suppliers' Alleged 'Abuse' Of Pigs
By Lisa Finn
Mercy For Animals protestors have held demonstrations against Walmart's pork suppliers. Courtesy Mercy for Animals.
Protesting against what they call "shocking animal abuse," a group of approximately 25 protestors held a demonstration in New York City on Thursday, hoping to raise awareness over what they say is Walmart's pork suppliers' alleged practice of confining pregnant sows to small gestation crates.
Walmart stores across the county -- including a location in Riverhead -- are allegedly dealing with pork suppliers that confine the pigs to the crates, protestors said.
According to the animal rights' group, Mercy for Animals, an "undercover investigation" in July revealed alleged animal abuse at a major Walmart pork supplier.
Mercy for Animals representatives charge that Walmart has "refused to follow the lead" of other major retailers including Costco, Kroger, and Safeway, who have put the brakes on suppliers who use gestation crates, which, animal advocates say, are "inherently cruel."
Phil Letten, MFA's national campaign coordinator, said Walmart is "dragging their feet." Basically, every other food provider, he said, has turned their back on gestation crates.
Protests have been organized, he said, to raise awareness. "We definitely feel consumers have a right to know where their food comes from, and how animals are treated, so they can make informed decisions."
Walmart spokeswoman Deisha Galberth Barnett responded on Friday: “This is a complicated issue and there are different points of view. We currently offer gestation crate-free pork products in a number of stores across the United States and will continue our ongoing discussions with suppliers, non-governmental organizations and food safety experts to increase that number," she said. “We hold our suppliers to the highest standards and do not tolerate animal mistreatment."
Galberth Barnett encouraged customers interested in learning more about how grocers and restaurants source pork products to contact the National Pork Board.
Eric Wells, owner of Wells Farm on Sound Avenue in Riverhead, also raises pigs. Regarding the debate of Walmart suppliers, Wells said, "Without seeing exactly what they’re doing, I can't say what they're doing is right or wrong."
Wells added that in order to make a "better judgment call," he'd have to see the suppliers' facility and, in order to make a fair assessment, he'd have to see the pens used for pigs and how many pigs were put in each pen. "If the pigs are overcroweed, yes, that's wrong," Wells said.
What's most important, Wells said, is raising healthy animals; he said using hormones, as some do, is not an approach he supports. "As long as they're healthy, that's what counts."
On the Wells Farm, pigs were originally fed corn -- owners raise 150 acres of corn on the property. But, Wells said, the pigs weren't getting enough nutrition, so now, the corn is mixed with all-natural duck grower pellets. "It gives them a more nutrition-based diet," he said.
In addition, Wells Farm pigs are kept in a barn on cement floors. "Every single day, we go in there and completely clean out the pens," Wells said. The pigs, he said, receive new feed every day. "In my opinion, that is one of the better ways of raising pigs."
Also on the Wells Farm, pigs are able to graze in a two-acre fenced-in swamp. "We let the pigs loose in there," Wells said. "There's fresh water to drink and they just go around grazing, eating natural shrubs."
The pens in the barn, Wells said, are "empty" compared to other facilities. Smaller bigs are kept in 10 x 20 pens, with 15 pigs at the most kept inside. Larger pigs are kept in 20 x 20 pens, with 15 to 20 pigs inside. Although technically, up to 50 pigs could fit, Wells said that would be "overcrowding."
dt September 21,2012, writes
Parents, students rally against proposed Wal-Mart in Oxon Hill
by Beth Moszkowicz Staff writer
Photo from Richmond John Nelson, 7, of Accokeek, a second-grader at John Hanson Montessori School in Oxon Hill, holds a sign up at a rally Thursday to protest plans to build a Wal-Mart near the school.
Chanting “no Wal-Mart, save our community,” John Hanson Montessori School students, their parents and Oxon Hill community members held a rally Thursday evening to protest plans to build the super store.
Roughly 40 adults and children attended the rally, held at the proposed site on Oxon Hill Road and Md. 210. They worry that building a Super Wal-Mart less than 100 yards from the school would lead to increased traffic, and would pose safety and health concerns, said Nicole Nelson, vice president of the school’s parent-teacher-student association.
“I would be devastated if it gets built,” said Harriet Richmond of Fort Washington, whose son is in the sixth grade at the school. “It will create so many safety issues and wreak havoc on our school.”
The Prince George’s County Planning Board approved building the Wal-Mart in June. Parents appealed the approval in July, and a hearing before the county’s District Council is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.
Kimberly Jones of Fort Washington filed a request to postpone the hearing on Friday. She claims that the Planning Board failed to notify she and 90 other parents of the hearing.
Parents cite health concerns highlighted in a report by the Prince George’s County Health Department. In the February report, released by the health department’s Environmental Engineering Program, the county said an increase in traffic at the site “could impair cognitive development in children.”
The report also said that there is an “emerging body of scientific evidence indicating that fine particular air pollution from traffic is associated with childhood asthma.”
The Peterson Cos., a Virginia-based developer, is calling the project the Potomac Business Park. In addition to a 101,000-square-foot Wal-Mart, the development would include office space and a fire station.
The Wal-Mart is slated to open in summer 2013, according to the company’s website.
Taylor Chess, the company’s senior vice president, wrote in an email to The Gazette that The Peterson Cos. and Wal-Mart will continue to dialogue with the adjacent property owner to address their concerns — as they have throughout the development process.
“We look forward to introducing the first new significant retail project in this area of the Oxon Hill corridor in over 15 years, which will result in significant job creation, a state of the art fire station, a new entrance to Oxon Hill High School, improved pedestrian infrastructure and expanded retail offerings for area residents,” he said.
School board member Edward Burroughs III (Dist. 8), whose district includes John Hanson Montessori and Oxon Hill High, said that as it stands now, he has a lot of reservations about the project.
“There will be a large influx of customers and right there is a playground,” Burroughs said. “It will be a nightmare for the school to keep students safe during recess.”
bmoszkowicz@gazette.net
Local protest demands accountability in Walmart supply chain
5:31 PM, Sep 19, 2012
Protesters organized by New Brunswick-based New Labor stand in solidarity with workers in California and Illinois who claim unfair labor practices in warehouses contracted by Walmart. The protest was at the chain's North Brunswick location. / NEW LABOR PHOTO
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Written by Bob Makin
NORTH BRUNSWICK — A group of about 50 workers, area residents and local activists conducted a protest at the local Walmart on Monday.
The protest was called by the New Brunswick-based New Labor organization in solidarity with nonunionized temporary workers from Walmart-contracted warehouses in California and Illinois. The workers have conducted a work stoppage over claims of unfair labor practices.
“Warehouse workers within Walmart’s supply chain have complained about unsafe working conditions, poverty wages and sometimes unpaid wages, and a lack of respect or threats to workers that have tried to address the situations,” New Labor spokesman Lou Kimmel said.
“We are concerned about the practices of Walmart-contracted warehouses,” added Alberto Jandete, a local warehouse worker and member of New Labor. “We sometimes buy products here. Warehouse workers that get the goods here should be respected and treated with dignity. We will fight for safe and healthy workplaces.”
A Walmart spokesman said the labor claims are unfounded or have been addressed, and that other steps have been taken to ensure better conditions.
In California, warehouse workers walked off the job last week to call for an end to what they claimed to be retaliation and unfair labor practices committed by their Walmart-contracted employers. The warehouse workers launched a 50-mile pilgrimage to bring to light the working conditions. They claim inadequate access to clean water, scorching heat that reaches over 100 degrees, no regular breaks for heat, little access to basic health care, and a lack of properly functioning equipment.
They also cited workplace injuries and low wages of $8 per hour, which translates to an average of about $320 for a 40-hour week, or $16,640 per year.
Shortly after the Southern California work stoppage, nonunionized warehouse workers in the Chicago suburb of Elwood, Ill., walked off the job because of alleged retaliation against speaking out about labor practices, according to New Labor.
(Page 2 of 3)
Walmart spokesman Dan Fogleman confirmed that the temporary workers in California and Illinois are not Walmart employees. They are contracted by third parties, he said.
A recent tour of contracted warehouses in both states by Walmart executives found that conditions were at the same high standard as Walmart’s own 100 warehouses, Fogleman said. Those conditions include free and easy access to water, a fan in the workplace and an air-conditioned break room, he said.
“We take allegations in the workplace seriously and take action when appropriate,” Fogleman said. “In this case, we conducted a thorough review of the situation to take concrete steps to make sure all workers in the supply chain are treated with dignity and respect. The most common condition was the high heat we had this summer. The work area for warehousing is an ambient environment. The dock doors are open, so the temperature inside reflects the conditions of the day. If it’s hot outside, it’s going to be hot inside. This is true of any dock structure in the country. That’s the nature of the business. Based on the conversations with the third-party contractors and observations of the working environment, we believe the issues raised are unfounded or, if legitimate, have been addressed.”
Fogleman said he thought the nonunionized warehouse workers in California and Illinois were urged to walk off their contracted temporary jobs by unions seeking their membership.
The unions are the Southern California-based Warehouse Workers United and the Chicago-based Warehouse Workers for Justice, he said.
“The more members they have join their unions, the more money they have to spend on their political agendas,” Fogleman said. “In the end, their efforts don’t reflect a genuine concern for workers that they put in the public spotlight.”
A letter was drafted by the warehouse workers in California to address issues, Kimmel said. In the letter, a meeting between Walmart board members and executives, and the workers and their supporters, has been requested, he said.
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A contingent from New Labor delivered a copy of the letter with more than 35,000 signatures of support to a North Brunswick Walmart store manager, Kimmel said.
“He said he would scan them and forward them to Walmart CEO Michael Dukes,” Kimmel said.
While a meeting between Walmart executives and third-party temporary workers has yet to happen, Fogleman said, the retail chain will conduct a contract review of health and safety requirements to ensure facilities of contracted warehouses are improved. Walmart also will conduct random inspections of those facilities through an independent third-party organization, he said.
“They will have the expertise to ensure the warehouses are in compliance with Walmart standards and the law,” he said. “Walmart doesn’t manage these buildings or employ these workers, but we believe we’ve taken the steps to ensure standards in the supply chain. This issue is not about Walmart at all, but we’re working hard to strengthen our commitment to those workers.”
Germania Hernandez, a former warehouse worker and a member of New Labor, said harsh labor conditions are endured in New Jersey warehouses.
They include dangerous working conditions and wage theft, she said.
“There’s no respect,” she said. “We have to organize to make sure there is accountability.”
In addition to its own 100 warehouses, Walmart works with 25 contracted warehouses throughout the country, but none in New Jersey dedicated to the chain, Fogleman said.
Walmart does work with grocery distribution facilities in the state that funnel products to its stores, as well as several other chains, he said.
bmakin@njpressmedia.com
New Labor Protests Worker Treatment at Walmart
The New Brunswick Labor Movement group joined in a protest at Walmart on Sept. 17 in solidarity with nationwide protests over worker treatment.
• September 20, 2012
Worker advocacy group New Labor is pictured at a Sept. 17 protest at Walmart in North Brunswick.Credit New Labor
New Brunswick-based worker advocacy group New Labor joined in a Sept. 17 protest at Walmart to show solidarity with national protests of the major retailer over worker treatment.
According to a press release from the organization, the group of about 50 people protested outside Walmart's North Brunswick location on Route 1 over Walmart warehouse worker complaints in New Jersey, Illinois and California, alleging dangerous working conditions, disrespect to workers, and wage disputes.
“We support the workers in California and Illinois” said Germania Hernandez a member of New Labor and former warehouse worker, in a prepared statement. “We go through the same things here: dangerous working conditions, wage theft, no respect. We have to organize to make sure there is accountability.”
According to New Labor, California warehouse workers walked off the job last week to protest their treatment by their Walmart-contracted employers, and went on a 50 mile pilgrimage to share claims of worker abuse. Illinois warehouse workers claim retaliation for speaking out against worker abuse, according to New Labor.
Sep 22, 2012
12:29 AM Local: Virginia
Walmart latest target of animal-rights protests
September 17, 2012
8:00 pm
Members of the national animal rights organization Mercy For Animals, joined by a 10-foot-tall pig, bloody with sores and locked in a narrow crate, greet shoppers outside an Alexandria Walmart. The organization was protesting Walmart's practice of confining pregnant pigs on factory farms where they are unable to turn around or lie down. (Taylor Holland/Examiner photo)
Taylor Holland
Staff writer
The Washington Examiner
Animal-rights activists, toting a 10-foot inflatable pig, arrived in Northern Virginia this week to protest Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and its pork suppliers, charging in a national protest tour that the retail giant is mistreating hogs.
With the bloodied blow-up pig standing in a too-small cage, Mercy For Animals led a protest outside the Walmart on Richmond Highway in Alexandria Monday, waving signs that read "Walmart Tortures Pigs" and "Walmart Supports Animal Abuse."
Phil Letten, the group's national campaign coordinator, charged that the pigs are being "abused, neglected and sentenced to lives of extreme confinement and deprivation" in crates in which they can't turn around, walk or lie down comfortably.
"Most people oppose animal cruelty, so when they learn of the egregious abuse that the pigs endure before winding up on Walmart shelves, they're horrified," Letten said.
The nationwide protest comes just weeks after activists released what they said was a hidden-camera film of mistreated pigs at one Walmart pork supplier. The supplier denied charges of animal cruelty, however, saying images from the video "are dated and are intentionally taken out of context."
Christensen Farms CEO Robert Christensen said properly caring for the pigs was "essential to the success" of their business and that they have "continually challenged" themselves to improve pig-caring practices.
Still, activists such as Louise Filkins, a District resident who joined the Mercy For Animals protest, said people need to speak out against Walmart because "all animals deserve to be treated humanely."
Letten said the group has been in touch with Walmart's top officials, but said they're "dragging their feet" about the matter.
He plans to continue talks with them, however, and said he would cut Mercy For Animals' nationwide protest tour short if Walmart decided to join Safeway, Kroger, Costco and McDonald's in changing the way they handle animals.
Walmart did not immediately reply to questions.
The protesters are leaving Northern Virginia for Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York.
tholland@washingtonexaminer.com
Walmart supplier NFI's warehouse workers strike over working conditions
Paul Harris in New York
• guardian.co.uk, Thursday 13 September 2012 16.39 BST
California workers say they've filed labour complaints over lack of access to drinking water and alleged bullying by managers
NFI Crossdock warehouse in Ontario, California is part of the Inland Empire, a massive collection of warehouses. Photograph: Robert Yager for the Guardian
A group of workers at a warehouse that supplies Walmart stores have gone on strike to protest what they say are dangerous labour conditions and retaliation by management against employees who complain about them.
Organisers for the activist group Warehouse Workers United, which is working in the booming warehouse industry that has grown up in the Inland Empire region of southern California, say at least 20 workers had walked off the job and were protesting outside the gates of a warehouse run by transport firm NFI.
Labour abuses in the Inland Empire's warehouse industry have recently been highlighted in various media and academic reports. Experts say the industry, which is thought to employ some 110,000 people, is often staffed by poor, immigrant workers who toil for long hours with little pay and in unsafe conditions. One recent survey by the WWU and the University of California interviewed 101 workers and found that 83 of them said they had suffered a job-related illness.
The striking workers at the NFI facility have filed an official complaint with California labour authorities on conditions that they say show inadequate safety protection, not enough access to drinking water in warehouses that can reach 125F on a hot day, and a management culture that bullies them.
They also say that workers listed in their legal complaint have since been retaliated against by things such as demotions or reduced hours, and the threat of losing their job.
One of the strikers, David Garcia, 29, said he had walked out of work in order to fight for better conditions. "We were told we would lose our jobs if we did not shut up," he said.
The workers are not members of a union and risk dismissal by refusing to work. "I am willing to risk it for the rights of myself and my co-workers," said Garcia.
The strike comes as WWU begins a six-day "pilgrimage" of warehouse workers who will walk 50 miles from the high desert of the Inland Empire to downtown Los Angeles.
The march will aim to use the route taken by the shipping containers that arrive by boat in LA and are then driven to the vast warehouse hub of the Inland Empire, where they are unpacked and then reloaded for entry into the distribution networks of major retailers.
In its actions the WWU has specifically targeted Walmart warehouses due to the company's scale, which many experts say dictates the practises of the rest of the entire industry. "We are hoping Walmart will intervene. They must be aware of these problems," said Guadalupe Palma, a WWU director.
Neither NFI or Walmart responded to requests by the Guardian for comment.
Previously, NFI has disputed the specific claims of workers. It is contesting the official complaint. It says it does not retaliate against workers and adheres to safety standards. Walmart, meanwhile, has said that it expects all its the companies in its supply chain to conform to "the highest standards" and take corrective action if abuses occur.
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