Quebec unions call for Walmart boycott

[2952-0-0]

QUEBEC CITY - Unions for thousands workers in northern Quebec have urged a boycott of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. over its plans to close a store that last year became North America's first unionized Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart Canada, the Canadian unit of the Bentonville, Arkansas company that is world's biggest retailer, plans to close its store in Jonquiere, Quebec, on May 6, laying off 190 workers.

Workers at the store, about 215 kilometers (130 miles) northeast of Quebec City, obtained union certification six months ago and were in talks with Wal-Mart on their first contract. Negotiations bogged down earlier this month, and the union turned to the Quebec government for arbitration.

Wal-Mart Canada said the application for arbitration indicated the two sides were not likely to deal a deal.

Officials for the United Food and Commercial Workers union, a branch of the Quebec Federation of Labour said they may file a complaint with the government's labor relations board and union leaders at local metals and forest products companies said they deplored Wal-Mart's decision.

<snip>

© Reuters 2005

###

[Richard]

EXCELLENT.  Now those people will spend so much more of their "poor wages" on products that will be more expensive had they shopped at Walmart.

They're only hurting themselves, those morons, because quite frankly, that many people is irrelevant to Walmart.

ing idiots.

[Platypus]

uhm, that's just going to make them lay off more staff...

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

EXCELLENT.  Now those people will spend so much more of their "poor wages" on products that will be more expensive had they shopped at Walmart.

They're only hurting themselves, those morons, because quite frankly, that many people is irrelevant to Walmart.

g idiots.

Umm, no, they would be better off paying 10%-50% more to buy locally produced items and have that money stay in the local economy than going to some multi-national corporation that uses child labor somewhere in Asia.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

As I've said before, it all depends on whether the effect of Wal-Mart's lower prices causes more of a benefit than the effect of Wal-Mart's lower wages causes harm.  I don't know the details well enough to judge which has the greater effect.  However, by being so heavy handed Wal-Mart has made things more difficult for themselves in Canada than would otherwise be the case.  Even if Wal-Mart succeeds in remaining union free, it will attact lower quality workers in Canada and lose sales in Canada as a result of these actions.  It would be interesting to know what the two sides negotiatuing positions were so as to be able to judge which side here is at greater stupidity here.