At United for Respect we believe Walmart Associates are Essential, not Exploitable! The truth of the matter is Walmart has prioritized raking in record-breaking profits during this pandemic with little to no regard for our health, safety, and livelihoods. Walmart associates have lost lives due to COVID and many are still working without the proper safety equipment and protocols, and unable to pay rent or make ends meet because Walmart’s wages are too low.
Our movement began in 2011 when more than a hundred Walmart associates came together in front of Walmart’s headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas to share our experiences and build a vision for change. Together, we created the Declaration of Respect to call on Walmart to publicly commit to raise pay and fundamentally change how the corporation treats associates. We’ve courageously spoken out, held national mass protests on Black Friday, and even gone on strike to protect our freedom to speak out.
In our decade of coming together and building power, we successfully moved Walmart to raise base pay from $7.25 to $11 an hour. But Associates today need $15 and more.