As many people flock to box stores like Walmart on Black Friday for shopping deals, several others will congregate at the Avon Walmart to do just the opposite.
Grassroots activist group Activate CT posted a call on actionnetwork.org and Facebook to join a protest at the Avon Walmart at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 29 during Black Friday.
It is one of 1,500 protests nationwide involving "Walmart workers" and community allies, according to a press release.
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
The group is calling this "one of the largest mobilizations of working families in American history."
The Connecticut chapter of the Justice Party is also supporting the "peaceful protest," according to a press release from acting chairperson Carlos Camacho.
"Workers are calling for an end to illegal retaliation, and for Walmart to publicly commit to improving labor standards, such as providing workers with more full time work and $25,000 a year," press releases from both groups state. "As the country’s largest retailer and employer, Walmart makes more than $17 billion in profits, with the wealth of the Walton family totaling over $144.7 billion – equal to that of 42% of Americans."
The Justice Party has a Raise the Wage campaign in efforts to give workers equal rights for "prosperity," eliminate poverty, help the "middle class" thrive and support a "appropriately regulated" and fair economy, according to a press release. The party cites the "housing bubble in 2008" as the root of financial strife for many struggling to make ends meet while earning low wages "despite being fully employed productive members of society," the release states.
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
“So you start with a big 800-pound gorilla — Walmart," Nader previously told Patch. "We want $10.50 by 90 days."
The protests are separate from Nader's movement.
"Most of the consumers who are shopping on Black Friday don’t stop to think about the effect that Walmart has on their communities," organizer Rebecca Burton said in a statement. "The average Walmart store costs taxpayers $900K in government assistance to its workers, because Walmart simply doesn’t pay enough for employees to live on. Walmart is a huge drag on our economy. Why should we be paying to subsidize their business practices?”
Concern about some Walmart employees not being able to afford Thanksgiving dinners on their pay sparked the timing of the protests, the press release said.
Her co-organizer Debra Cohen added that "Walmart's low prices are possible only because their workers are so disrespected and un-rewarded for their labor through low wages, lack of benefits and retaliatory tactics toward workers who are publicly outspoken about conditions. The store sells cheap goods produced by near-slave labor overseas. The Walmart family is wealthy beyond description yet they refuse to afford their workers anything approaching a decent income.”
Other protests are planned at Walmarts nationwide in Los Angeles, Chicago, Bay Area, Seattle,Sacramento, Miami, Minneapolis and Washington, DC.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.