UNI Congress in Chicago turned poverty spotlight on Wal-Mart, now the host city gives workers a minimum wage

In August last year, the UNI World Congress turned the spotlight on Wal-Mart when it assembled a broad labour coalition against poverty and social injustice. Yesterday, eleven months later, the host city acted. A new ordinance gives workers in big box stores the right to a 10 dollar hourly minimum wage and to a 3 dollar hourly minimum for other benefits.

Carolyn Sapp, former Miss America and active campaigner for women's and children's rights gave Congress delegates from all around the world a spell-binding picture of how difficult it is to work for Wal-Mart in the United States. After her intervention and dialogue with delegates, there was no question about the resolve of these two thousand international unionists to join the host country workers' struggle against Walmartization.

It is now eleven months ago that UNI brought two thousand trade unionists to Chicago for its World Congress, and for the UNI Commerce Summit. They came from all parts of the globe, and their message was clear, an end to global poverty.

America has its own poor, many of them. The Bush years have seen more and more middle class families lose their way of life and being pushed into the growing population of America's working poor. Unemployment, de-qualification of jobs and a loss of affordable health insurance have been all too common experiences on the US labour market.

The Chicago Congress turned the poverty spotlight on Wal-Mart

When the plight of working poor was raised at the global union congress in Chicago, the spotlight fell on Wal-Mart. The company's bad employer behaviour was exposed stronger than perhaps ever before and Walmartization was minted in Chicago as the household word for exploitation and denial of workers' human rights.

World's largest commerce trade union UFCW could tell how the giant from Bentonville not only paid sub-standard wages and neglected its health insurance responsibilities, but also hindered its workers from exercising their basic human right of joining a trade union.

Pierre Gendre of France and Ibrahima Fofana of Guinee Conakry were among the almost two thousand trade unionists who took to the streets of Chicago to call for economic and social justice. UNI's campaigning against poverty took on a strong Wal-Mart dimension in this US city with proud labour traditions. It was here that Walmartization was really minted as a household word describing economic and social exploitation and denial of universal workers' rights.

The global union warning against Walmartization was not sent only from the congress halls, but also on the streets of Chicago. When the Congress delegates from the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania, and Europe rallied for working families' rights to a decent life, Wal-Mart was omnipresent. Not only at home in the United States, but all over the world where it ventures, Wal-Mart has come to symbolise exploitation and repression of working people.

Recent examples confirm the view of the global labour movement. The Norwegian government pulled back its oil fund investments from Wal-Mart, because they did not want to be accomplices in the company's human rights violations. The top trade union leader in China singled out the company for not giving its Chinese workers the chance to protect their rights through a trade union presence.

World Congress contributed to awareness building

Philip Jennings, UNI's general secretary, sees that the World Congress did play a role in raising awareness about Wal-Mart and Walmartization also in the host city. - It surely strengthened their resolve to fight Walmartization and to ensure decent work for people.

The UNI World Congress gave both the host country union UFCW and others a good chance to tell the large public about Wal-Mart's appalling employer behaviour around the globe. The press coverage was intensive and the workers' message was well received. Here Joe Hansen, president of UNI and UFCW, speaks to the journalists. He is surrounded by (left to right) UNI general secretary Philip Jennings, German commerce union ver.di's Ulrich Dalibor, Wal-Mart's head shop steward in Germany Elke Richards and UNI Commerce's Alex Rüdig.

The UNI World Congress and the subsequent UNI Commerce Global Union Summit were indeed eye-openers on Wal-Mart and Walmartization. And in this city with its proud labour traditions, still very much alive, this will turn into action. Today we see that Chicago and its political leaders in the City Council can act in a decisive way when the rights of its working families need to be defended.

The new city ordinance sets a minimum wage and a minimum benefits level for workers in the so-called big box stores. It is an important expression of solidarity with low-paid workers, who have seen their conditions continuously deteriorate while the rich get ever richer. It also shows that there are close links between global, national and local efforts to defend and promote economic and social justice.