Pinoy Walmart workers join rally seeking $15-an-hour wage

MILPITAS, California. – Thousands of Walmart workers and their union protested in front of 1,600 Walmart stores across the nation to demand a $15 an hour wage, full-time work, and better working conditions.

Filipinos joined more than 400 workers and their union who rallied in front of the Milpitas Walmart.

“They gave you more work and then less hours,” said Eddie Daguioan, a Filipino who has been employed by the company for eight years. “And then we got associates here 15 years who are still part-time. That hurts.”

Maria Sumagaysan said she has been overlooked and passed up for promotions by workers with less experience.

“The more you ask them, the more they take your hours, which is not fair,” said Samugaysan. “What is it all about? Is it discrimination? Favoritism or what? I challenge them. Look at my personal file. Look at my evaluation. I’m not perfect but I think I try my best to work hard for Walmart.”

Sumagaysan and disgruntled Filipino Walmart workers say want to represent those who are afraid to speak up.

“There are too many members in my store but they were afraid to stand up,” said Sumagaysan, who has been with the company for 15-years. “They are afraid to stand up because they are afraid to lose their jobs. That’s why they are not here. I’m standing up for the Filipino workers.”

“We stand up for them to give them courage and more of them are coming to join our Walmart association,” said Eddie Daguioan.

Walmart released a statement on their website regarding the Black Friday protests.

The biggest American employer states that the demonstrators were mainly composed of paid union demonstrators who do not represent actual Walmart workers.

Walmart management adds that the company will not be distracted by protests and will continue to provide their associates with opportunities for job growth.

While the $15 minimum wage is set to take effect in cities like Seattle and now San Francisco, protesters say they will continue to protest until changes come.

“Until the end,” added Daguioan. “I’m going to do it every time. We need it.”

Protesters did not want to stop anyone from shopping at Walmart, but they did speak with many customers during their march to inform them why they are protesting, and to bring more awareness to their cause.

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source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

US protesters force closure of mall near Ferguson

US protesters forced a crowded St Louis mall to close for around two hours on Friday, demanding a boycott to post-Thanksgiving shopping and justice for an unarmed black teenager killed by police.

Scores of demonstrators, including young children, shouted "No justice, no peace," and "Stop shopping and join the movement" at the St Louis Galleria Mall.

Around 100 people lay on the floor for four and a half minutes to symbolize the more than four hours that 18-year-old Michael Brown lay in the road after being shot dead by a white police officer in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson.

In New York, police made "several" arrests at a protest in front of Macy's flagship store in Herald Square, a spokesman said, without explaining why the demonstrators had been detained.

About 200 people gathered in support of the boycott of "Black Friday", which comes the day after America's Thanksgiving holiday and sees stores offering steep discounts, leading to often-frenzied consumer spending.

In the San Francisco Bay area, protestors severely disrupted the BART mass transit system for more than two hours by blocking off a train station in Oakland, officials said.

The protestors chained themselves together at the West Oakland station, forcing trains to be stopped into and out of San Francisco, briefly stranding crowds including many heading to malls seeking Black Friday bargains.

The protests came four days after a Missouri grand jury decided not to indict the officer who killed Brown, sparking arson and looting in Ferguson.

At the St Louis mall, shoppers and store staff looked bemused, while others filmed or photographed the protest, or else clapped and shouted their support.

When police officers told AFP they were clearing the building, the protesters had already left.

The management office confirmed that the shopping center reopened at 3:15 pm, around two hours after stores were told police were closing the building.

Although most shops reopened, others kept their doors locked and shutters down even after the mall was back in business.

It was not immediately clear how much business had been lost.

Shop staff said police had ordered the closure for public safety.

"It ain't my decision," said Luke, a shoe store manager who didn't want to give his last name.

"The police thought it was in the best interest of our customers and our product to close down," he added.

Protesters claimed success.

"It is now a movement and it is spreading across the country and around the world. Black Friday is the next step," said journalist and activist Kymone Freeman from Washington.

"Hopefully we'll see more of this. I think Black Friday protests will continue throughout the Christmas season," he added.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com