JUFJ is a partner in the Living Wages, Healthy Communities Coalition, which demands that Walmart respect DC residents, businesses, and communities as it moves into the District. Join the campaign!

Current Activities:

JUFJ is helping Living Wages, Healthy Communities reach out to a wide range of communities, and build a strong voice for a binding Community Benefits Agreement between Walmart and citizen groups. We are advocating at the DC City Council, developing a media and visibility strategy, and canvassing our friends and neighbors.

Upcoming events:

JUFJ Campaign Meeting, Thursday July 21, 6-8pm at the RAC

Background:

Walmart intends to open four stores in 2012, in or near the following areas: Petworth; New York Avenue; H Street; and East Capitol Street.

Respect DC is working to educate community members about Walmart’s checkered track record of paying poverty-level wages, forcing competitors to close, causing a net loss of jobs, breaking its promises, and multiple lawsuits alleging that the company discriminates against female employees and engages in wage theft, including the the largest sex discrimination class action in U.S history. Read more about the campaign, and Walmart's history of disrespect to workers and communities, here.

Because of the economic realities in DC’s underserved and often impoverished communities, we are sensitive to the fact that residents in these areas may prefer Walmart jobs over no jobs. Respect DC is not an anti-Walmart coalition. Instead, our aim is to ensure that Walmart signs a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) in which they will guarantee, among other things, local hiring, living wages, and small business protections. More about CBAs, and the coalition's proposed CBA, is available here. Walmart does not have a good track record of keeping their promises to communities, which is why an enforceable CBA is the primary goal of the campaign.

Media:

"The Selling of Walmart" Washington CityPaper, Lydia DePillis (7/7/2011). History of Walmart's plans to move into DC, with a focus on the company's PR work.
"The Rise of Community Benefit Agreements" WAMU 88.5, the Kojo Nnamdi Show (6/23/2011). A look at the movement for CBAs, from a national and local perspective.
"New Union Demands" Fox News, Cashin' In (5/7/2011). Angry anti-union screed.

Coalition Partners:

Living Wages, Healthy Communities Coalition
DC Jobs with Justice
United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW)

Please contact campaign chairs Abdul Kargbo (abdul.k.kargbo@gmail.com) and Rachel Streitfeld (rachel.streitfeld@gmail.com) for more information.