Walmart, whose tagline is “save money, live better,” must make a critical choice.
Walmart can refuse to accept responsibility for the behavior of its subcontractors. In this case, workers will continue to unite in solidarity for living wages and decent working conditions. Labor rights organizations such as ILRF and SFC will embark in a potent education campaign to ensure that customers are informed of Walmart’s behavior in Bangladesh.
Or, Walmart could acknowledge that charges still remain against Kalpona, Babul, and Aminul, and take the necessary steps to ensure that the falsified charges are dropped and that BCWS’s nongovernmental organization status is restored. As the ILRF-SFC letter stated, “we have no doubt that if Walmart insisted that its suppliers drop the charges against peaceful labor rights defenders they would do so in order to be assured of retaining Walmart’s business.”
Walmart is the largest buyer of clothing sewn in Bangladesh. Walmart clearly has the power to articulate and enforce a demand for respect for the basic human rights of its workers.
Take action today and tell Walmart that it is time to step up and ensure that workers in Bangladesh have the chance to “live better,” too:
- Want to do more? Download the hard-copy petition to circulate among your network. Help us reach our goal of 10,000 signatures by June 1st!