Dialog Scenarios With Wal?Mart Workers
Communicating ideas often can be most effective when put in the form of questions. Most people like to talk about themselves, their families, and their lives. By asking for information, you may be able to provide valuable insights into specific issues and conditions in the Wal?Mart store you’ve adopted.
Following are some questions you can use to break the ice with Wal?Mart workers.
Use your instincts about what questions are appropriate and how far to probe. Be sensitive about workers’ possible discomfort levels. Former Wal?Mart employees report that Wal?Mart instructs managers to spy on workers and interrupt conversations that may lead to mention of unions. Even though this is illegal, it reportedly occurs regularly in Wal?Mart stores.
General Questions
These are questions to help get a conversation going about important issues related to workplace rights. Once you’ve gotten to know the associates, they might be willing to start opening up about what it’s like to work at Wal-Mart.
I’ve been thinking about applying for a job at Wal?Mart. How do you like working here?
How’s the pay?
Do you have a regular schedule?
Do you get the same number of hours every week?
Are there health benefits here? How much is it? What’s covered?
Does Wal?Mart offer a pension?
I’ve heard about Wal?Mart’s "open door" policy. Does it really work?
Do people get promotions here?
Do you make enough money at Wal?Mart to keep up with your bills?
How often do you get pay increases?
I understand you get a bonus based on your store’s profits. Is it distributed fairly?
Are there disparities in pay for women compared with men’s pay a problem at Wal?Mart?
Do supervisors have favorites that they reward with promotions?
How often are your job evaluations done? Are they done on a regular basis with uniform criteria or just every once in a while?
Is having affordable health care a problem for you and your family?
Would you like to have preventive care for you and your kids covered by your health insurance?
Does having an unpredictable schedule cause problems with your family responsibilities?
Does Wal?Mart penalize you if you have to take time off to care for a sick child?
Does the fact that Wal?Mart doesn’t offer pensions for you and your co?workers to live on after you retire make you worry about the future?
Have your responsibilities on the job increased without an increase in pay?
Are you concerned about your personal safety here at Wal?Mart?
Is sexual harassment a problem at Wal?Mart?
Because American companies have a legal obligation to provide harassment?free workplaces, would it be helpful if you knew legal assistance was available to you if you are harassed on the job?
The following questions are appropriate to consider asking after you’ve gotten to know Wal?Mart workers and you think they may be willing to consider joining a union.
The Union Advantage
Did you know that under U.S. law, you have the right to have a union?
Did you know that it’s illegal for Wal?Mart to threaten you for talking about or supporting a union?
Did you know that women working in the retail industry earn 31 percent more in wages than women in nonunion stores?
Did you know that unions are democratic ... and that nobody can call a strike without a vote by two thirds of the members affected?
Did you know that in a union, you elect the leaders and set your own priorities?
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