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Statement By Joseph T. Hansen, International President, United Food and Commercial Workers Union: "In the National Debate on Health Care Reform Wal-Mart Has No Credibility"

Posted on: Tuesday, 8 May 2007, 15:00 CDT

The following represents the view of United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

Wal-Mart must go beyond public posturing and change its corporate practices before it can have any credibility in the national debate on health care reform.

The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) has long been a supporter of universal, affordable and quality health care coverage for all Americans. And we believe that a broad-based effort of all Americans is fundamental to achieving that goal. We are actively working with committed members of the business community, lawmakers, advocacy groups and other unions to solve our country's health care crisis.

Wal-Mart's attempt to insert itself into the health care debate fuels the kind of cynicism and mistrust that that comes out of the say-one-thing-but-do-another form of public discourse from powerful interests -- whether in the corporate or political arena.

Only last week, the internationally acclaimed Human Rights Watch issued a comprehensive indictment of the giant retailer, citing Wal-Mart with systematically violating the human and civil rights of Wal-Mart workers.

It's difficult to see how the world's largest corporation can have any moral standing in the effort to establish universal health care when it doesn't provide affordable health care benefits to its own employees.

Wal-Mart should be a leader in corporate responsibility -- instead the company's business practices encourage other employers to act irresponsibly.

American workers deserve better than Wal-Mart posturing. They deserve universal health care. Engaged and committed members of the business community must be a part of any solution to our country's health care crisis, and the UFCW will work with them and all other committed stakeholders to achieve that end.

In the meantime, we will continue our fight for good health care benefits for workers at the bargaining table. And we will continue our efforts on behalf of Wal-Mart workers so they can have affordable health care benefits and good wages.

UFCW President Joe Hansen was the only labor representative on the 14 member Citizens' Health Care Working Group mandated by Congress to make recommendations to the President and Congress for solving the health care crisis. The Working Group engaged nearly 40,000 Americans in an historic national dialogue over a nearly two-year period and submitted its recommendations last September. They can be accessed at: www.ufcw4healthcare.org

 For more information contact: Jill Cashen 202-728-4797 Contact via http://www.marketwire.com/mw/emailprcntct?id=D828EB604FF867F9  

SOURCE: United Food and Commercial Workers

Source: MARKET WIRE

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