From Oxfam America (http://www.oxfamamerica.org):
Today we’re writing to let you know that we just delivered petitions signed by more than 50,000 people across the country to some of the biggest US grocery stores: Albertson’s, Costco, Kroger, Walmart, and Whole Foods.
Together, we are calling on them to take concrete steps to protect their workers during the pandemic:
- Guaranteed paid sick leave.
- Better health and safety protections.
- Listening to and involving workers in decision-making around solutions.
This is a big step, but this fight is far from over. Please rush your signature NOW at https://secure2.oxfamamerica.org/page/s/us-grocery-stores-protect-your-workers so we can continue to pressure supermarkets to stop treating workers as expendable and be better during the pandemic.
Even as stay at home orders are starting to lift around the country, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to expose the deep systemic inequalities and massive failures in our economic system.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the $800 billion grocery industry: supermarket profits have soared since the crisis hit, while 3 million mostly low-wage workers risk their health and safety daily to provide us with the food we need, but work without key benefits and job security.
Oxfam recently did an analysis of the policies of these supermarkets and found that they are failing their workers during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We found that Whole Foods, in particular, continues to fall behind its competitors by not truly listening to what its workers say they need in terms of safety, protection, and dignity on the job.
At least 100 supermarket workers have died from COVID-19 complications, yet some companies have actually rolled back key policies on hazard pay at a time when their essential workers need it most.
During this crisis, it is vital that we ensure that all people are treated with respect and dignity.
P.S. If you’d like to learn more about how grocery stores are failing their workers, read more here.
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