Interfaith Perspective Regarding Walmart Workers

This Black Friday, thousands of workers and faith advocates across the country are protesting the low wages, lack of benefits, abusive scheduling practices, and unsafe conditions at Walmart stores and contracted warehouses.

Walmart and its contractors employ 1.4 million Americans, making it the largest retail employer in the nation. The corporation has the potential to set a high standard of honorable employment practices in the industry, but instead, workers are paid so little that the families of Walmart employees use an estimated 38% more in public assistance programs than the average families of other large retail employers. Walmart regularly outsources its warehouse work to other companies, where unpaid wages and health and safety violations are common, to avoid blame for such illegal cost-cutting measures.

As the prophet Isaiah writes, “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high” (Isaiah 58:3-4). Our God is a God of justice, who despises wickedness and cares for the oppressed.

The Jewish tradition believes in the dignity of all creation and in special care for the orphaned, widowed, and the stranger. As is written in the Book of Deuteronomy, “You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer, whether a fellow countryman or a stranger in one of the communities of your land. You must pay him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets, for he is needy and urgently depends upon it.” (24:14-15).

Islam is a religion that believes in freedom, justice, and equality. Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be on him, said, “When you hire, compensate the workers and treat them fairly.”

As the Catholic Catechism states, “A just wage is the legitimate fruit of work. To refuse or withhold it can be a grave injustice” (2434). In the New Testament, James writes, “Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.” (5:4).

As people of faith and conscience, we cannot be complicit in the exploitation of Walmart workers for the sake of our own convenience. We have a historic opportunity to be a part of a change whose time has come.

You can support these workers by joining or organizing an action in your community, or calling or delivering a letter in support of workers to your local Walmart store manager. Visit IWJ.org for more information or contact Jeanette Smith (jeanettesmith@sfiwj.org) for help organizing an action.