For over 15 years UFCW Canada has been leading the fight in Canada to help Walmart Associates understand and exercise their rights as workers and to challenge Walmart’s impact on good jobs, communities and free speech.

But UFCW Canada is not alone. In fact, there are a number of unions and organizations around the globe who are leading similar fights against the world’s largest corporation.

“Walmart is having a huge impact on all of us as workers and community members in Canada, but what’s happening here in Canada is just the tip of the iceberg and just one piece of Walmart’s ambition to control the global retail market,” says UFCW Canada National President Wayne Hanley. “To really challenge the Walmart effect here at home, and make Walmart a more socially responsible company, we need to be part of a growing international response that includes progressive voices from around the globe.”

As part of the global response to the Walmart effect, the UFCW is fully collaborating with unions from Argentina, Brazil and Chile in a new initiative called the Walmart Worker Alliance. The Alliance is part of UNI Americas, a region within UNI Global Union encompassing North and South America.

The purpose of the Alliance is simple: whether a worker is in Montreal, Canada or Santiago, Chile, they share experiences and interests when they work for the same company. So the UNI Americas Walmart Workers Alliance was started to exchange information and create a forum for workers to communicate easily with each other and be up-to-date on what’s happening within the company in each country.

The Alliance will develop a common agenda and strategy to better coordinate and advance the interests of Walmart workers in North and South America.

To find out more about UFCW Canada’s role in the new Walmart Workers Alliance, go to www.walmartworkerscanada.ca.