Bernie Sanders urges Walmart board to pay workers more
NEW YORK (AP) — Bernie Sanders took his latest fight against corporate America to Walmart's home turf.
The Vermont senator and 2020 Democratic presidential contender lambasted Walmart leaders including its CEO on Wednesday for paying workers what he believes are "starvation wages" and introduced a shareholder proposal that calls for hourly associates to have a seat on the company's board.
During a brief address at the company's annual shareholders' meeting held near its headquarters in Rogers, Arkansas, Sanders called on Walmart to pay its hourly workers at least $15 per hour. Sanders was invited by Walmart worker Carolyn Davis, who is a member of a labor backed-group called United for Respect, to speak in support of the resolution.
"Frankly, the American people are sick and tired of subsidizing some of the greed of some of the largest corporations in this country," he said in his three-minute address.
The Walmart board also faced a shareholder proposal to strengthen its sexual harassment procedures, filed by United for Respect. It calls for formalizing the board's oversight responsibility, aligning senior executive compensation incentives, and it urged the company to report to shareholders by the end of the calendar year on any actions it's taken. The nation's largest private employer says such a proposal is unnecessary and says it has strong procedures and training programs in place.
With Walmart's founder's descendants owning about 50% of the stock, the proposals don't have any chance of passing. Still, it's the latest pressure that Walmart and other corporations are facing to do right by its workers.
Sanders has a history of blasting corporations from Walmart to McDonald's and Amazon.
At McDonald's shareholders' meeting in late May, presidential candidates...