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Striking Walmart employees will still be allowed to picket under the terms of the restraining order [PDF] approved by Judge John Scott on Monday. But OUR Walmart, UFCW, and “all other persons or entities who act in concert with them” are prohibited from joining the workers. While the order doesn’t get more specific than that, such a broad classification could include national coalition partners such as American Rights At Work (ARAW), local grassroots organizations, laid-off Walmart employees, and employees of Walmart contractors.
“It’s very disconcerting that they’re tacking this tack,” said ARAW research director Erin Johansson. “We’ve covered a lot of companies who have tried to silence their employees when standing up, and I’ve never seen them go after community leaders this way.”
Johansson is the author of an ARAW report, issued last month, which claims that Walmart has attempted to “curb freedom of speech and assembly” through the systematic use of trespass lawsuits against protesters. Groups like UFCW, OUR Walmart and state-level affiliates of the Jobs with Justice coalition have been the target of such lawsuits, while former employees have received written trespassing warnings and been handcuffed.
Walmart spokesperson Kory Lundberg said that the company filed a restraining order because employees were concerned about possible disruptions to their work.
