Phoenix Walmart Is Site Of Black Friday Protest

By Steve Shadley
Published: Friday, November 28, 2014 - 1:28pm
Updated: Friday, November 28, 2014 - 3:17pm
(Courtesy of Ben Scheel)
Protesters at the Walmart on Thomas Road in Phoenix on Friday.

Some union members are staging a demonstration outside of a Phoenix Walmart on Thomas Road on Friday in hopes of getting raises and full-time work for the store’s part-time employees. 

It’s part of organized protests outside Walmart stores across the country on one of the busiest shopping days of the holiday season.

Delia Garcia is a Walmart spokeswoman in Arizona and she’s downplaying the demonstrator’s claims about low pay.

“Walmart offers a competitive wage in addition to our full range of benefits for our employees, both full and part-time associates," Garcia said. "In Arizona the average, hourly full-time wage is $12.77 an hour."

But a spokesman with the union-backed groups protesting at Walmart says they want associate wages raised to $15 an hour.

Garcia believes the protesters, most of whom she said are not Walmart associates, are misinformed.

Garcia said 75 percent of Walmart managers started out as part-time associates. She said Walmart offers full-time workers affordable health care and other benefits, including assistance with school expenses.

The demonstrators say they’ve organized similar protests outside of 1,600 Walmart stores across the country Friday.

Updated 11/28/2014 at 3:17 p.m.

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