Students and Workers Tell Walmart: Stop profiting from forced labor in Louisiana!
By Ben Bull, a SLAP student at UMass – Amherst
In the dark hours of the night, when most of us college students are just going to bed, a guest workers from Mexico are waking up to endure another day of exploitation at C.J.’s Seafood in Louisiana. “We wake up at 1:30am every morning, and have to be at work by 2am. We work from 2 to 5pm, Monday through Saturday.” During those long hours, workers shell crawfish caught along the gulf coast. Workers, like those at C.J.’s, are recruited to come work under false promises of good pay. They are mothers, fathers, daughters, and sons, ranging in age from mid-40s to as young as 20.
Upon arrival however, the workers are subjected to forced labor, wage theft, constant surveillance, verbal and sometimes physical abuse, long hours, and unsafe working conditions. Workers are provided housing, but even that is minimal.“We live in trailers, but they are horrible. Insects get inside all the time, there are huge roaches, and even rats,” reported the workers. Workers are not afforded any respect by management. “When we speak to the boss, we can’t look him in the eye, we have to stare at the ground.”
When workers at C.J.’s attempted to report their mistreatment, management responded with a heavy hand. “One time we called the police to report how badly we were being treated, and the next morning the boss woke us up and threatened us, accusing of us of trying to hurt his family.” The workers come from an area of Mexico embroiled in an on going drug war, and management often uses this as a threat against the workers and their families, “They said they knew “good people” and “bad people” in Mexico. They told us that if we tried to hurt the company, then they would not only hurt us, but hurt our families back in Mexico.”
Despite living under the constant threat of violence and fear of retaliation, workers at C.J.’s have had enough of living and working in such horrible conditions and have gone on strike to demand dignity, respect, and fairness. “We are not just fighting for ourselves, but for future workers. They will not let us return to work there next year, but we want to make sure others are treated better than we were.”
But the workers are not targeting C.J.’s Seafood. No, they are going after one of the most notorious violators of worker rights, Walmart. C.J. Seafood provides Walmart with crawfish to sell in their stores. Walmart has the power to stop the exploitation of guest workers. Walmart can put an end to forced labor, wage theft, and the threats of violence. But they are not. Instead, they are trying to cover up abuses and ignore blatant human rights violations.
But the workers are resolute in their fight for justice. They are standing up to the largest employer in the world and demanding Walmart put and end to such injustice. I had the honor of meeting these brave men and women last night. Hearing their stories and seeing them work to create a more equitable and just world was an incredibly moving and inspiring moment. As students in the United States, we cannot be complacent about human rights violations happening in our country. As students, we must hold Walmart accountable for ignoring the plight of workers. As students, we must stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters and support them in their struggle.
We have a role to play in this fight. First, sign the petition to tell Walmart to stop profiting from forced labor. Then, have your friends sign it. Educate your family, friends, and campus about what is going on in Louisiana. Together, we can win justice for workers in Louisiana.
It was so wrong for me to think that practices like these are not happening anymore. I hope Walmart change for the better.