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Companies can't stop you from unionizing, but as Walmart has shown time and again, they will straight up close a store and lay-off every employee there if there

Companies can't stop you from unionizing, but as Walmart has shown time and again, they will straight up close a store and lay-off every employee there if there are rumours of unionization. They would rather not have a store at all than have a store where the employees are unionized.

JAlexoid 6y ago
Ok... Is there a law somewhere that says that you have a right to have a Walmart? As an anarchist - why are people not willing to start a co-op?
- bumby 6y ago
  Short answer: people have limited bandwidth and are forced to pick their battles. Open your refrigerator, look in your closet. Can you say with certainty that you voted with your wallet by only supporting companies that adhere to your values? Today’s economy has too many interactions to have any confidence about how you vote with your wallet. In this case complexity, not religion, is the opiate of the masses. Most people’s lives are too complex and busy to “start a co-op”. I know the counter argument is probably “then they obviously don’t care enough” but that’s the pragmatic answer
  - JAlexoid 6y ago
    Well... The answer isn't to force Walmart to provide a service to them.
    - bumby 6y ago
      I don't know if you're strawmanning on purpose or missing the point. I also don't think the answer is "the market will just sort it out...eventually." Of course there is no law mandating Walmart provide a service. There are, however, laws governing how Walmart must treat employees. Part of their bad reputation is that they run afoul of these laws. I know the anarchist view is to just decide not to shop there. My point is that in a pragmatic sense, consumers in a globalized economy cannot assess all the information to do so, even if it was freely available. The counterargument is that regulators are the better alternative, which is why the Dept. of Labor has fined them in the past to correct that behavior.

JAlexoid 6y ago

Ok... Is there a law somewhere that says that you have a right to have a Walmart? As an anarchist - why are people not willing to start a co-op?

bumby 6y ago
Short answer: people have limited bandwidth and are forced to pick their battles. Open your refrigerator, look in your closet. Can you say with certainty that you voted with your wallet by only supporting companies that adhere to your values? Today’s economy has too many interactions to have any confidence about how you vote with your wallet. In this case complexity, not religion, is the opiate of the masses. Most people’s lives are too complex and busy to “start a co-op”. I know the counter argument is probably “then they obviously don’t care enough” but that’s the pragmatic answer
- JAlexoid 6y ago
  Well... The answer isn't to force Walmart to provide a service to them.
  - bumby 6y ago
    I don't know if you're strawmanning on purpose or missing the point. I also don't think the answer is "the market will just sort it out...eventually." Of course there is no law mandating Walmart provide a service. There are, however, laws governing how Walmart must treat employees. Part of their bad reputation is that they run afoul of these laws. I know the anarchist view is to just decide not to shop there. My point is that in a pragmatic sense, consumers in a globalized economy cannot assess all the information to do so, even if it was freely available. The counterargument is that regulators are the better alternative, which is why the Dept. of Labor has fined them in the past to correct that behavior.