????沃爾瑪員工及其支持者們，包括工會的支持者們，一直在抗議沃爾瑪的做法，罷工活動已經蔓延到美國4,000家門店。這個位于阿肯色州班頓維爾的零售業巨頭一直堅決反對公司140萬名員工加入工會。

????沃爾瑪沒有對此進行任何評論。最初，沃爾瑪對“我們的沃爾瑪”（OUR Walmart，全稱Organization United for Respect at Walmart.）組織的罷工不予理睬。沃爾瑪表示，公司留住了大部分員工，將支付12.54美元的時薪，高于零售業的平均水平。

????沃爾瑪發言人戴維·托瓦認為，工會一直在精心策劃罷工。美國食品及零售業聯合工會（United Food and Commercial Workers Union）及其下屬機構“改變沃爾瑪”（Making Change At Walmart），一直在積極組織針對美國最大零售商的示威活動。

????然而，11月15日，沃爾瑪向美國勞資關系委員會投訴（National Labor Relations Board），要求禁止示威活動，理由是美國聯邦勞動法規定，在類似公開示威30日后，必須通過正式投票來成立工會。此舉讓沃爾瑪的支持者和反對者們均感震驚。

????與亞伯爾類似的工人們表示，他們關注的是生計問題，而不是是否加入工會。亞伯爾的時薪不足10美元，她希望自己的最低時薪能漲到12美元，有更多全時工作，以及更便宜的醫療保險。

????據紐約一家調查機構Demos公布的信息顯示，如果達到她期望的工資水平，700,000名美國員工將擺脫貧困。此外，Demos估計，漲薪還能額外增加100,000個工作崗位，消費者需要承擔的成本是每次購物多花0.15美元。

????除了員工的擔心外，最近幾個月，沃爾瑪被指控在國外為開設新店行賄，使公司一貫的嚴肅形象倍受打擊。

????自2009年便在洛杉磯一家沃爾瑪超市工作的丹·辛德曼反問說：“你看，他們為了去其他國家開一家店，花了那么多錢，為什么不能在美國員工身上多投入一些呢？”

????28歲的辛德曼是一位電子產品售貨員，曾在下班時間參加過“我們的沃爾瑪”組織的示威活動。他打算在周五晚上規定的輪班時間去參加罷工，到店鋪門前示威，這是他第一次這么做。

????辛德曼稱，他的時薪是9.80美元，工作時間也不固定。他說自己之所以參加示威，是因為“他們這樣對待我們不公平。”他說，明年他的保險費將上漲超過三分之一，目前是每兩周約106美元。而與此同時，沃爾瑪還打算降低公司供款額度。

????他說道：“我沒法陪四歲的兒子過圣誕節，現在連感恩節也成了泡影。當初我被錄用的時候，我還想著在沃爾瑪肯定有個好前程。社會需要知道發生了什么情況。沃爾瑪也是社會的一部分。”

????但盡管如此，辛德曼還是表示，自己下周的上班時間已經被大幅縮短，他認定這是對自己參加示威活動的報復。我們無法確定真正的原因，但周三，托瓦爾在接受哥倫比亞廣播公司（CBS）《晚間新聞》（Evening News）節目采訪時稱，如果員工（沃爾瑪稱售貨員）不按規定上班，“根據具體情況，他們將承擔由此產生的后果。”

????Workers and their backers, who include those who are friendly to unions, have been protesting against?Wal-Mart's practices, with walkouts scattered across some of the 4,000 stores across the country. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailing behemoth has staunchly resisted efforts to unionize its 1.4 million workers.

????Wal-Mart, which did not respond to a request for comment, initially brushed off the demonstrations by OUR Walmart, which stands for Organization United for Respect at Walmart. The company has said that it retains a large percentage of employees and pays $12.54 an hour, a higher wage than the retail industry average.

????A Wal-Mart spokesman, David Tovar, has held that the walkouts have been orchestrated by unions. The United Food and Commercial Workers Union, whose affiliate is called Making Change At Walmart, has been active in organizing picketing against the country's largest retailer.

????But Wal-Mart startled friends and foes by lodging a complaint on Nov. 15 with the National Labor Relations Board, seeking to bar demonstrations on grounds that federal labor law requires a formal vote to unionize after 30 days of such public protests.

????Workers like Yaber say they are focused on bread-and-butter issues, not unionizing. She makes under $10 per hour and said she would like to have the minimum hourly wage raised to $12, and see more full-time work schedules as well as less expensive health care insurance.

????That level of pay would raise 700,000 American workers out of poverty, according to a report issued this week from Demos, a New York-based research group. It also estimated that the increase would create an additional 100,000 jobs, at a cost to customers of $.15 per shopping trip.

????Aside from worker concerns, Wal-Mart's no-nonsense reputation has been buffeted in recent months by allegations of bribery to set up stores in foreign countries.

????"When you see that they go to another country and spend so much money to open one store, why can't they spend more on workers here," asked Dan Hindman, who has worked for a Los Angeles-area Walmart store since 2009.

????A sales associate in electronics, 28-year-old Hindman has participated in OUR Walmart protests in his off time. He plans, for the first time, to walk out during his scheduled shift Friday evening to protest in front of the store.

????Hindman, who says he makes $9.80 an hour and works a varied schedule, says he is speaking out because "How they treat us isn't fair." Next year, he says that his insurance premiums, about $106 every two weeks, will increase by more than one-third. At the same time, Wal-Mart is cutting back its contributions.

????"I can't spend Christmas with my four-year-old son. Now it's Thanksgiving. I thought when I was hired that there was a future with Wal-Mart," he says. "The community needs to know what is going on. Wal-Mart is part of the community."

????Even so, Hindman says his hours for next week already have been cut back significantly, which he believes is retaliation for speaking out. There was no way of ascertaining whether the reason, but Tovar, speaking to?CBS Evening News?Wednesday, said that if employees -- called associates by Wal-Mart -- don't show up, "depending on the circumstances, there could be consequences."