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The trade union, Interempresa Lider Walmart Chile, which has 14 thousand affiliates, has been conducting an ongoing collective dialogue with the American group, which up until now has had no significant or acceptable results for the Walmart workers. As a result of this, 1500 workers voted to take action and organise a legal strike on the 30^th of July throughout the entire country.



ACuenta is considered, the “poor relative” of Walmart, with workers only receiving the minimum wage and generally having low standards of security and work conditions. The workers of ACuenta are forced to buy their breakfast in the very supermarket that is practicing such poor labour standards out of their own pocket. Additionally, they are frequently victims of aggravated assaults and robberies by thugs who terrorize employees due to the low presence of security at the supermarkets.



The trade union has indicated that, starting with the vote to strike on the 30^th of July, the workers movement will increasingly apply pressure on the company until their demands are met. Furthermore, union leaders have maintained that the Walmart group, a leader in global supermarket chains, cannot continue to employ workers in such pitiful conditions and provide insufficient remuneration to raise a family in Chile.



Additionally, at noon last Thursday, 100 ACuenta workers managed to take the offices of American supermarket leader, Walmart. After a break down in collective negotiation started on the 18^th of June, workers decided to take action into their own hands.



The trade union leader, Rodrigo Aguilar, stated that “we will perform a protest with drums outside the Walmart Chile corporate building” and confirmed that the response from Walmart Executives did not satisfy the minimum expectations of worker groups. Aguilar stated that “Walmart presented their latest offer, which did not satisfy any of the workers’ basic needs. Their offer denotes a lack of respect for us and we think it’s a joke. ACuenta workers receive the minimum wage and have no chance for increases in their salaries, and we therefore deem it necessary to speak out”.