JOHANNESBURG (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th April, 2023) Members of the South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (SACCAWU) are set to demonstrate before the US Embassy in Pretoria on Wednesday over a dispute between South African retail group Massmart, which is owned by the US corporation Walmart, and the union, SACCAWU Coordinator, Lucas Ramatlhodi, told Sputnik on Wednesday.
The union hopes to impress on Washington to instruct Walmart to adhere to responsible business practices and comply with national laws and regulations, Ramatlhodi added.
"Walmart is a giant retailer of American origin and therefore a US corporate citizen conducting trade and business in South Africa. The march is to demand that the US take responsibility and call out Walmart for its conduct in a foreign country. We are calling on the US to instruct Walmart to be a responsible business and act within the confines as law, reasonability, fairness and in the interest of the fundamental development priorities of South Africa and its people," Ramatlhodi told Sputnik.
Walmart has acquired a major stake in Massmart, which owns the Makro retail giant. Makro fired a total of 600 workers in late February for downsizing purposes, prompting SACCAWU to call for a march to the US embassy to demand a reversal of the suspensions, which it said were unlawful. Makro also threatened to dismiss another 300 employees.
