CHARLOTTE – A group of about 15 people demanded better pay for Walmart workers at a rally at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center Monday.
The group called the “Expose Walmart Tour” is demanding that the retail giant release its wage data.
They believe tax dollars should not be subsidizing Walmart’s low wages. The group says a single, full-time Walmart employee working 34 hours a week with two children qualifies for Medicaid and food stamps even if they make Walmart’s average wage claim of $13.75 for full-time, hourly workers.
They also say U.S. taxpayers pay an estimated $6.2 billion every year to cover Walmart’s cost for their employees government assistance needs, making Walmart one of the largest corporate welfare recipients in the country.
The Expose Walmart Tour began May 15 in Phoenix and will end at Walmart’s annual shareholders meeting in Arkansas on June 2.
In an interview with Forbes talking about the report the protesters are basing their information, a Walmart spokesperson described it as, "inaccurate and misleading."