沃尔玛黑色周五大罢工的利益博弈

    今天，吃完感恩节大餐之后，数千名沃尔玛（Wal-Mart ）员工不会走亲访友，看球赛，甚至连刷碗的时间都没有，因为他们要赶着去工作，迎接想买便宜货的顾客们。

    但今年与以往不同，这家零售业巨头的部分员工却拒绝以这样的方式过节。叶塞尼亚·亚伯尔便是其中的一位。她是芝加哥沃尔玛的一名收银员，她说，虽然自己需要这份工作来抚养五个未成年的孩子，但她已经跟老板说过，自己不能在感恩节上班。

    从黑色星期五开始，美国就开始进入节日购物季。过去两年里，每到黑色星期五，亚伯尔一大早就要开始在超市的工作。而今年，她说自己被安排轮班，为晚上8点开始的感恩节特购会做准备。对于她来说，它不仅关系到能不能和孩子们一起共进节日大餐，同时也是一个实际的问题。

    她说：“我不能加班。因为我妈妈在帮我带孩子。其中有两个孩子需要特殊护理。我妈妈肯定不能熬一整个晚上。”

    而沃尔玛也有很实际的理由。开门大抢购绝对是一场商业盛宴。去年，仅仅四天的感恩节购物周末，沃尔玛的销售额就达到了524亿美元，比前一年上涨了16%。抢购大幅打折的平板电视或平板电脑不仅是和其他同样精打细算的购物者们血拼，同时也是一个象征，可以在别人面前显摆自己抄底价购物的能力。

    本月早些时候，沃尔玛及其竞争对手塔吉特（Target）和西尔斯百货（Sears）等，都宣布特卖会将从周四晚开始，而不是周五的凌晨。

    沃尔玛通常会在感恩节正常营业。以前，员工可自行选择在这一天上班，赚些节日加班费，如今却成为冲突的源头。今年感恩节，顾客们并不是来这里随便买些东西，而是要成群结队地到沃尔玛大采购。为了应对可能大批涌入的急切的购物者，各大超市不得不增员，保证各个岗位的人员齐备。

    感恩节是一个跨越了宗教、收入、种族和其他界限的节日，各大商家正在一点点蚕食购物季市场，沃尔玛员工们对公司的对抗行为却变得越来越明显，尽管经济形势仍充满了不确定性。

    Thousands of Wal-Mart employees won't be pushing away from the Thanksgiving meal today to visit with family, watch football, or even clean the dishes. Instead, they'll be heading to work to welcome bargain-hunting shoppers.

    But some of the retail giant's employees are opting out this year. One of those is Yesenia Yaber, a cashier at a Chicago Walmart (WMT) store, who says she really needs her job to support her five young children, says she's told her bosses that she can't work on Thanksgiving.

    For the past two years, Yaber, who has protested working conditions as part of the union-backed group OUR Walmart, has worked in the early morning for the store's Black Friday sales, the kickoff of the holiday shopping season. This year, she says she was assigned to a shift to prepare for the store's 8 p.m. Thanksgiving Day opening. For her, it's not only about being with her children for the holiday meal, it's also a practical matter.

    "I can't work overnight," she says. "My mom babysits the kids. Two of my kids are special needs. She can't stay up all night."

    For Wal-Mart, it's also a matter OF practicality, though. The door-buster sale is a commercial juggernaut. Last year, stores racked up $52.4 billion in sales over the four-day Thanksgiving shopping weekend, up 16% over the previous year. Nabbing that heavily discounted flat screen TV or tablet isn't just about jostling with fellow budget-minded shoppers; it is a badge of bargain-hunting prowess.

    Earlier this month, Wal-Mart and its competitors, including Target (TGT) and Sears (SHLD), announced that bargain specials would start Thursday evening instead of the pre-dawn hours of Friday.

    Walmart stores are typically open on Thanksgiving Day, but what was once an optional way for workers to make some holiday overtime cash has now become a source of confrontation. This year, customers will not just be coming in for miscellaneous purchases but are expected to be arriving in droves for serious shopping. To cope with the expected surge of eager shoppers, stores have to be staffed up with a full cadre of employees.

    As commerce nibbles away at the one holiday that cuts across religious, income, ethnic, and other American divides, Wal-Mart workers are becoming bolder about saying no, even in this uncertain economy.