The staunchly anti-union stance of many of this country’s big box retailers is ironically manifesting itself this holiday season by silencing the familiar bell-ringing of the Salvation Army. Today’s Boston Globe reports that Salvation Army giving has been cut in half in towns like Greenfield, Massachusetts, because one of the Army’s flagship stores, Ames, has closed, and sits empty. So in this time of Christmas giving, the Salvation Army finds itself with plenty of kettles, but nowhere to put them. Retailers like Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Kohl’s and other national chains will not allow groups to solicit funds in front of their stores, because if they allow such groups access, they have to allow other groups, like unions, to set up tables as well. The issue stems from a 1992 Supreme Court decision involving defunct discount store Lechmere and the National Labor Relations Board. That ruling held retailers could have a uniform rule prohibiting solicitations on their property — but couldn’t discriminate against unions, if they allowed others access. So no one gets access, even the Girls Scouts and the Salvation Army. Many of the New England chain stores that did allow the Salvation Army to solicit, have been turned into dust by the larger chains. “New England has been especially hard hit,” a Salvation Army spokesman told the Globe. “If you think back, we had Ames, Caldor, Bradlees. A lot of those storefronts are sitting vacant.” The national chains are now vying with each other to take over the dead stores of defunct regional chains. Home Depot, which has moved into Bradlees sites, and empty Caldors stores, is now trying to move into the Greenfield Ames, does not allow charity solicitations. “It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’re doing, you can’t solicit for any purpose,” Home Depot spokesman John Simley said. Kohl’s Corp., the Wisc.-based retailer that took over some Bradlees leases, such as the one in Woburn, MA, has a policy against fund-raising outside its stores. A spokeswoman for Kohl’s says the company doesn’t want to have to choose “between one worthwhile organization and another.” So Salvation Army giving, which goes into a fund for programs that provide meals, shelter, toys, youth, and addiction-recovery services, is off by 15%. It will be a Silent Night in front of many of the wealthiest discount retailers, because of their fear of organized labor.
Sprawl-Busters has written about the “no solicitation” policy in earlier battles with Wal-Mart. For more related background, search this database by “unions”.
