Mayor Daley Squawks About Wal Mart

By Kevin Robinson in News on Jul 23, 2009 5:40PM

Although it seemed that Da Mare wasn’t about to step into the fray of (yet another) Wal-Mart in Chicago a few months ago, he’s come out behind Howard Brookins and his efforts to bring the massive retailer into the South side’s Chatham neighborhood. Claiming that Wal-Mart jobs are aren’t meant to provide long-term stable employment in a community, he took a shot at the United Food and Commercial Workers union, who’s members work at Jewel and Dominick’s stores across the region. “When they hire, you know, a couple of thousand people - you know, these are beginning jobs,” the mayor told WBEZ. “People want to just start some place,” he said, adding that he doesn’t understand why unions get upset when Wal-Mart wants to open in Chicago, but not in the suburbs. Mayor Daley’s staff may be updating his YouTube page, but they don’t seem to be checking the rest of the internet much.

Meanwhile, construction and manufacturing jobs took one of the largest dives locally this spring, with losses near or above 10 percent. Neither Mayor Daley or Alderman Brookins have had much to say about job opportunities for Chatham residents in those employment sectors.