2024 Shareholder Guide

 


Walmart and Amazon shareholders will soon meet to make major decisions about the companies’ futures – and the day to day lives of the people whose labor powers their stock value.

United for Respect Education Fund members are filing their own shareholder resolutions and supporting proposals that align with their expectations for a safe and equitable workplace.

This guide is informed by our experiences working for America’s two largest retailers and is intended for shareholders who recognize that worker wellbeing is central to company profits.

Racial & Gender Equity

Racial & gender discrimination in the workplace – in pay, hiring practices, promotions, or the company’s overall impact on communities – put companies at risk. But there are tools that can help ensure America’s biggest retailers address these issues, and Racial Equity Audits are being implemented at companies across the country. 

United for Respect Education Fund leaders are supporting these resolutions, which address racial & gender equity audits at Walmart and Amazon:

Walmart Proposal #5: Racial Equity Audit ✅

Amazon Item #8: Additional Reporting on Gender/Racial Pay ✅

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy.

Walmart

At Walmart, Black workers make up 2 out of every 10 employees, but only about 1 out of every 10 are in management (while white employees make up 6 out of every 10 people in management). 

This disparity is why United for Respect Education Fund has filed a Walmart shareholder resolution (Proposal #5) calling for an independent racial equity audit. 

In 2023, the company received an F on the Racial and Gender Pay Scorecard from Arjuna Capital and Proxy Impact. Walmart’s score was adjusted this year, after the company made a commitment to disclose adjusted and unadjusted pay gaps in 2025. 

While we appreciate the commitment made, we encourage Walmart to commission an independent review of pay gaps and to think more expansively about racial and gender equity in the workplace, beyond pay discrepancies. 

This resolution would protect both Walmart associates and shareholders by helping to create an equitable workplace where people can thrive while addressing reputational and legal risks that put the company in jeopardy. 

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy


Amazon

Amazon’s own company data shows a clear pattern of occupational segregation across race and gender, which is why Amazon Associates and United for Respect Education Fund leaders are supporting Arjuna Capital’s shareholder resolution (item 8) requesting additional reporting on gender and racial pay gaps. 

According to the company’s latest reporting, women make up half of Amazon’s U.S. employees but not even a third of Executive/Senior officials or managers or First/Middle officials and managers. 

Black workers and Hispanic workers each represent about a quarter of Amazon’s US workforce. But when it comes to Executive/Senior Officials and managers, only about 6% are Black and less than 5% are Hispanic. 

When you break down who makes it to the highest levels at Amazon, you find 1,699 white men, 150 Black men, and just 80 Black women.


"Amazon talks a lot about supporting employees in their career advancement. But I’ve seen coworkers repeatedly apply to open positions and then be denied without explanation.

When associates don’t see a path forward, they leave.

This contributes to Amazon’s high turnover problem, which has ranged from 70 to 100% in recent years and is estimated to cost the company $8 billion a year.

I myself attend school for HR Management. But I wonder whether there will actually be a place for me, a woman of color, in an HR role at Amazon in the future."

- Joan Morris, Amazon Warehouse Associate and United for Respect Education Fund Leader from Georgia.

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy

Health and Safety 

Frontline associates at Amazon and Walmart know the truth about what’s really going on inside our stores and facilities, and experience first hand the risks these companies are creating that put shareholders’ interests in jeopardy. 

Walmart Proposal #9 Workplace Safety and Violence Review✅

Amazon Item #17: Report on Warehouse Working Conditions✅

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy.


Walmart

Cynthia Murray, a 23-year Walmart Associate from Maryland, re-filed her resolution (Proposal #9) calling for an independent, third-party review of the impact company operations and policies have on the health and safety of associates and customers

Her resolution asks Walmart to assess whether current business practices are effectively  mitigating against the increased risk of exposure to illness, threats of physical harm, and high frequency of gun violence in and near Walmart stores that associates experience on a daily basis. In addition, the proposal asks for actionable recommendations to make Walmart a safer place to work and shop. 


“As one of the 1.6 million Walmart associates helping to keep Walmart’s vast retail network running, I know Walmart can be a dangerous place to work. Frontline retail associates and warehouse workers are exposed to a number of occupational hazards, from increased risk of exposure to illness and malfunctioning equipment, to threats of physical harm and even gun violence on the job. These hazards are only made worse by the understaffing, lack of paid sick leave, and inadequate safety training associates across the country already experience.” 

– Cynthia Murray, Walmart Associate and United for Respect/Education Fund Founder from Maryland

The National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) listed Walmart as one of the nation’s "Dirty Dozen" employers in 2019 and again in 2024. The 2024 report highlights the high frequency of gun related incidents and deaths at Walmart stores and several failures on the company's part to report serious illness and injury to OSHA, including the death of an associate from North Little Rock, Arkansas named Janikka Perry who died while on shift.

Incidents of gun violence, in particular, have become all too common at Walmart. According to Guns Down America, between January 1, 2020 and March 20, 2024 there were at least 473 gun related incidents and 104 gun related deaths at Walmart stores. United for Respect Education Fund tracked national and local media coverage from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023 and identified over 200 distinct incidents of violence at Walmart stores across the country, with at least 1 violent incident reported at a Walmart store every month. These incidents varied in severity but included: 132 gun violence incidents, 26 bomb threats, 23 physical assaults, and 10 incidents involving the violent use of a vehicle. 

Acts of violence and other injuries associated with violence is the third-leading cause of fatality for workers in the United States. Walmart’s own track record demonstrates that current efforts are failing to protect associates and customers alike, and there is an urgent need to conduct a close review of existing company policies and protocols. 

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy


Amazon

In 2023, Amazon shareholders came close to passing a resolution calling for an independent audit of warehouse working conditions. Since last year, workers have continued to endure workplace hazards at Amazon facilities across the country. 

OSHA is actively investigating 8 Amazon warehouses after the agency fined the company for exposing employees to ergonomic hazards capable of causing serious bodily harm and inaccurate safety recordkeeping. 

The DOJ is investigating Amazon based on suspicion that the company misreported injury data in order to obtain loans. 

U.S. Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced federal legislation to establish standards for safe warehouse work. Similar legislation was advanced in multiple states, including New York, Illinois, Minnesota, and even Texas. These bills instruct employers like Amazon to  be open with warehouse employees about productivity metrics and expected quotas, and some create protections for bathroom breaks and safety precautions. Amazon associates encourage shareholders to support the reintroduced resolution (Item #17) calling for an independent report on warehouse working conditions. 

Note: This is not a solicitation of authority to vote your proxy

Retail Worker Outreach to Shareholders

Amazon & Walmart associates take the truth about working in retail straight to shareholders to ensure they make informed decisions when it’s time to vote. 

Here are a few highlights from our engagements with investors in recent seasons: 

  • Walmart associates, elected officials, investors and advocates collectively called on Walmart’s Board of Directors and shareholders to address the company’s failings on racial equity and working conditions by voting for proposals that would improve workplace safety, provide a living wage and conduct audits around racial equity and human rights impacts during a May Day 2024 webinar. UFREF leaders TaNeka and Daniel also presented a petition for their fellow associates to sign, calling on Walmart board members, elected public officials and shareholders to address workplace safety and racial inequity at Walmart through conducting independent third-party audits to address these issues.

  • In March 2023, United for Respect Education Fund leaders from Amazon & Walmart joined with Dollar General associates at the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility’s Spring Conference in New York to share their stories and answer shareholder questions about occupational health and safety.

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