Walmart Responds to Protests

Says protesters demanding higher pay are "a handful of union-orchestrated media stunts, made of up of primarily union members and activists."

A Wal-Mart activist group is saying that the New York Police Dept. has arrested three Wal-Mart (WMT) protesters in midtown New York today.

The arrests came amid a nationwide protest, says Making Change at Wal-Mart, a coalition of Wal-Mart worker activists. The group says protests will be rolling out throughout the day in 15 cities from coast to coast, including Los Angeles, Sacramento, Chicago, Boston, Dallas, Miami and New York. The demonstrators are demanding a hike in pay at the nation's biggest retailer to a minimum $25,000 annually, and the reversal of disciplinary actions allegedly filed against 80 workers due to their involvement in Wal-Mart protests last Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.  

Wal-Mart tells FOX Business that the average pay of its workers already is $25,000 annually, that its workers get benefits, unlike other retailers, and that the protests are "a handful of union-orchestrated media stunts,  made of up of primarily union members and activists." For its full response, see bottom.