Wall Street Journal (11/19/12) Shelly Banjo; Ann Zimmerman

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. filed an unfair-labor-practice complaint against a union the company says is behind plans for worker protests at its stores over the Thanksgiving holiday. Wal-Mart filed the complaint on Nov. 15 against the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, asking the National Labor Relations Board to issue an injunction against worker rallies and pickets that have been staged at Wal-Mart stores and warehouses across the country for at least the last six months.

Wal-Mart employees have filed roughly 20 unfair-labor-practice charges since August with the National Labor Relations Board. Several of the charges have been dismissed or withdrawn and others are under review in the regions where they were filed. Wal-Mart confirms that it has taken actions such as sending instruction manuals to managers on how to legally respond to striking workers. So far the NLRB hasn’t issued any complaints related to the retail stores, but it has issued two complaints related to allegations at Wal-Mart warehouses.