Wal-Mart organizers claim a victory you probably didn't hear about

OUR Walmart members march in the L.A. Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade.

Wal-Mart organizers are claiming a win after U.S. president and CEO said last week that the retailer would make it easier for employees to work more hours.

One of Wal-Mart workers' biggest complaints is that they can't work the number of hours they want. They need to work 34 hours to qualify for health care benefits.

aol.jobs reports:

Derrick Plummer, a spokesman for Making Change at Walmart, the campaign to improve conditions at the chain, said the announcement was "no coincidence," following months of campaigning by OUR Walmart, the union-backed advocacy group. In a written statement, Plummer called it "a victory for the nearly half a million Walmart workers who will be affected" and "a key victory for a cause championed from the very beginning of OUR Walmart."

Here's what President Bill Simon said at the National Retail Federation convention last week:

...we’ll make sure part-time associates have full visibility into full time job openings in their stores and nearby stores – and that they always have the first shot at those jobs.  We will also bring more transparency to our scheduling system so part-time workers can choose more hours for themselves. 

OUR Walmart is following up on that promise. Here's a post from their Facebook page:

At store #2196 in Port Angeles, WA OUR Walmart members Edythe N Slowey and Larry Slowey are making sure that every Associate has a copy of the memo about part-timers getting access to more hours. The store has now posted available hours by the time clock. Has anything changed at your store?

It's a start...