This is a fascinating story, not of two cousins fighting over a corporation, although that is part of it, but of employees and customers fighting back against a corporate takeover.
The Market Basket is a chain of grocery stores in the Boston area, headquartered in Tewksbury, where some of the largest demonstrations have been taking place.
Arthur T. Demoulas was, until recently, CEO of the grocery store chain. He made sure that employees received decent pay and benefits and worked hard to provide an attractive product for his customers.
Predating the current action, there was a family feud going on between Arthur T and his cousin Arthur S, since the Arthur T side of the family stripped control from the Arthur S side. Over a decade of court action finally resulted in rulings against Arthur T and in the reinstatement of Arthur S. A year ago, Arthur S managed to gain control of the Board and tried to fire his cousin Arthur T. Employee resistance to that idea forced the Board to back down.
A month ago, the Board of Directors fired Arthur T Demoulas and replaced him with co-CEOs, Felicia Thornton and James Gooch. Since then, they have fired employees for their participation, and in some cases, like that of District Manager Tom Trainor, for their leadership of the protests.
Why would employees fight so hard for a corporate owner/CEO?
Employees at Market Basket receive very strong benefits, including participation in a profit sharing program. The company has historically also promoted from within, and it’s very normal for upper management to have worked for the company for several decades. Employees are worried that new leadership wants to operate the company in a way that stresses profits. (Market Basket is already profitable, and does billions of dollars in revenue with its 71 stores.) This could, theoretically, threaten those employees’ livelihood. Gooch and Thornton have said they intend to keep those benefits in place.
Employees also worry new leadership aims to sell the company; Thornton’s expertise historically has been in mergers and acquisitions. They say they are fighting for the preservation of the company. Moreover, they say it’s also about Demoulas himself, whom they hold in extremely high regard.
It is indeed unusual that management and rank-and-file employees would be participating in a movement together in support of an ousted executive, which might be one reason why employees have resisted the idea of unionizing.
Boston Globe
This is the action that I have been looking for. When workers finally say "We are mad as hell and we aren't going to take it anymore." When workers finally realize that they have a voice that can be heard. Granted, a union would have made it easier, and I am willing to bet that if Arthur S is not reinstated, a union would have a decent chance at organizing Market Basket employees.
The movement has grown to encompass not just employees and much of management, but the warehousemen and truckers who supply the stores, politicians and even a band, Monkey Knife Fight, which has written a rather catchy protest song for Market Basket employees.
Magic! Rude Parody ~ Food (Market Basket Protest Anthem)
The Board of Directors is scheduled to meet in Boston today.