Los Angeles, UNITED STATES
Laid-off Walmart employees and supporters hold a news conference outside the Pico Rivera Walmart Store,...
Laid-off Walmart employees and supporters hold a news conference outside the Pico Rivera Walmart Store, which was recently closed on very short notice, in Los Angeles, California, April 20, 2015. The former employees dispute the claim they say was given by Walmart that the store was closed because of plumbing problems, and want to be given jobs in other stores. A union on Monday asked the National Labor Relations Board to force Wal-Mart to reinstate employees at five stores, accusing the retailer of closing the locations to retaliate against workers for attempts to organize for better pay and benefits. Wal-Mart Stores, which announced last week that it was temporarily closing five stores in Texas, Oklahoma, Florida and California to fix plumbing issues, denied the union's claims. It said it would work to reopen the stores, which employed about 2,200 people, as quickly as possible. REUTERS/David McNew