Header image by Oxana Melis on Unsplash
Colorado shoppers are working harder than ever, but too often they’re coming up short. This summer, Coloradans at the checkout line find themselves squeezed by rising prices, shrinking paychecks on the job and corporations quietly walking back their promises to our communities. Many retailers, especially big ones like Walmart and Target, want us to believe these bad times are unavoidable, the product of inflation or tariffs or “efficiency.” But the truth is simpler: big retailers are padding their profits while workers, small businesses and consumers pay the price. It is time for Colorado lawmakers to step up and level the playing field.
The retailers want us to believe they are victims of circumstance; that when they raise prices, it’s because their costs are going up; that when wages stagnate or hours get cut, it’s because the math no longer works; that caving to the right’s demands to cancel diversity, equity, & inclusion programs is just the cost of doing business under the second Trump administration. We shouldn’t buy their excuses anymore.
I’ve spent my career fighting for workers’ rights across the country, including right here in Colorado. I’ve seen how hard people work to make ends meet, how much they sacrifice, and how often they’re treated as disposable. These are the same people who showed up every day during the COVID pandemic to keep shelves stocked and families fed. Now, they’re being rewarded with higher prices, fewer protection and shrinking paychecks, all while the retailers they work for rake in profits.
The truth is that big box retailers have never had our communities’ best interests at heart. Just this summer, Walmart agreed to pay $5.6 million to settle a consumer protection lawsuit in California for systematically overcharging customers. The lawsuit revealed that Walmart had been selling produce, baked goods and other prepared items that weighed less than what was labeled on the package, effectively forcing customers to pay more for less product.
Now there is news that these stores want to deploy digital shelf prices, so that they can change prices instantly. Stores claim they will never hike prices during storms or when stocks run low, but what has the retail industry done to earn our trust?
Too often, big box retailers have turned national emergencies into opportunities to squeeze Coloradans.
We saw this behavior at the height of COVID. When panic buying sent shockwaves through supply chains, some retailers quietly pushed up prices on everyday essentials like milk, eggs and other necessities, far beyond what inflation could justify.
A Federal Trade Commission investigation later confirmed that food and beverage retailers increased their revenues well above their costs during that period. A senior executive at a major grocery chain even admitted to raising prices on basic necessities beyond what inflation required. Even as supply chains normalized, consumers rarely saw prices come down.
This summer, we are watching history repeat itself as retailers are using Trump’s tariffs as the new scapegoat. Walmart has raised prices on items like baby gear and kitchenware, with experts predicting that the price of groceries will soon follow. Target has announced it will also increase prices on certain items. Even Home Depot, which previously said it didn’t expect to raise prices, recently announced that it will raise prices on certain products.
Given what happened during COVID, it is reasonable for consumers to question if new price hikes are really because of tariffs, or if tariffs are just another chance for big box retailers to boost their profit margins at the expense of working families.
Now, more than ever, it is important that Colorado’s representatives in Denver and Washington, DC, speak up for workers and tell these stores to do a better job of honoring America’s values. In the streets, shoppers are boycotting Walmart and Target in response to the stores’ rollback of diversity programs. Our elected leaders should match that energy by protecting the rights of consumers and workers.
Wynn Howell is the Colorado State Director of Working Families Party. They are a longtime organizer in the Labor and LGBTQ+ movements.
