Demoulas Market Basket Woes Continue

This story comes from the “so outrageous it has to be true” files.  If you have not been following the news recently (or do not buy groceries on the East Coast) you’ve probably never heard of DeMoulas Market Basket.  I hadn’t either, until I heard a piece about the grocer on NPR earlier this week. 

The company has been losing millions of dollars a week because the entire staff walked out of the company.  Their strike and protests are not caused by a lack of pay for workers, a disagreement about benefits, or an expiring labor contract. 

No, the workers are striking because their CEO was fired.

You read that right.  Thousands of minimum-wage workers have walked off the job to show solidarity with their millionaire former CEO Arthur T. DeMoulas, who was pushed out of the job by his cousin (and president of the board), Arthur S. DeMoulas. 

  

This outcry by the employees is pretty well unprecedented in the modern world.  Despite all of the populist rage across the globe about the excessive wealth held by the “1%”, this group of workers has such loyalty to their former executive that they’re willing to sacrifice their own well-being to support him.

From WBZ-TV, the CBS Boston affiliate:

Joe Schmidt, a manager and Market Basket employee of 27 years, said he didn’t regret his decision, even after a courier knocked on his front door over the weekend with a termination letter.

“I know at the end of the day I did the right thing. I know I can look my children in the eye and tell them, ‘Hey, I took a stand for something,’ and you know that’s far more important than any job will ever be,” he told WBZ-TV.

Reading the various quotes about “Artie T”, you don’t really get the feeling that he’s doing anything out of the ordinary – he is visible to his employees, he knows people by name, he makes visits to each and every one of the stores on a regular basis, and he has built a culture of excellence across all levels.  Any decent leaders should do those things (and, as a leader, you may think you’re doing them, but you won’t actually know unless you ask). 

What makes Arthur T DeMoulas stand out, as far as I can tell, is the sense of ownership he has created in his people.  Over and over you see quotes like the following:

Market Basket employee Linda Kulis said she is “100 percent sure” she will lose her job but remains committed to take a stand to support DeMoulas.

“This is our company,” Kulis said. “We’ve all worked here. We’ve all built it. Together.”

“We’ve all built it together.”  These people aren’t just out protesting to protect their boss – they’re out three protesting to protect their team.

And that is the real question that you should be asking yourself.  As a leader, what are you doing to build a team that has this spirit of camaraderie, mutual respect, and shared sacrifice?  If you were fired tomorrow, would anyone come with you?