Union agitators and their stooges, fresh from driving Hostess Brands into bankruptcy again, are barking about a walk-out at Wal-Mart on Black Friday. The basis for their complaint? “Retaliation.”

Note that “retaliation” is a loaded word for the normal consequences of bitching at work. It doesn’t matter if you’re an hourly employee, a hot-shot computer programmer, or a top-flight surgeon. The latter two cases are branded a “prima donna” and tolerated until a replacement can be found. And there is always someone who can replace them. The hourly worker is branded a complainer and since the pool of labor that can replace them is larger, they are shown the door sooner.

There is no mythical “right” to a job, a promotion, a transfer, better pay, or better working conditions. Last I checked, every Wal-Mart was air-conditioned and well-lit. The employees are given breaks, safety training, and protective equipment for the jobs they are performing. Even if all that was not true, the employees are not slaves—they are there of their own free will, doing a job for a market wage. That is, they are paid about the level it would take to attract someone of similar skills to do the same job.

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