Business & Tech
Ousted Market Basket CEO: Give Workers Their Jobs Back
Rallies and boycotts in support of ousted CEO expected to continue today.
By Liz Taurasi
More rallies are expected Tuesday at all Market Basket locations as employees enter a fifth day of showing their support for ousted CEO Arthur T. Demoulas. Employees hope their efforts, as well as the community’s support will pay off when the Market Basket board meets Friday.
Demoulas was ousted in June when a majority of the company's board shifted in support of Arthur T.'s cousin and rival, Arthur S. Demoulas. Arthur T. Demoulas was replaced with two co-CEOs from outside the company.
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
Speaking out publically on the situation for the first time, Arthur T. issued a statement late Monday on the situation calling Market Basket employees “fiercely loyal” and urging the company’s board to reinstate those who lost their job over the weekend.
His statement reads:
Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.
"This is the first time I have commented publicly on the recent events at Market Basket. The success of Market Basket is the result of two things: a business model that works and the execution of it by a dedicated and impassioned team of associates. Their fierce loyalty to the company and its customers has always been deeply valued. In the final analysis, this is not about me. It is about the people who have proven their dedication over many years and should not have lost their jobs because of it. I urge that they be reinstated in the best interest of the company and our customers."
Market Basket has locations in Westford, Chelmsford, and Billerica.
Shelves are bare in stores throughout the chain. Customers are also showing their support, not shopping at their go-to market and posting their loyalty across social media until employees are heard. Deliveries to markets within the chain were halted during Friday’s work stoppage at the Tewksbury warehouse.
Customers are showing their support in a different way Tuesday morning -- they are taping receipts from other markets they shopped at to store windows of various Market Basket locations.
Thousands of employees rallied at Market Basket’s Tewksbury headquarters on Friday and an even larger group gathered Monday at at Tewksbury store location.
On Monday, more than three dozen elected officials across the state of Massachusetts joined that cause, pledging their support for a Market Basket boycott and challenged their colleagues to do the same.
Market Basket board members are expected to meet Friday. Employees are hoping to see the fruits of their efforts at Friday’s board meeting and have the board put Arthur T. back at the helm.
Until then, employees vow to continue fighting right up until that meeting.
A statement on the “We are Market Basket” website addresses the strength employees have shown that grew with them working for this organization from their first days. Equating their journey as training for the “marathon of a fight” they’ve been in for the past year, the group says they are nearing the end.
“We are nearing the end of the marathon and we need trust that strength so that we can finish strong," the group says on its website. "We survived the torture of our Heartbreak Hill on June 23 when ATD, BM and Rocky were fired. Yesterday we ran through the thunderous crowds of Kenmore Square and now we turn on to Boylston Street with the finish line in sight. The hardest but most rewarding part lays right in front of us. Dig deep, trust your years and decades of training and pick up the pace. Keep your eyes on the prize and FINISH STRONG!”
More on the Market Basket Situation:
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
