A number of unions, American and global alike, have recently launched high-profile websites aimed at focussing public attention on the giant retailer.

Wal-Mart Watch (http://walmartwatch.com/) is a project of the Center for Community & Corporate Ethics, and if that name means nothing to you, its Board of Directors lists "Andrew Stern, President, Service Employees International Union" first. The 1.8 million member SEIU is one of the unions that has Wal-Mart in its sites. Stern himself has urged the AFL-CIO, the national trade union centre in the United States, to devote tens of millions of dollars to organizing Wal-Mart. This website is dominated by frequently-updated news about the company, but also includes a mailing list, a tell-a-friend option, and a suggestion box for "your ideas ... to build a better Wal-Mart".

Another union-backed initiative is Wake Up Wal-Mart (http://www.wakeupwalmart.com/), sponsored the the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). Like the SEIU-backed Wal-Mart Watch, this site features news, a mailing list, and background information. But it also specifically targets Wal-Mart employees. Curiously, when you click on the link for Wal-Mart employees, instead of getting the expected form for joining a union, or even requesting information about joining a union, you get a request to "fill out the form below and include any experiences you had while working at Wal-Mart." Just above this on the front page there's a promising headline -- "Wal-Mart workers speak out" -- but it is only one worker, for now.

Another giant North American union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, has set up a Wal-Mart site of its own, which it's calling "Wal-Mart Workers Unite, the website dedicated to Teamsters organizing at Wal-Mart distribution centers, Wal-Mart driving units, and Sam’s Club Stores." This is the union site which is most up-front about what it's doing (organizing workers, not just "informing the public"), but it's also buried on the Teamsters website at a web address no one could possibly remember -- http://www.teamster.org/divisions/warehouse/walmart/walmartworkersunite.asp. But they are much more open about recruiting -- this site features a form which begins "If you are interested in more information about the Teamsters, the Warehouse Division or forming a union in your Wal-Mart warehouse workplace, please let us know". They include contact information for Teamster locals as well.

The AFL-CIO -- to which the SEIU, UFCW and Teamsters are all affiliated -- has a Wal-Mart site of its own at http://www.aflcio.org/corporateamerica/walmart/index.cfm It opens with an annoying musical animation and then offers up a page full of facts and information. It's "Wal-Mart workers speak out" section is considerably more advanced than that of the UFCW -- it features four different workers.

Meanwhile, one of the liveliest sites for Wal-Mart workers is actually sponsored by the venerable Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. The IWW has a dedicated forum for Wal-Mart employees as part of its popular Retail Worker website, at http://www.retailworker.com/forum/210. It's not clear if the IWW has any members at Wal-Mart, but they are the first to create a completely uncensored discussion on the web of what it means to work for the company, and its popularity testifies to the need for something like this.

Wal-Mart is a global player, so it's only natural that the global union federations would get involved. Union Network International (UNI) has a Wal-Mart site of its own at http://www.union-network.org/unisite/sectors/commerce/Multinationals/wal_mart_campaign_index_page.htm -- again, not the most memorable of addresses. But the site is full of frequently-updated news about the company and links to many other Wal-Mart related sites.

A latecomer to the online campaign to organize Wal-Mart is LabourStart, whose Wal-Mart page is located at http://www.labourstart.org/wal-mart. It features news from many different sources (mainstream and alternative media as well as union websites), updated throughout the day. But it also features something that none of the union sites seem to have thought of: a syndicated Wal-Mart newswire. Unions can easily add this to their sites and get the latest Wal-Mart news updated every 15 minutes, at no cost. A number have already done so.

There are other Wal-Mart sites and we can expect more to spring up over time. Unions are trying a number of different approaches, ranging from the conventional "contact us for information about joining the union" to barely mentioning the union at all. They are focussed on local campaigns, but there is also a global dimension. They are building bridges to communities, but also creating a space on the web for Wal-Mart employees to sound off. The websites are overwhelmingly professional, attractive and effective. But does it mean anything in the long run? Will these online efforts contribute anything to bringing unions to Wal-Mart?

Nobody knows the answer to that. But no one should doubt the importance of successfully organizing Wal-Mart. For unions in the United States and elsewhere, failure is not an option.