Wal-Mart has cut ties with Mercury Public Affairs after a former staffer of the firm posed as a journalism student to attend a union event in Los Angeles earlier this month.
“We take this matter seriously and have taken the appropriate steps to ensure this type of activity is not repeated,” Wal-Mart senior director of community affairs Steve Restivo said in a statement. The Los Angeles Times first reported the split.
The Mercury staffer, Stephanie Harnett, left the firm after the incident was publicized by the Warehouse Workers United, which has been working to unionize some Wal-Mart employees.
Mercury, part of Omnicom’s Fleishman-Hillard, had a $60K pact with the retail giant as it works to overcome opposition and gain approval for a store in L.A.’s Chinatown neighborhood.