The Wal-Mart Watch Blog

| Jan 29, 2010

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The Consumer Product Safety Commission has recalled two ‘Princess and the Frog’ charm necklaces today due to high levels of Cadmium, a dangerous heavy metal. The necklaces are sold exclusively at Walmart stores. It may sound like many other recall stories, but this is actually the first time the CPSC has recalled anything for containing Cadmium. The metal was spotlighted in a recent Associated Press investigation which discovered high levels of Cadmium in many pieces of children’s jewelry.

Cadmium, like lead and other heavy metals, is a known carcinogen and can cause stunted brain development in children.

The Associated Press found that Chinese factories had started using Cadmium in products after they stopped using lead due to scrutiny from the US government during the last product safety scare.

In our opinion, it is no coincidence that this first Cadmium recall happened at Walmart, either. First because the use of cadmium seems to be linked with Chinese factories, at least so far. More than 70% of Walmart’s goods come from China, making it likely that these toxic metal products could end up on Walmart’s shelves. Second, Walmart has a history of using its size and clout to push suppliers to produce at a lower cost, forcing them to cut corners to meet Walmart’s price demands and still make a profit. One of the areas that suppliers could cut corners is product safety.

We think it’s pretty irresponsible for Walmart to be selling cadmium laced children’s necklaces, or anything else with highly toxic chemicals, for that matter. That’s why we launched a campaign over the holiday shopping season demanding that Walmart remove dangerous products from its shelves. Obviously they haven’t listened.

You can read more about Walmart’s dangerous products and sign an open letter to Mike Duke demanding that he take responsibility for consumer protection here.

The official CPSC press release about the Disney ‘Princess and the Frog’ necklaces is here.

| Jan 28, 2010

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Walmart has a pretty spotty record when it comes to grassroots support groups. They can’t seem to resist the temptation to simply let PR firms make things up for them. There was the fake blog “Walmarting Across America” which, it was revealed, was actually organized by Walmart’s PR firm. The vehicle the “bloggers” used as well as their meals, expenses and gas, were all provided for them. There was the fake “community group” Working Families for Walmart, which was also run by a PR firm Walmart hired.

And now it seems that Walmart is doing the same thing in Chicago, where they’re struggling to get a foothold for their potential second store within city limits. Chicagoist, a prominent local blog, received some suspiciously pro-Walmart comments on their blog and decided to investigate. They found what seems to be theChicagoland Chamber of Commerce and Serafin & Associates are both working to push Walmart’s agenda in Chicago, and posing as a local community group.

The Chicagoland admitted to launching the site Our Community, Our Choice which proclaims, “Everyone else but Chatham and the South Side are making the decisions – It’s OUR CHOICE, NOT THEIRS.”

You should read the full article from Chicagoist, but the following section is particularly interesting:

Mike Mini told me that Wal-Mart is indeed a member of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, that they have “a representative on the Government Affairs Committee,” and that “our process is kind of open. Any member that expresses an interest can come to meetings and work on issues that are important to them.” Is the Chamber working on behalf of Wal-Mart in the city? “We’re working on behalf of policies that we feel further business and commerce in the city.” Because I got to Mr. Mini through Our Community, Our Choice, I asked what his involvement in the site was. “It’s part of our advocacy effort to gain support,” and that “we set that up as a way to communicate with people. We were expecting this to come up for a vote before the council sooner, but obviously it’s been stalled.” I asked him if he was familiar with Serafin and Associates. “Yes, we have worked with them in our strategy sessions. We’ve worked with [Thomas] Serafin and his team.” When I told him that our site had gotten comments from the email address that led me to him and asked if he knew that it was being used to comment on blogs, he said “no, not that I’m aware of.” Are you surprised that an IP address from Serafin was being used that way? “No, not in particular.” Why not? “I really can’t comment without looking into it further.”

| Jan 25, 2010

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It’s been a rough few weeks for Sam’s Club employees. First came the announcement that ten Sam’s Club stores would close and the 1,500 employees who worked there could lose their jobs. Then, yesterday, Walmart announced they would be laying off 11,200 workers. Most of those being laid off demonstrate products in the stores. Walmart’s spokesperson made it clear that this wasn’t about the economy, or the employees performance, rather, they were outsourcing the jobs to Shopper Events a company who’s only purpose is to demonstrate products in Walmart stores.

Walmart has suggested that the 10,000 employees they are firing can apply for a job with Shopper Events, who will be hiring roughly 10,000 employees to fill the gap left by the lay off. It sure sounds a lot like Walmart is asking 10,000 of their employees to reapply for their own jobs.

Here’s our official statement:

For Immediate Release: January 25, 2010

Walmart Sam’s Club Lowering Worker and Community Standards

Layoffs Raise Important Questions About Commitment to its Workforce

(Washington, DC) – The following is a statement from Wake Up Walmart: 

Walmart launched another assault on living and working standards in communities across the country yesterday, by laying off more than ten thousand Sam’s Club employees.  The company is outsourcing jobs, many of them part-time, to a company based in Arkansas.

Workers report that Walmart called them into mass meetings where they were offered boxes of tissues and told they were no longer needed by the nation’s largest private employer.

The mass layoffs raise serious questions such as whether or not older and more senior workers were targeted for lay off.  Why hasn’t Walmart made a clearer path to employment with Shopper Events for these 11,000 associates – which they clearly have the power to do?  And for workers hired by the outsourced company, what kind of jobs will Shoppers Events provide to the new applicants?  Why is Walmart telling workers they must agree not to pursue age discrimination claims in order to qualify for severance pay?

Walmart and Sams Club workers seeking additional assistance and answers are encouraged to contact Walmart Workers for Change at 866-587-2299 or log on to http://www.walmartworkersforchange.org/.

| Jan 21, 2010

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How often have you thought, “hey, I’d really like to keep up with Walmart news, see what folks are doing to change Walmart, and help spread the word about Walmart’s negative impact on worker’s rights and communities”? Well you’re in luck because we’ve joined forces with Wake Up Walmart, and we’re on Facebook and Twitter, and we want to connect with you! So take a minute to click on these links and become a fan of WakeUpWalmart.com on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Once you’re connected with us, we’ll tell you all about what we’re doing, we’ll keep you up to date on the latest Walmart news, and, more importantly, you can let us know what you think!

| Jan 19, 2010

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After our national campaign over the holidays focusing on product safety, an Associated Press report about the use of Cadmium in Chinese made products, especially children’s jewelry, and a huge crib recall back in November comes news of a second crib recall.

The Associated Press reports that more than 600,000 cribs are being recalled today after an infant died because of faulty hardware. Twenty models of cribs are being recalled due to issues with drop-side hardware and with slats that can break. The cribs were manufactured in China and Vietnam and sold at Walmart as well as other retailers.

According to the AP, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the company producing the cribs,

“have received 31 reports of incidents involving drop-side cribs, including six incidents of children being trapped between the mattress and the drop side. The agency and company have also received 36 reports of broken slats, including two reports of trapped children.”

This second recall highlights a disturbing trend of dangerous products on Walmart’s shelves. Walmart has a history of using its size and clout to push suppliers to produce at a lower cost, forcing them to cut corners to meet Walmart’s price demands and still make a profit. One of the areas that suppliers could cut corners is product safety. Walmart has repeatedly carried products that have been identified as unsafe or dangerous by reputable consumer safety organizations and the CPSC. It is truly sad that it took a death to bring attention to these cribs.

You can read the full article here and the full CPSC press release here for more information.

| Jan 19, 2010

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On January 29, 2009--just about a year ago--Sprawl-Busters reported that Haywood, North Carolina officials had a big hole to fill that once was a Wal-Mart discount store on Route 74 in the Clyde area.

The vacant Wal-Mart has been there since a Wal-Mart supercenter, with 188,494 s.f., opened in Waynesville on October 1, 2008---just eight miles down the road from the original location in Clyde. The Wal-Mart discount store in Clyde that was closed was built in 1990, and is 116,061 s.f. The Smoky Mountain News reported that what was once a bustling retail market and taxpaying property was now slated to go off the tax rolls entirely and become the new home of the Haywood County Department of Health and Social Services. 

One year later, the deal has still not jelled. According to the News, Commissioners are still considering the old Wal-Mart site. The county wants to buy the 20 year old Wal-Mart because its the cheapest option they have, making it a ‘bargain’ for the taxpayers, Commissioner Mark Swanger told the News. The current DSS building was constructed in the 1920s. “It would require millions in renovations, heating, air, roof windows and you still have an inadequate space for doing business,” Swanger explained. The DSS building needs a new roof, windows, and electrical wiring. “We could go on and on about what it would cost us, we would still have an old building,” another Commissioner noted. A new building is also out of the question, the Commissioners say, costing as much as $30 million. So taking over the dead Wal-Mart makes financial sense.

The Wal-Mart property itself will need a lot of work. It was described by the News as a “gaping retail shell.” But at least it has a roof and a parking lot. The County says if they put a DSS office into the building, it will act as an anchor for the shopping center and stimulate adjacent businesses. Over the past ten years, the county has been building a new Justice Center, a new jail, and a remodeled courthouse. So officials don’t have much capital left to spend on the new DSS space. “I suppose it has been just a matter of priorities,” Swanger explained.

Negotiations with Wal-Mart Realty have been going on for at least a year. “If we don’t do something now, it’s going to cost us much more in the future to buy property and start building,” one Commissioner pointed out. If the county does move into the building, the dead Wal-Mart would be subdivided between the DSS offices and the Tractor Supply Company, which is also in negotiations for part of the Wal-Mart building. When Wal-Mart left a gaping hole in the strip mall where it was located to move to the other side of town in 2008, Commissioners began thinking about using the vacant store. They decided not to pursue it at the time given the county’s economic situation with the recession.

At that time Commissioners were seeking a federal loan of up to $11 million to purchase and renovate the Wal-Mart. The area had lost a Goody’s clothing store, which was one of many casualties of the big box retailers. Goody’s left behind a storefront in a strip mall in Waynesville. Home Depot canceled plans at the last minute to open a new store in Waynesville, leaving a hole next to the new big box retail complex where Super Wal-Mart moved to. Last year at this time, the Commissioners’ economic development staff said, “Right now, there’s not a whole lot of retailers that are looking to expand. Everybody’s pretty cautious right now. The county’s interest (in the Wal-Mart property) is very encouraging.” Commissioners said in January of 2009 that money from the federal stimulus package could help finance the purchase of the Wal-Mart building, but it was unclear how long it would take for the money to trickle down to local governments.

What you can do: There are currently 9 Wal-Mart “dark stores” in North Carolina. Wal-Mart has several private real estate brokers trying to sell these properties. The official Wal-Mart line is that its Realty division has no problem disposing of these properties, but in many situations, these large “ghost boxes” are hard to remarket because there are very few businesses looking for such large buildings. Wal-Mart has left hundreds of ‘dark stores’ in its wake as it moves through small town America, causing local officials to worry about being stuck with huge, empty stores that cannot easily be recycled.

One has to wonder what officials in Clyde would have said in 1990 if Wal-Mart had told them that in less than 20 years their proposed discount store would be closed and left for the county to buy. For the town of Clyde, this represents a major loss of revenue. The County will not pay property taxes on the building, and there will be little sales tax from the Tractor Supply Company compared to a Wal-Mart store. The big winner is Wal-Mart, which will sell off its dead store, and make more money at its superstore 8 miles away. This leapfrog development is a perfect example of the sprawl that happens when there is no regional planning. In this case, Waynesville took away Clyde’s store, when the Clyde store could have been reformatted to become a superstore. Wal-Mart today is building superstores that are 99,000 s.f. The Clyde Wal-Mart was 116,061 s.f. No relocation was necessary in the first place, and Clyde’s store was clearly meant for Waynesville and surrounding towns, because Clyde’s tiny population could never support a discount store on its own.

Readers are urged to email Haywood County Commission Chairman Kirk Kirkpatrick at with the following message: “Dear Chairman Kirkpatrick, Please don’t use federal or county tax dollars to buy an empty Wal-Mart that bad planning created. Clyde and Waynesville should never have allowed Wal-Mart to abandon its ‘old’ store in the first place, just to move to bigger quarters 8 miles away. They could have reformatted their existing store in Clyde into a superstore, and today you’d have no dead store to worry about. But the idea of using federal stimulus money to write a check to Wal-Mart—which doesn’t need any more federal subsidies---is irresponsible. Instead, call over to the new Wal-Mart superstore manager, Jerry Presley at (828) 452-5090 and ask him to write to the corporate central office in Bentonville, Arkansas, asking Wal-Mart to donate the land and building to the county. It’s the least they can do to repay the county and the town of Clyde for leaving you with an empty building that could have been avoided in the first place. Don’t subsidize Wal-Mart with tax dollars---ask them for a charitable donation that they can take as a tax write-off.”

| Jan 13, 2010

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Amid one of the worst economies we have seen in years, Walmart has faired exceedingly well. They’ve made record profits, continue to grow at a steady pace, and broken in to new international markets. The Motley Fool, suggests that the recession finally caught up with Walmart as they announced the closing of 10 Sam’s Club stores.

The clubs will close and it is the employees and communities who will pay the price. The closing will mean 1,500 employees will be out of a job, though Walmart said they would try to find jobs for the employees. The closing will also mean big, empty warehouse style buildings in communities. The kind of big, empty buildings that often go unoccupied for years (especially in this economy), attract crime, and drain local resources.

Read the full article from the Motley Fool here.

| Jan 13, 2010

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A new report by a professor at the Columbia School of Business examines how Walmart goes about expanding. In particular, it looks at Walmart’s response to the many protests that arise when it begins the process of building a new store. The report concludes that Walmart uses inexpensive “test balloons” to gauge public reaction to a new store and often decides not to build if protests arise. Of course the caveat is that the more profitable the potential store, the harder Walmart will fight against protests. But the bottom line seems to be that local activists can stop Walmart from coming to their town. This is fantastic news for anyone who wants a say in what businesses are in their community.

Here is some of the fascinating research the report uses to back up its claims:

“During the period starting from 1998 and ending in 2005, Wal-Mart
floated 1599 proposals to open new stores. Wal-Mart successfully opened 1040 stores. Protests arose on 563 occasions and in 65 percent of the cases where protests arose, Wal-Mart did not open a store…

35% of Wal-Mart’s new store proposals were met with a protest...Of the new store proposals that attracted no protests, Wal-Mart opened stores 83% of the time. When a proposal was met with protest, the rate of subsequent opening was only 35%.”

You can read an overview of the report here on the Columbia Business School’s blog, or the full report in PDF form here.

| Jan 11, 2010

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After the huge scare surrounding lead in products at Walmart and other stores, you would think that companies (both manufacturers and retailers) would be more careful about testing their wares to make sure they were safe. Apparently instead, manufacturers have just started using a different toxic heavy metal instead of lead.

The Associated Press reports that since the increased scrutiny over lead, some manufacturers have simply started using cadmium, an even more dangerous heavy metal. Cadmium is known to cause cancer and stunt brain development in young people. According to the tests, twelve percent of the products tested had at least 10 percent cadmium with some containing as much as 91 percent.

Not only is cadmium just as bad a lead, apparently the Consumer Product Safety Commission is not regulating it. According to the AP,

“‘There’s nothing positive that you can say about this metal. It’s a poison,’ said Bruce A. Fowler, a toxicologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On its list of the 275 most hazardous substances in the environment, cadmium ranks number seven.

A patchwork of federal consumer protection regulations does nothing to keep these nuggets of cadmium from US store shelves.

While the Consumer Product Safety Commission has cracked down on the dangers posed by lead, it has never recalled an item for cadmium - even though it has received scattered complaints based on private test results for at least the past two years.”

Safety is a big deal. You should be able to walk in to a store and buy a product without worrying that it is going to poison you or your child. That is why we wrote an open letter to Mike Duke, Walmart’s CEO, over the holidays calling for safe products, responsible business practices, and accountability. In it we highlighted several toys that contained unsafe chemicals, including Cadmium. In particular, according to HealthyStuff.org, the buckle of the iCarly pink belt contains 523 parts per million of Cadmium.

If you haven’t already, please take a minute to read more about our efforts to get dangerous toys off Walmart’s shelves and sign the open letter.

| Jan 11, 2010

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When Wal-Mart opened its only store in Chicago, Illinois on the west side of the city, the retailer said, “This store will show what a great asset Wal-Mart can be to the community, as an employer and corporate citizen.”

From the very beginning of its drive to locate stores in the Windy City, Wal-Mart has based its case on jobs. One of Wal-Mart’s most visible and vocal frontmen is Alderman Howard Brookins of the city’s 21st Ward on the South Side of town. “We need jobs, plain and simple,” the Alderman has said repeatedly. Brookins has been so outspoken on the issue of Wal-Mart and jobs that the Chicago Tribune has referred to him as “the Alderman from Wal-Mart.”

But the jobs argument isn’t adding up in Chicago. A new study from Loyola University and the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) has put the giant retailer on the economic defensive once again.

The comprehensive study, The Impact of an Urban Wal-Mart Store on Area Businesses: An Evaluation of One Chicago Neighborhood’s Experience, found that Wal-Mart’s opening in Chicago has produced a loss of 300 full-time jobs. Researchers conclude that the probability of a local retailer going out of business during the study period was significantly higher for establishments close to Wal-Mart’s location.

The loss of jobs in the trade areas near Wal-Mart just about balanced out any ‘new’ jobs attributable to Wal-Mart. “These estimates support the contention that urban Wal-Mart stores absorb retail sales from other city stores without significantly expanding the market,” the researchers say. “What we’re seeing here is that placing a Wal-Mart in an urban setting is basically a ‘wash’ in terms of sales revenue for the city and jobs for local residents,” explains study co-author David Merriman, head of UIC’s economics department. “This means that communities around the city should not see Wal-Mart, and other big-box retailers, as a panacea to local economic struggles.”

The two universities collected data pre-Wal-Mart, post-Wal-Mart, and post-Wal-Mart long-term. Data was collected from March of 2006 until November of 2008. A total of 306 enterprises were tracked, and the research team found that 82 (27%)of them went out of business during the study period. A key finding of the survey is that the probability of going out of business was significantly higher for businesses close to Wal-Mart. Being located close to Wal-Mart was particularly toxic for retailers selling electronics, toys, office supplies, general merchandise, hardware, home furnishings, and drugs.

Based on their analysis of retail sales, the researchers conclude that “These estimates support the contention that large-city Wal-Marts absorb retail sales from other city stores without significantly expanding the market…Overall, the weight of evidence suggests that the Wal-Mart opening on the West Side led to the displacement of a range of businesses. There is no evidence that Wal-Mart sparked any significant net growth in economic activity or employment in the area.”
What you can do: The researchers in this new study suggest that their findings are very similar to a number of other studies on “the Wal-Mart effect” that have been published since the 1980s. “Under the circumstances,” the new study says, “claims that the Chicago Wal-Mart has led to significant economic development in nearby areas must be considered skeptically.”

Wal-Mart has been trying to break into the Chicago market like gangbusters since the spring of 2004—almost a six year epic struggle. The Chicago City Council responded in part to Wal-Mart’s push by passing a “big box living wage” ordinance, which Chicago Mayor Richard Daley vetoed.
The West Side Wal-Mart opened in the fall of 2006. To further enhance its chances of additional stores, Wal-Mart announced in the spring of 2006 that this West Side store was going to be part of a national campaign launched by Wal-Mart called “Jobs and Opportunity Zones (JOZ.” Wal-Mart promised that it would select five small local businesses for advertisements in local newspapers and on Wal-Mart’s in-store radio network. Wal-Mart also pledged to host workshops for small businesses on how to “survive & thrive” with a Wal-Mart nearby. A grant of $300,000 would be donated to local chambers of commerce to create effective programs for the funds.

But researchers from Loyola and UIC interviewed 2 of the 5 businesses selected to be part of the JOZ program. Both businesses claimed that Wal-Mart did buy ads for their businesses in local newspapers---but neither attended any Wal-Mart seminars---and one owner called the Wal-Mart initiative “pretty much a failure.”

This new Chicago study underscores research conducted by economists Ken Stone, Tom Mueller, David Neumark, and others that reveal the dark side of Wal-Mart’s economic impacts. One earlier study showed that each Wal-Mart worker replaces about 1.4 non-Wal-Mart retail workers. The group Retail Forward concluded in 2003 that “for every Wal-Mart supercenter that opens in the next five years, two supermarkets will close their doors.”

According to the local ABC affiliate in Chicago, Wal-Mart’s only comment about this new study was that it was funded by “a group with ties to labor.”

Readers are urged to call Chicago Mayor Richard Daley at (312) 744-3300 and leave the following message: “I’m calling to ask Mayor Daley to please refrain from talking about a south side Wal-Mart project as a jobs or revenue project. I urge the Mayor to read through the new Loyola University study on the economic impacts of the existing West Side Wal-Mart store. This study should dispell any notion that Wal-Mart is a job-generator. Chicago has nothing to gain from Wal-Mart---except low wages, Chinese imports, and windy rhetoric. Chicago already has plenty of all these things.”

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