New Study Finds Wal-Mart’s Reputation Still Lacking

if walmarts reputation is so freaking bad then all you wm haters why are folks still shopping there?got an answr on that wmw?

my mental health technician says walmart has a strange and abnormal effect on my life.just because she doesnt shop at walmart doesnt make it true right?can someone help her on this please?it is not possible to be addicted to walmart.if you dont love walmart then something is wrong with you.i learnt that in the walmart employee indoctrination before they fired me.

Check out the Reputation Insititute (the firm that authored this survey) choice for number one - Toyota Motors. They worked to death thier lead car designer. So much for a great workplace. David N. how about starting ToyotaWatch?? 2 reasons to consider this choice—1) looks like there needs to improvements in how they treat thier employees and 2) Toyota is killing jobs in the Automotive industry in the US. WalMart is old news and you are streatching to find issues to drive your message.

WalMart is old news and you are streatching to find issues to drive your message.

You obviously are a newcomer to the pro/anti Wal-Mart debate, Doug, or you would know no one has to ‘find’ issues. Bentonville is perfectly capable of supplying all the issues needed to portray the Beast of Bentonville for what it is. Should the pace slacken, however, some doofus at HO can be relied on to shoot themselves in the foot.

(Was that a gunshot I heard?:o)

There is scarcely anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse, and sell a little more cheaply. The person who buys on price alone is this man’s lawful prey. ~ John Ruskin

Caveat Lawful Prey!

I’m like Matt. I don’t believe this site should be about Walmart, instead it should be about someone else.

Study finds Wal-Mart contributes to poverty
St. Louis Business Journal - May 17, 2006

A study focused on the effects of Wal-Mart stores on poverty rates found that an estimated 20,000 families nationwide have fallen below the official poverty line as a result of the chain’s expansion.

Authors, Goetz and Swaminathan write that the presence of Wal-Mart was “unequivocally associated” with smaller reductions in family-poverty rates in counties nationwide during the 1990s relative to places that had no stores.

During the last decade, dependence on the food stamp program nationwide increased by 8 percent, while in counties with Wal-Mart stores the increase was almost twice as large at 15.3 percent, according to the study. Although Wal-Mart employs many people living in its communities, for most, the hours worked and the wages paid do not help these families transition out of poverty, the study said.

Poverty rates will rise if retail workers displaced from existing mom-and pop-type operations work for Wal-Mart at lower wages because they have no alternatives, all else equal, according to the study.

In addition, the Wal-Mart jobs may be part time as opposed to full time, leading to lower family incomes, all else equal, the study said.
http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2006/05/15/daily29.html

“Henry Ford made sure he paid his workers enough so that they could afford to buy his cars. Wal-Mart is doing the polar opposite of Henry Ford. Wal-Mart brags about how its low prices help poor Americans, but its low wages are helping increase the number of Americans in poverty.”
William McDonough, executive vice president of the United Food and Commercial Workers union

If you are looking for where your better wages and healthcare benefits went- FOLLOW THE MONEY that went from your labor to these people-

Samuel Robson (Rob) Walton (born 1945, in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is the eldest son of Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer. According to Forbes, his net worth is $15.8 billion as of 2006.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._Robson_Walton

John Thomas Walton (October 8, 1946 – June 27, 2005) was a son of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. He was the chairman of True North Partners, a venture capital firm.
Just before his death, Walton was estimated to be worth US$18.2 billion by Forbes magazine, and he was tied with his brother Jim as the 4th richest person in the United States [2] and 11th-richest person in the world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_T._Walton

continue-

If you are looking for where your better wages and healthcare benefits went- FOLLOW YOUR MONEY that went from your labor to these people-

continued-

Christy Ruth Walton is the wife of late John T. Walton. After his death, she became the 17th wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of USD $15.9 billion. As of 2006, she is the 7th richest American and the richest woman in America with a net worth of $15.6 billion [1].
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christy_Walton

Alice Louise Walton (born October 7, 1949) is the daughter of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton and Helen Walton, and sister of S. Robson Walton, John T. Walton, and Jim Walton. She and her mother each have an estimated net worth of about $18.0 billion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Walton

Jim Carr Walton (born 1948) is the youngest son of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. He is the CEO of Arvest Bank. With an estimated current net worth of around $15.7 billion, he is ranked by Forbes as the 6th-richest person in America. He is married to Lynne McNabb Walton and has several children, including Alice Anne Walton, Thomas Layton Walton, and Stewart Lawrence Walton. The family resides in Bentonville, Arkansas

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Walton

Two daughters of Sam’s brother Bud Walton, Ann Kroenke and Nancy Laurie, hold smaller shares in the company and are also billionaires in their own right.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Moore_Walton

Helen Robson Kemper Walton (born December 3, 1919 in Claremore, Oklahoma) is the widow of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. She is the eleventh richest American and one of the oldest among the wealthiest persons in the world with an estimated net worth of $15.6 billion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen_Walton

Nancy Walton Laurie is the daughter of the late Bud Walton, the brother and business partner of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. At Bud’s death, she and her sister Ann Walton Kroenke inherited a stake in Wal-Mart now worth over USD$6 billion.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Paige_Laurie

WalMart- Dumping impoverished ‘associates’ onto state health care systems for the taxpayer suckers to pick-up the bill. Can’t get out of poverty? The Waltons and Lee Scott
thank you for your capitalistic/patriotic subsidies and labor contribution.

SanDiego… has yet to learn that the www. is full of fiction and facts. Wal-Mart heirs...might as well be talking about the Bushes of A&B;, Hunts, Rockellers. They made thier money based on early ownership and stock. Not company profits. Walmart profit does not even make it into the top 30. Go after the banks and oil companies if you want to talk about profit on the backs of the poor and middle class.

And talk about Walmart wages and benefits. 1000s of people lining up for jobs at new Walmart stores. (Something else you will find on the web ... that happens to be facts) wages are as good as any retailer, even most labor shops. Plus $22 a month for medical benefits with no limited managed care benefits, no annual cap and no lifetime cap. I have lost a family member that were lifetime union labor in retail because the poor healtcare plan provided by thier benefits did not allow them access to the healthcare they needed to battle cancer.

Doug you can catch up on WalMart’s insurance realities and practices with a review of the deductibles (up to $3,000 on part time wages) for the employees that don’t get dumped on to the states for the taxpayer suckers to pay for. WalMart is the top abuser of dumping their ‘associates’ on to state health care in 23 states.

After you sober up on those beginning facts then you can review the Deborah Shank case that you are probably wanting to evade. It is available here at WMW, you know...on the www and elsewhere, but you must have a conscience to actually go and look it.

Since you don’t believe that the Waltons made their money off the labor of others, perhaps hearing from Sam Walton himself will notify you up back into reality.

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton once said, “I pay low wages. I can take advantage of that. We’re going to be successful, but the basis is a very low-wage, low-benefit model of employment.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Wal-Mart#_note-
iswalmartgood

“Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” PBS. November 16, 2004. Retrieved on February 24, 2007.

“These capitalists generally act harmoniously and in concert, to fleece the people.”
Abraham Lincoln

http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/story.html?id=ec4832be-e419-4391-8854-9a7385959137

Saving Earth, one noodle at a time
Peter Foster, Financial Post
Published: Friday, July 11, 2008

According to a story in this week’s Financial Post Business magazine, Lee Scott, CEO of retailing behemoth Wal-Mart, deemed the noodles in Hamburger Helper guilty of “unnecessary curliness,” so he browbeat their producer, General Mills, into straightening them out.

As with so much corporate lunacy these days, this vignette is rooted in the alleged need for corporations to take a conspicuous lead in forestalling catastrophic climate change. You see, curly noodles take up more space than straight noodles and thus require larger packages. So, due to Mr. Scott’s intervention, the Hamburger Helper box is now 20% smaller, with—according to General Mills—an annual saving equivalent to taking 500 trucks off the road.

One assumes that Mr. Scott’s crusade will now bring him into conflict more broadly with the pasta industry, whose products display a shameful array of shapes that require redundant packaging. He will no doubt be seeking the eradication of the spirals, bow ties and tubes of fusilli, farfalle and penne in favour of more compact spaghetti and tagliatelle. Otherwise we might be forced to conclude that Mr. Scott has something against consumers of Hamburger Helper, whom he seems to think can make do with utility pasta. When will he start editing alphabet soup?

I always regarded tales of Wal-Mart’s terrifying “power” as nonsensical, based on confusing economic heft with political clout. Now I’m not sure. For Wal-Mart to squeeze its suppliers in the name of customer value and profitability is sound business; to twist suppliers’ arms to save the planet drifts into dangerous politics, and potentially lousy economics.

In my Wednesday column, I noted that the otherwise delightful animated film Wall-E portrayed a world depopulated by crass materialism, of which the main pusher was a monolithic and environmentally feckless nightmare version of Wal-Mart named “Buy n Large.” The irony is that Wal-Mart is now determined to portray itself as greener than green. Indeed, its new, Orwellian, motto is: “For the Greener Good.” And I do mean Orwellian, because Wal-Mart seems to want to play Big Brother to its suppliers.

Straightening out Hamburger Helper is just one example of the use of Wal-Mart’s green muscle (perhaps its new symbol should be The In-credible Hulk). Procter & Gamble, too, has apparently been pressured to produce only concentrated detergent,

The problem is that the Hamburger Helper intervention might burnish Wal-Mart’s CSR credentials, but it makes General Mills look stupid, and undermines the free market more generally.

The Hamburger Helper intervention might burnish Wal-Mart’s CSR credentials, but it makes General Mills look stupid, and undermines the free market more generally

General Mills was either inefficient in providing its Hamburger Helper in a form that consumers didn’t want, and which involved waste packaging, thus damaging its own profitability, or, if its consumers really did like their curly pasta, it has sacrificed them to environmental bullying.

I sent an e-mail to General Mills asking-- among other things-- about the role of Mr. Scott, why Hamburger Helper was curly in the first place and whether any market study had been done on how consumers felt about the shape shift. The company claimed that consumers were happy with the changes, and ignored the questions about Mr. Scott and the pasta’s shape. It also asserted that General Mills had been “focused on efficiency and minimizing our impact on the environment for decades.” But that’s the point. Economizing on packaging and raw materials is a critical aspect of any business, as is responding to, and anticipating, consumer wants.

END OF PART 1

PART 2

Green marketing is hardly a new phenomenon. Almost twenty years ago, Dave Nichol, the marketing genius who spearheaded Loblaw’s President’s Choice brand, said, “I think in the future we’re going to look back at this point in time as the start of what is going to be the most important revolution in our society—the politicization of the consumption process.”

It was an astonishingly prescient choice of words, although what Mr. Nichol was in fact talking about was the power of consumers “to vote for the environment at the cash register.” Things have turned out somewhat differently, significantly due to climate change hysteria. Corporations now seem to imagine that it is their role to be out in front of consumers—indeed, that they should force consumers into the paths dictated by radical NGOs. They also pressure their suppliers as a means of taking the heat off themselves. This thrust is inevitably pushed farther by a growing army of environmental consultants and “licensers” who earn fat fees for nagging their clients, and/or providing them with a “Cloak of Green”

Corporations, by subscribing to vague sustainability, are unwittingly leaving themselves open to an almost infinite range of further demands and interference. Whether they realize it or not, they are subscribing to the blanket condemnation that markets do not work and that the whole capitalist system represents one giant “market failure” that requires fretting and tinkering at every level, from noodle shapes through carbon labeling to the calculation of “food miles.” That way lies madness, but that’s where we’re heading.

R E M E M B E R
J O N Q U I E R E
Q U E B E C
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

R E M E M B E R
J A C K S O N V I L L E
T E X A S
Home of Walmart Worker Abuse

SanDeigo, I do not need anymore coffee to sober up. Again you play loose with the facts. 93% of Walmart employees have some form of medical insurance and the highest published deductive is not $3000. Paying $300 or $500 or $1000 or even $2000 is better than paying $100,000s or more when your medical is capped at an annual or lifetime max. Plus if I read correctly the higher deductible plans pay up to $500 or more of the first expenses. Can’t say I agree with Walmart on the Shank case. They did evently pay ... did the right thing… bad PR. But here is the deal every Blue Cross Plan has the same legal cause, so does almost any other health plan ---- and it is used and enforced by the courts all the time. I bet if you looked at your own health plan that clause would be there --- and don’t think your health plan would not try to use it.

Doug.

“Can’t say I agree with Walmart on the Shank case. They did evently pay ... did the right thing… bad PR.”

No, they didn’t do the right thing, they did the ‘emotional thing’, the right thing would have been to uphold the legal clause of the policy!!  Not they have set the president, that in future cases, Wal-Mart will have to forgive the subrogation, or face national scorn for it, until they give in!!  The law and rules are there for a reason and to break them by giving in, creates a situation where other companies in the future can be chastised in the media for trying to subrogate claims, until they give in!!  And, if ‘double dipping’ is allowed to flourish, insurance rates could go through the roof, then watch the ‘uninsured’ numbers rise!!

These are the published facts from WalMart (2006-) themselves and nothing is noted as having change since-

Wal-Mart’s Health Insurance Covers Fewer than Half of its Employees. According to Wal-Mart’s own website, “In January 2006, the number of associates covered by Wal-Mart health care insurance increased to 46%.” [http://www.walmartfacts.com]

Wal-Mart Coverage is Neither Affordable Nor Accessible. Wal-Mart provides health care options to their employees and families that have a deductible of $1,000 for individuals and $3,000 for families. Wal-Mart employees must endure long waits to qualify for benefits: six months for full-time employees and one year for part-time employees. [Wal-Mart 2006 Associate Benefits Book; Wal-Mart Press Release, 4/17/06]

And then the actual application-

Unfortunately, Wal-Mart’s new health care plans continue to remain unaffordable for the average Wal-Mart employee. Wal-Mart’s most affordable health care option, the Value Plan, has a $3,000 deductible for family coverage and several other deductibles for prescription drug coverage and hospital procedures. Based on all of the premiums and deductibles in the so-called ‘Value’ plan, a part- time Wal-Mart employee could have to pay up to 58 percent of his/her salary for an individual plan and up to 93 percent for family coverage.

Most disturbingly, newly transitioned employees who take advantage of this special enrollment will lose any money they have already spent on their deductible and will once again have to pay the full $3,000 deductible.

http://www.commondreams.org/news2006/0526-03.htm

“I went down the street to the 24-hour grocery. When I got there, the guy was locking the front door. I said, ‘Hey, the sign says you’re open 24 hours.’ He said, ‘Yes, but not in a row.’”
Steven Wright

Just for the year 2005 I wanted to make sure you did not mind paying your share of taxes to support WalMart for dumping its ‘associates’ onto government run health care programs in your state-

Missouri

2005 - Total # of Wal-Mart Employees in State: 44,641
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Workers on Medicaid: 5,896
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Dependents on State Health Programs: 3,598
2005 - 2005 - Estimated Total Cost; Federal & State:$42,144,857

We know that RDS has had no objection to paying taxes on behalf of WalMart in his state for dumping its employees onto the government run health care programs there, since 2005 again that can be multiplied for many years now-

Arkansas

2005 - Total # of Wal-Mart Employees in State: 46,887
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Workers on Medicaid: 6,192
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Dependents on State Health Programs: 3,779
2005 - 2005 - Estimated Total Cost; Federal & State:$37,648,140

“These capitalists generally act harmoniously and in concert, to fleece the people.”
Abraham Lincoln

“they have set the president” ~RDS

Is there a deeper message here you wanted us to know about, RDS?

“or face national scorn for it”

I guess all the national scorn Wal-Mart is already facing on a multitude of issues doesn’t count in your book, RDS!

“insurance rates could go through the roof”

Could go through the roof?  Yeah… I guess we should all be thankful that insurance rates have just gone through the ceiling.  We wouldn’t want them to go through the roof!

It’s all the greedy insurance companies that are a part of the health problem this country is trying to fix.  Have you ever been insides any of the huge insurance company home offices, RDS?  Where do you think the profits come from to build those magnificent structures?  Northwestern Mutual headquartered in Milwaukee, has been providing fully paid for lunches (who says there’s no such thing as a free lunch?) for it’s 4,000+ employees for many, many years. We’re not talking “bag lunches” either.  We’re talking about a buffet line with several hot entrees, sandwiches, a fully stocked salad bar, beverages, and a choice of desserts.

Who do you think is picking up the “tab” for this little “perk,” RDS?

RDS,

The one good thing that came out of the handling of the Shank case is the legal victory asseting Wal-Mart’s entitlement to the money. Otherwise, I disagree with the decision, which was spurred by the unethical reporting on the situation in the media.

SDV, you are wrong. The info at that link is both incorrect and dated (published in 2006 for Plan Year 2007). Plan Year 2008 was a complete overhaul with build your own insurance. It appears that WMW has a copy of the 2008 Benefits Book. Perhaps they can help you out with the details. I’ll get you started for the Value Plan: There are health care credits that pay up to $500 per person before you have to start meeting your deductible; pharmacy has no deductible - it starts out with prescriptions at a copay (really cheap in many cases); You can choose one of four deductibles between 350 and 2000 dollars; you can choose an out of pocket max of 2000 or 5000 dollars (once met the company pays 100% of all covered expense for the rest of the year with no maximum); The family deductible and out of pocket are considered met once two members meet their limits or any combination of family members meet an amount equal to twice a single individual’s limit (note: each person receives the selected health credit, so it is not divided among the family); there is no longer a spousal surcharge.

RDS,

The one good thing that came out of the handling of the Shank case is the legal victory asseting Wal-Mart’s entitlement to the money. Otherwise, I disagree with the decision, which was spurred by the unethical reporting on the situation in the media.

SDV, you are wrong. The info at that link is both incorrect and dated (published in 2006 for Plan Year 2007). Plan Year 2008 was a complete overhaul with build your own insurance. It appears that WMW has a copy of the 2008 Benefits Book. Perhaps they can help you out with the details. I’ll get you started for the Value Plan: There are health care credits that pay up to $500 per person before you have to start meeting your deductible; pharmacy has no deductible - it starts out with prescriptions at a copay (really cheap in many cases); You can choose one of four deductibles between 350 and 2000 dollars; you can choose an out of pocket max of 2000 or 5000 dollars (once met the company pays 100% of all covered expense for the rest of the year with no maximum); The family deductible and out of pocket are considered met once two members meet their limits or any combination of family members meet an amount equal to twice a single individual’s limit (note: each person receives the selected health credit, so it is not divided among the family); there is no longer a spousal surcharge.

SDV—again you are short on facts and long on incorrect detail repeated by the those with a one sided agenda. “Someone” has thier facts correct and if you go look at press releases from last year and this year. You will not the level of Walmart employees with Health Insurance to be over 90%. Dumping employees on the state tab is old news. As they say in the South..."that dog don’t hunt” Perhaps your research should focus on the number of US Business that are going the other direction.  Dropping health benefits or increasing rates to thier employees. The real crime here is rising cost of medical care in the US and the cost of Rx. Interesting Walmart is doing something about both iwith store clinics, better employee health benefits and $4 Rx on 100’s of Rx.

The facts come from WalMart Doug, try and pay attention-

Wal-Mart Health Insurance Coverage Lags Far Behind National Average. Nationally, 64% of workers in very large
firms (5,000 employees or more) receive their health benefits from their employer. Wal-Mart covers around 50% of its employees.
[Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey, The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust; Wal-Mart Press Release, 1/22/08]

Wal-Mart Employees Still Wait Twice As Long For Health Care Coverage Than Workers At Other Retailers. The
Wal-Mart average for full-time workers to qualify for benefits is six months, compared to the retail average of three
months. Part-time employees must wait a full year before receiving benefits. Since the majority of workers do not stay a year, the majority never get health care.
[Wal-Mart 2008 Associate Benefits Book, Pages 10 and 13; Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey, The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust]

This item however is not something you, Someone or WalMart are willing to remember or carefully know-

In Those States That Have Released Data On Companies With Employees Receiving State-Funded Health Care,
Wal-Mart Tops The List. Twenty-four states have tracked and reported the number of employees and dependants that
the largest employers within their borders have enrolled in state-funded health care programs, and in those states, Wal-
Mart is at the head of the line for public assistance. In all states that have released such data - Alabama, Arizona,
Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and
Wisconsin - Wal-Mart tops the list. In Arkansas, where Wal-Mart’s own headquarters is located, 3,971 of Wal-Mart’s
45,106 employees are on public assistance. Additionally, two states – Missouri and Oregon – will be releasing reports of
their own in 2008.
[Decatur (Ala.) Daily, 2/23/05; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 3/17/05; Arizona Republic, 7/30/05 and 1/01/05; UC Berkeley Labor Center, 8/2/04; Federal Register
Source; Associated Press, 3/3/05; St. Petersburg Times, 3/25/05; Georgia Department of Community Health, 9/10/07; Associated Press, 3/4/05; Institute for Local Self-
Reliance 6/28/05; Great Falls Tribune, 6/26/05; Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, 1/16/07; Omaha World-Herald, 10/19/05; Chicago
Tribune, 10/07/06; Associated Press, 5/12/05; New Jersey Policy Perspective 08/05; Ohio Dept. of Job and Family Services 3/1/06; Philadelphia Inquirer, 3/2/06;
Chattanooga Times Free Press, 1/20/05; Salt Lake Tribune, 2/5/06; Vermont Guardian, 4/18/05; Seattle Times, 1/24/06; Charleston Gazette, 12/26/04; The Capital
Times, 11/4/04; Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 5/24/05; Associated Press (via Boston Globe), 2/1/06; The Use of Public Health Assistance in Massachusetts in FY06;
Texas HHSC Center for Strategic Decision Support 8/3/07]

All cited and documented, where’s yours?

Wal-Mart’s 2008 health care offering is part of a tactic to reframe the public’s perception about the company’s health care offering and make changes that appear to make the plans more affordable and accessible.

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton once said, “I pay low wages. I can take advantage of that. We’re going to be successful, but the basis is a very low-wage, low-benefit model of employment.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Wal-Mart#_note-
iswalmartgood

“Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” PBS. November 16, 2004. Retrieved on February 24, 2007.

WalMart- Low wages, low benefits. “Save More. Live Better.”, was meant for the multi- billionaire Walton family, not you.

Dumping employees on the state tab is old news. As they say in the South..."that dog don’t hunt”
Doug in Springfield, MO
Sunday, July 13 at 01:06 PM

The reason your dog won’t hunt Doug, is because your dog doesn’t pay your taxes, you do. As I noted above, I’m glad you don’t mind subsidizing WalMart health care with your taxes year after year after year- And since your conscience is indifferent to these WalMart particulars and why you pay taxes, why don’t you send me 10 grand out of indifference.

Missouri

2005 - Total # of Wal-Mart Employees in State: 44,641
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Workers on Medicaid: 5,896
2005 - Estimated # of Wal-Mart Dependents on State Health Programs: 3,598
2005 - 2005 - Estimated Total Cost; Federal & State:$42,144,857

“People do not like to think. If one thinks, one must reach conclusions. Conclusions are not always pleasant.”
Helen Keller

WalMart- When people find out about us dumping employees onto the states for the taxpayer suckers to pay for, it becomes a story that we must try and kill ourselves.

“Language is a field of battle, the media is the artillery, and vocabulary is the ammunition, and is proceeding with coordinated attacks on several fronts, using all the latest high-tech vocabulary ammunition. They’ve laid a bed of land mines that cripple us when we try to stand on them: ‘liberalism’, conservatism’, prosperity’, ‘democracy’.”
Richard Moore, Doublespeak~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They’ve laid a bed of land mines that cripple us when we try to stand on them:

Let’s not forget ‘personal responsibility’.

If you are stupid enough to let us cheat you out of your money, it’s your personal responsibility!

WalMart: “YOUR Loss is ultimately and inevitably OUR GAIN!”

SDV,

I wonder how many of those employees on the Federal and State Medicaid & healthcare programs, would be on these programs, if they didn’t work for Wal-Mart!!  Either way, the taxpayers have to pay for it, so what’s the difference?  Besides, the employees have the option to take the insurance, those that prefer to stay on government programs, make that choice, Wal-Mart can’t FORCE an employee to sign up for insurance and can’t STOP an employee from signing up for government programs!!  If the government program doesn’t mind giving benefits to these people, that’s not Wal-Mart’s fault, Wal-Mart doesn’t run those government programs!!

Why won’t WalMart get the same health care insurance to their ‘associates’ that Costco gets to 90-92% of their employees? RDS, you are always making pretenses to capitalism and competition how come WalMart won’t compete for something that benefits its employees? Or is it simply a matter of their exploitive attitude towards the American worker?

I notice that Costco does not show up on any of the state systems for welfare/health care subsidies to their employees.

It is just another proof that the Costco business model and the people that run it with social responsibility are not abusing the taxpayer like the ‘love of money’ slobs over at WalMart.

“Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.”
Mark Twain

WalMart- Ask not what your multi-billionaire corporate Walton family can do for you, ask what sacrifice you can make to enrich the already criminal uberwealthy that don’t know what to do with the money they already have.

hey sdv got an answer why your ufcw union buddies have dumped so many grocery workers on food stamps and state welfare doles?got an answer why there are more folks on food stamps,welfare and govt assistance in ufcw union grocery stores than at walmart?didnt think you had an answr on that.how about you cheap as slob bastard buddies at costco who are too cheap and lazy to give everyone fulltime work huh?sdv get a life you are staing crap from 2005 old news which is irrelevant now.come up with proven data not more ufcw union bs .thank you

my lies and total bullshit are my usual morning effort that contribute nothing of value.i make claims that are never true but some fool might believe them ha ha you stupid fools walmart is the only thing that matters in my life so do you have an answer for that?costco is so much better than walmart that people wish costco would build a store near them so they would not have to go to a walmart got an answer for that you walmart haters?

According to Wal-Mart’s own website, “In January 2006, the number of associates covered by Wal-Mart health care insurance increased to 46%.” [http://www.walmartfacts.com]

So, are you saying that WM should be holding a gun to employees’ heads and say “take the insurance, or else”?

I’d be curious to know the percentage of those who are covered that work for other retailers…

m att hew: hey Walmatt,got an answer WHY the ufcw dumped you?

<m att hew: hey Walmatt,got an answer WHY the ufcw dumped you?

You obviously don’t retain what you read very well, which is not at all surprising…

Mr. Vantress has stated on numerous occassions that he still works in a grocery warehouse that is represented by the local UFCW.

Kinda like the tricks pulled on Wal-Mart—in reverse!

bbrd: You should know about being tricky and backward. Here’s a recent entry from m att hew:~~~"lying dave?pal i worked in the ufcw union and know all their bullshit lies and chronic mistreatment of workers.i am no wm shill just a wm supporter who will defend them against propaganda and b.s. on a website.

m att hew vantress in gresham,oregon
Wednesday, June 11 at 07:15 AM~~~~~~~~~~~~Does not the suffix(thats the last letters) on workED indicate PAST tense?

no i work in a grocery warehouse represented by teamsters union not the pile of crap ufcw.i left the grocery store union job because the grocer and the union would not give me full time work.ufcw unions never do crap for the ones at the bottom end.they have zero credibility on anything they say on wm on here.

corgi how do you know winco treats and pays better than wm?i have a right to trash the ufcw union.i am a former member.and if the ufcw union grocers pay so great and have such great benefits then why do they still have a high rate of turnover corgi?i was and many ufcw union members are treated like shit regularly by the grocery stores and the union.their new contract really isnt nothing to shout about i looked at it and was not very impressed..the folks at the bottom end of the wage scale like baggers always get the short end of the stick and screwed big time.no grocery store union or non union pays that great or offers the oppurtunity to really get anywhere .i worked for thriftway years ago and was paid 5.00 an hr hardly living wages,around the same that i made when i quit the ufcw union grocery store.most grocers wont give full time work anymore.i dont support everything the teamsters do and dont believe everthing they tell us.not everone in a teamster union is happy either with wages and benefits.dont tell me not to bite the hand.i have freedom of speech and if you and the union dont like it too bad.i will stand up and defend wm against all the ufcw crap that is fed to you on here.i am a ex ufcw member and know how they operate and sell out their members during contract negotiations like how they screw the folks at the bottom end out of living wages and full time work.

matthew vantress in gresham oregon
Thursday, January 10 at 07:09 AM~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Hey,bb, aren’t you a little young to have such short term memory loss? Better check into that ASAP! BTW, hows that Attention Deficit Disorder medication working out for you?( Maybe the dosage requires adjustment.)

matt: Thanks for coming forth and proving my point.

Matt,

Thanks for proving that UFCW membership does not equate to “pie in the sky”.

As for old “what’s her name”—well, she’s simply not worth the wasted KB…

...she’s simply not worth the wasted KB…

Still wrestling with your inability to interact with members of the opposite sex, huh, bb?  I wish you’d clear it up once and for all. Are you gay* or just inept?

*not that there is anything wrong with that…

Just to clear it up, more than 50% of Wal-Mart associates elect coverage through the company.

That was already covered above Someone, just to clear that up… with a reference from a WalMart ‘press release’, the claim from WalMart being up from 46% and the rest of the story is where WalMart is better know towards its part time ‘associates’ who don’t stay long enough to qualify for the WalMart health care fraud-

Wal-Mart Health Insurance Coverage Lags Far Behind National Average. Nationally, 64% of workers in very large
firms (5,000 employees or more) receive their health benefits from their employer. Wal-Mart covers around 50% of its employees.
[Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey, The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust; Wal-Mart Press Release, 1/22/08]

Wal-Mart Employees Still Wait Twice As Long For Health Care Coverage Than Workers At Other Retailers. The Wal-Mart average for full-time workers to qualify for benefits is six months, compared to the retail average of three months. Part-time employees must wait a full year before receiving benefits. Since the majority of workers do not stay a year, the majority never get health care.
[Wal-Mart 2008 Associate Benefits Book, Pages 10 and 13; Employer Health Benefits 2007 Annual Survey, The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust]

Why won’t WalMart get the same health care insurance to their ‘associates’ that Costco gets to 90-92% of their employees? How about it Someone and bbrd? Or is that better management over at Costco too much ‘pie’ for the WalMart retail culture frauds over in Bentonville?

RDS, you are always making pretenses to capitalism and competition how come WalMart won’t compete for something that benefits its employees? Or is it simply a matter of their exploitive attitude towards the American worker?

I notice that Costco does not show up on any of the state systems for welfare/health care subsidies to their employees.

It is just another proof that the Costco business model and the people that run it with social responsibility are not abusing the taxpayer like the ‘love of money’ slobs over at WalMart.

“Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example.”
Mark Twain

WalMart- Ask not what your multi-billionaire corporate Walton family can do for you, ask what sacrifice you can make to enrich the already criminal uberwealthy that don’t know what to do with the money they already have.

Matt,

“i left the grocery store union job because the grocer and the union would not give me full time work”

Are you saying that the grocery store and the union wanted to keep you PART TIME and wouldn’t hire you on as FULL TIME?  I thought only Wal-Mart does that type of thing!!

SDV,

“Wal-Mart Health Insurance Coverage Lags Far Behind National Average. Nationally, 64% of workers in very large
firms (5,000 employees or more) receive their health benefits from their employer. Wal-Mart covers around 50% of its employees.”

These statistics are an unfair comparison, as most large firms don’t employ HIGH SCHOOL and COLLEGE students who are covered by their parents insurance or hire a large number of part time workers!!  It is better to compare ‘apples to apples’!!

“RDS, you are always making pretenses to capitalism and competition how come WalMart won’t compete for something that benefits its employees?”

Do you actually know what the word ‘compete’ means?  It is not necessary to ‘compete’ for employees, unless you are unable to obtain them at the level you are already at!!  Wal-Mart is already the Number 1 retailer, so they don’t need to change their model, until they have trouble maintaining that position!!  If and when Costco starts to become a threat to Wal-Mart, they will have to change, but, as of now, Costco is not a threat!!  What it amounts to, is why pay more for something than you have too!!  If you were to go to a store and the price of something you wanted to buy, was $5.00, would you say, “In order that others can benefit better, I want to pay $7.00 for that item” or would you just pay the $5.00?  If an employee knows the wage level and takes the job at that level, they are in essence saying that they are willing to sell their labor to Wal-Mart for that amount of money and, if they thought it was too low, they shouldn’t take the job!!  If you went for a job interview, and they told you they paid $6.00 an hour, would you take it ro would you look for something better?  And, if you couldn’t FIND anything better, and have to take the job at Wal-Mart, aren’t you getting the best wage available at your skill level?

Nice job missing the point RDS. Written like a true psychopath. The main problem with your sterile Ayn Rand business theory and libertarian theology is that ultimately you folks would just kill each other, presumably at the expense of taxpayers. It is too bad that WalMart won’t and can’t retain people as a revolving door employer just because they want to evade a decent wages and health care insurance policy for the majority of their ‘associates’. No doubt the ‘eligible’ being another threat to the primitive accumulation of more of labor’s wealth by the WalMart multi-billionaires and their hired managerial lap dogs. It must disappoint you that they don’t practice that viciousness against employees over at Costco.

“And, if you couldn’t FIND anything better, and have to take the job at Wal-Mart...”

You are breaking WalMart propaganda policy RDS by indicating that anyone would be forced to take a job at WalMart after WalMart destroyed the local better paying jobs and by their now self-admitted actions as an economic poverty engine.

The comparison with Costco is more than fair. You just don’t like the facts of the matter.

Sam Walton again on exploitation of people/labor-

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton once said, “I pay low wages. I can take advantage of that. We’re going to be successful, but the basis is a very low-wage, low-benefit model of employment.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Wal-Mart#_note-
iswalmartgood

“Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” PBS. November 16, 2004. Retrieved on February 24, 2007.

WalMart- We may not be the only American economic cemetery, but apparently we are the largest.

“The righteous considereth the cause of the poor: but the wicked regardeth not to know it.”
Proverbs 29:7

see sdv you cant answer why your cheap as slob bastard buddies at costco are too lazy and cheap to pay quality wages and give full time work to all.buddy costco dont pay as great as you claim.i know people who worked at costco and the pays is not as great as you brag.they dont pay 41,000 a year to everyone.funny sdv you are silent as can be on target,k-mart places you love that pay less than wm chronic mistreatment of workers.stop posting your same old ufcw union tired bullshit sdv.i worked in that union pal unlike you and dont bs anyone on here unlike you always.hey as hole sdv wm dont destroy anything.the other places destroy themselves.hey a hole sdv wm has no control over what others charge for the same crap from china wm sells.get your head out of your ass buddy.why dont you tell your slob bastard buddies at costco to stop selling tainted toys and etc sdv?also tell them to stop buying from those china slaveshops.

SDV: WalMart’s revolving door is similar to a neat grinder-and- the economic policy makers and assorted corporate cronies assure that there will be a continous supply to process.

Correction: TThat should have read meat grinder-Yes, what’s processed comes out different than when it went in.

As for old “what’s her name”—well, she’s simply not worth the wasted KB…

bbrd in
Monday, July 14 at 04:13 PM
Still wrestling with your inability to interact with members of the opposite sex, huh, bb?  I wish you’d clear it up once and for all. Are you gay* or just inept?…
Ken V in Texas
Monday, July 14 at 05:01 PM~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Ken, bb may be wrestling with the FACT that I uber-Pwnd HIS KB!!!

SVD,

Good to see you’re still on your drug-induced, bulk-sized, Costco fanboy, bible-thumping warpath…

I guess you have to go somewhere in your spare time, huh?

Or is that better management over at Costco too much ‘pie’ for the WalMart retail culture frauds over in Bentonville?

Costco was stuck with something (Teamsters) they inhertited when they merged with Price Club in the mid-90’s. 

Rest assured, it’s not a “feel good” measure on Costco’s part.

I notice that Costco does not show up on any of the state systems for welfare/health care subsidies to their employees.

I also noticed that Costco is about 10-15% of Wal-Mart’s size.  So?

And, of course, there’s your old “gal Friday"…

Why don’t you two just run away somewhere, together?

bb:Seems you have a helluva lot of spare time of your OWN to “spinned” here-( perhaps PAID is more accurate ?)As an apologist for WalMart,bb, you are doing THEM a DISS-service The long,disturbing catalogue of your sordid posts present the perfect profile of misogyny,gender discrimination and age discrimination- the very pattern and practices condoned by WalMart -for which they are paying dearly and WILL be paying dearly for in future class action court cases and in the court of public opinion.  Watever they’re paying you,even zero,is far more than your comments are worth. If you’re the best they can do,they’d be better off without.

...and ddrb builds the case for why none of the Wal-Mart apologists posting here are being paid to do so.

Someone: How do you KNOW that the apologists aren’t being paid to do so?

You explained some of it in the post above mine - they aren’t professional and do more harm than good in some cases. A company-paid apologist would stick to talking points and behave far more politely. You don’t honestly believe someone like vantress would be on the payroll?

Also, what’s the ROI on paying people to blog on an unfriendly site like this? None. Starting your own blog (or flog) makes more sense. The way Wal-Mart looks at money doesn’t justify this.

Someone: You STILL didn’t answer the question. HOW do YOU, KNOW?

“Also, what’s the ROI on paying people to blog on an unfriendly site like this?”
Someone in USA
Tuesday, July 15 at 04:11 PM

According to the New Yorker magazine and other news sources, WalMart pays Edelman $10,000,000 per year to create false blogs and troll the internet at sites like this.

Wal-Mart / Edelman, Part Two: Will the Real Bloggers Please Stand Up?
O’Dwyer’s has more revelations about the multifaceted fakery engaged in by Wal-Mart and its PR firm, Edelman. Edelman staffers have been posing as “grassroots” bloggers on two Wal-Mart websites, for the Working Families for Wal-Mart front group and paidcritics....
The paid bloggers are Edelman’s Miranda Gill, Brian McNeill and Kate Marshall.
http://www.prwatch.org/node/5317

“In terms of PR strategies, Rubel last year told BusinessWeek that the first job for companies is to monitor the blogs to see what people are saying about them. The next step is to think of damage-control strategies. And when blogs attack, he says companies have to learn to track what blogs are talking about, pinpoint influential bloggers, and figure out how to...”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15319926/

U.S.: A New Weapon for Wal-Mart: A War Room

by Michael Barbaro, The New York Times
November 1st, 2005

The contract went to Edelman, which assigned its top two Washington operatives to the account. Wal-Mart would not say what it is paying Edelman, nor would it allow interviews with the war room staff.

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12727

You continue to have a deliberate problem with the facts ‘Someone’.

WalMart/Edelman- We are associated by chance as a collection of ‘love of money’ psychopaths and propagandists.

“ Public-relations specialists make flower arrangements of the facts, placing them so that the wilted and less attractive petals are hidden by sturdy blooms.” Alan Harrington, “Public Relations,” Life in the Crystal Palace (1959)

SDV: That explains the lifeless and colorless “arrangements’ by the pro-crowd.As fake and phony as the plastic flowers they sell at WalMart.And even MORE aesthetically offensive.

SDV-

You cited nothing to substantiate ddrb’s accusation. In fact, you merely substantiated my post.

ddrb-

Believe what you want, my dear. I never took you for the rational type anyway.

Someone: Opinions are subjective. And “taking” someone as rational or irrational is YOUR personal reaction,NOT a valid assessment or a substantive evaluation.

“...why none of the Wal-Mart apologists posting here are being paid to do so.’

Someone in USA
Tuesday, July 15 at 03:15 PM

“Also, what’s the ROI on paying people to blog on an unfriendly site like this? None.”
Someone in USA
Tuesday, July 15 at 04:11 PM

You made more false claims ‘Someone’, actually lied. It was refuted by well known facts cited above, and again for you to publicly ignore again as another WalMart shill/troll/fraud/ WalMart ass kissing lackey.

According to the New Yorker magazine and other news sources, WalMart pays Edelman $10,000,000 per year to create false blogs and troll the internet at sites like this.

Wal-Mart / Edelman, Part Two: Will the Real Bloggers Please Stand Up?
O’Dwyer’s has more revelations about the multifaceted fakery engaged in by Wal-Mart and its PR firm, Edelman. Edelman staffers have been posing as “grassroots” bloggers on two Wal-Mart websites, for the Working Families for Wal-Mart front group and paidcritics....
The paid bloggers are Edelman’s Miranda Gill, Brian McNeill and Kate Marshall.
http://www.prwatch.org/node/5317

“In terms of PR strategies, Rubel last year told BusinessWeek that the first job for companies is to monitor the blogs to see what people are saying about them. The next step is to think of damage-control strategies. And when blogs attack, he says companies have to learn to track what blogs are talking about, pinpoint influential bloggers, and figure out how to...”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15319926/

U.S.: A New Weapon for Wal-Mart: A War Room

by Michael Barbaro, The New York Times
November 1st, 2005

The contract went to Edelman, which assigned its top two Washington operatives to the account. Wal-Mart would not say what it is paying Edelman, nor would it allow interviews with the war room staff.

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12727

“The trouble ain’t that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain’t distributed right.”
Mark Twain

According to the New Yorker magazine and other news sources...

Given the recent “cover-age” given to the Junior Senator from Illinois, and his wife, I don’t think too many left-leaners care about what The New Yorker has to say.

P.S.  According to The New York Times, the “war room” is closed—what have you to say about that, fanboy?

bbrd: Why don’t you check out the cover of the National Review-A spoof of the McCains-with LOTS of pharmaceuticals involved.(Wonder if Rick Davis got John some $4 meds specials from WalMart?)

HOW do YOU, KNOW?

Someone ‘knows’, Double D, because he has always wanted to be a paid pro Wal-Mart blogger. I think what irks him the most is the chance that some of these clowns may actually be getting paid by Wal-Mart for their drivel .

Why waste their money on them when they could have you, right, Someone?

ddrb,

Screwedby must have been kicked off the union’s payroll, as we haven’t heard from him lately, but, Ken V. is still on it!!

...Ken V. is still on it!!

You can bet I don’t get paid by the word. My posts are too short. A concept unknown to the pro Wal-Mart set: quality over quantity.

“What once was a friendly, customer service oriented business, has become a rude, unhelpful, impersonal corporation that has lost touch with it’s roots.” ~ James, ex Wal-Mart customer and PFB letter writer.

“You can bet I don’t get paid by the word. My posts are too short.”

So, Kenbo, you must be getting paid by the post or on the union’s payroll then!!

They pay me everytime you use the double exclamation!!

Ken V: KEEPER!!!!!!!!!Damn,you’re good,Kenzu.........

They pay me every time I do a m att hew vantress!!