Tom Coughlin’s “Wal-Mart Saga” Still Being Written

Wonder if the Coughlin testimony in the upcoming Dukes class action suit refer to discrimination towards women employees,PARTICULARLY, female associates who were in FAVOR of unionizing,if indeed there WERE any?

Here’s a little background on the issues surrounding the REASON for Coughlin’s $411,000 “embezzlement”:

“Beginning in July 2005, Coughlin was the subject of a United States Department of Justice investigation, as well as a lawsuit by Wal-Mart, and is being reviewed by a federal grand jury over misuse of company gift cards.
When the charges first surfaced in April 2005, Coughlin claimed the money he embezzled was being used to pay bribes to trade union officials not to organize at Wal-Mart locations and to identify pro-union Wal-Mart workers. “

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Coughlin_(Wal-Mart)

Coughlin Says Cash Helped Wal-Mart
Ousted Executive Cites Expense of Anti-Union Activity

By Michael Barbaro
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 9, 2005;

Excerpted-

ROGERS, Ark., April 8—The former head of Wal-Mart’s U.S operations, ousted from the board after the alleged misuse of corporate funds, has maintained that the money was spent on anti-union activities such as paying people to identify stores where union leaders planned to recruit, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Such payments could violate federal law if they went to current union members. But lawyers for Thomas M. Coughlin, in rebutting what the company has called a “disagreement” over expense reimbursements, will argue that although he periodically paid people to keep tabs on organizing activity in Wal-Mart stores, none of the recipients were members of a union, the source said.

Coughlin “believes he was doing what was in the company’s interest” by collecting information on union activity, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In countering the company, his lawyers will contend “he was not stealing” but reimbursing himself for work-related expenses, the source said.

Coughlin has not been charged with a crime. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has turned the matter over to the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas. The U.S. attorney’s office declined to comment Friday.

Coughlin, once the No. 2 executive at the company, stepped down as a board member two weeks ago after an internal investigation raised questions about the use of up to $500,000 in company funds, Wal-Mart said. The investigation, which prompted the company to fire three more employees, focused on the alleged unauthorized use of corporate gift cards and suspect expense reports.

In a written statement, Coughlin’s attorneys, Blair G. Brown and William W. Taylor III, said their client “did not seek nor obtain any improper reimbursements from Wal-Mart” and added: “We are unable to respond further to allegations concerning expense reimbursement without seeing the records. Wal-Mart has refused to provide them.”

Paying union members for information about organizing efforts is prohibited by the 1947 Taft-Hartley labor relations act. It also violates federal law to pay a current employee for information about union organizing activities, according to Robert Bruno, professor of labor and industrial relations at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Wal-Mart already has a hard-nosed image when it comes to unions. Earlier this year, the company announced it would close a Canadian store that had recently voted to organize, saying the Quebec outlet was not profitable. In 2000, shortly after 11 Wal-Mart meat cutters in Texas voted to be represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers union, the company announced it would pre-package meat and eliminate meat cutter jobs company-wide.

The UFCW, which is trying to organize Wal-Mart’s 1.2 million employees, called on the company to release any relevant documents and sharply criticized its labor practices. Wal-Mart contends that unions make retailers inefficient and has successfully resisted their formation at its 3,000 U.S. stores.

“We are deeply disturbed by these allegations of Wal-Mart’s anti-union activity,” Bill McDonough, executive vice president of the UFCW, said in a statement. “These are serious criminal offenses and cast Wal-Mart’s systematic anti-worker activities on a much more sinister level.”

Coughlin’s lawyers, in their statement, lashed out at the retailer for refusing to release key documents. They said it was “unfair to Mr. Coughlin, after his many years of service to Wal-Mart, for the company to refuse to provide him with the very documents it has publicly said are questionable.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38810-2005Apr8.html

Tom Coughlin is a classic example of someone being thrown under the bus. As one of the last surviving good old boys, I’m sure Tom didn’t think there was anything wrong with partying high and hard and reimbursing yourself out of the till. High dollar boots and flying Mexican hookers in for the annual south Texas ‘dove hunt’.

A direct protege of Sam the Man, Coughlin was generally well-liked in the trenches.

Said one insider, who asked not to be identified by name: “Wal-Mart claims that these ($7.95 jeans) are not loss leaders. Well, if that’s true, imagine the costs of the denim, the zippers, the buttons, the shipping costs, the store overhead, and there certainly isn’t much room left over to pay for the costs of labor. I love free trade, but this makes even me uncomfortable.”

“but class action lawyers aim to knock it down with an $11 billion lawsuit...Their star witness, former Wal-Mart executive vice president Thomas Coughlin, earned their respect by embezzling $411,218 from his employers.”

Gee, their star witness is a convicted criminal and of course, he wouldn’t LIE, now would he, now that he has been convicted of embezelment from Wal-Mart?

“When the charges first surfaced in April 2005, Coughlin claimed the money he embezzled was being used to pay bribes to trade union officials”

Bribes to trade union officials?  Naw, that can’t be TRUE, union officials would never take ‘bribes’, would they?  When I was in the TEAMSTERS uniion, our officials took so many ‘bribes’ from employers that they ended up shutting down our LOCAL!!  Makes one wonder, was he lying back in 2005, when he said he paid union officials or the fact that the courts found him ‘guilty’ of embezelment?

“Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has turned the matter over to the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas.”

Why would Wal-Mart turn the matter over to the U.S. attorney and file a lawsuit against Coughlin, if he was only doing what Wal-Mart wanted him to do, fight the unions, by doing something illegal?  You would think they would want something like that kept quiet, if it were true!!

“Such payments could violate federal law IF they went to current union members.
But lawyers for Thomas M. Coughlin, in rebutting what the company has called a “disagreement” over expense reimbursements, will argue that although he periodically paid people to keep tabs on organizing activity IN Wal-Mart stores, NONE of the recipients WERE MEMBERS OF A UNION, the source said.” ~~

NOTE: Still got a problem with reading comprehension skills,eh Bob?

“In fact, organizers today are overwhelmingly drawn from the ranks of idealistic college graduates and committed union members, many of them woman and minorities. They are not taught to coerce. Rather, their main task is overcoming fear of EMPLOYER REPRISAL on the part of employees eager to have a union. “-----Jack Getman,"Don’t Undermine Workers Rights”.

NOTE: Wouldn’t it be very interesting if Mr. Coughlin’s testimony in the Dukes’ case would connect gender with forming or joining unions as one of the reasons for discriminationa against women at WalMart?

ddrb,

“NOTE: Still got a problem with reading comprehension skills,eh Bob?”

No, but you might have, as it was your own post!!

That was what his LAWYERS said they are going to use as his DEFENSE, but, Coughlin said himself in 2005, ‘Coughlin claimed the money he embezzled was [being used to pay bribes to trade union officials not to organize] at Wal-Mart locations and to identify pro-union Wal-Mart workers’.

So, what you are saying is that the lawyers know more about what Coughlin did, then he does!!  What lawyers use as a defense, isn’t always what happened, like you people do, they ‘twist things’ to attain their agenda, which is to lessen his sentence!!

“Gee, their star witness is a convicted criminal and of course, he wouldn’t LIE, now would he, now that he has been convicted of embezelment from Wal-Mart?"RDS~~~~~~

Coughlin said himself in 2005, ‘Coughlin claimed the money he embezzled was [being used to pay bribes to trade union officials not to organize] at Wal-Mart locations and to identify pro-union Wal-Mart workers’.....

NOTE: SO what makes you believe that Coughlin isn’t lying about paying off union officials,just to give unions a bad name and cover his own considerable a--?

Tom Coughlin is another proof of criminal activity at WalMart Stores Inc. against the people and laws of the United States.

And for those of you who missed it… he is a pork barrel project unto himself.

“Profits, like sausages… are esteemed most by those who know least about what goes into them.” - Alvin Toffler

WalMart/Waltons- Ask not what your corporate employer can do for your living wages, right to unionize or health care, ask only what you can do to increase tobacco product sales and fund criminal corporate slobs like Tom Coughlin on behalf of your corporate employer multi-billionaire’s ever increasing inherited and largely stolen, illegally and immorally gotten wealth.

ddrb,

“NOTE: SO what makes you believe that Coughlin isn’t lying about paying off union officials,just to give unions a bad name and cover his own considerable a--?”

There is a concept that juries are told, ‘if you catch a person in a lie, it is best to disregard EVERYTHING they say’ and this guy is going to be the STAR witness?  Even YOU are not sure about what is a lie and if there is even one shread of truth in anything he says!!  If he’s the ‘best’ the lawyers can present, it’s all over but the crying!!

rds you ar right about the teamsters union because they are so corupt its sad.they are not there for you when your hrs are cut and you are getting laid off.the teamsters dental benefits are not as good as private sector dental.ddrb the ufcw sucks.they nedd to pay attention to the hurt they are putting their grocery workers through with dumping many of them on food stamps and state welfare doles.the lazy ufcw dont fight hard enough for full time work and living wages for all.the ufcw needs to but out of wms affairs and mind their own business.

hey sdv how about that crook sinegal at costco huh?that cheap slob cant get full time work for all yet you brag and talk out of your ass about how great they are when they really arent

Has everyone forgotten the cache of videotapes owned by a company that used to film all of WalMart’s special events and meetings?

Perhaps Mr. Coughlin is on these tapes,or can provide testimony to clarify some of them,should they be enntered into discovery in the Dukes gender discrimination case against WalMart.

As I recall,W/M was offered the opportunity to purchase these tapes,accumulated for decades,but chose not to buy them.

[These tapes were the source of the videos showing W/M CEO’s in drag;also,video spoofing the exploding gas cans that injured WalMart customers.]

ddrb,

“Has everyone forgotten the cache of videotapes owned by a company that used to film all of WalMart’s special events and meetings?”

I remember them, weren’t they kept by Wal-Mart’s former PR firm and were to be ‘sold’!!  Wasn’t the release of those tapes supposed to ‘blow the lid’ off Wal-Mart?  Then a few, which showed people in drag, came out on TV and after that, they faded into the woodwork, not as much an impact as everyone here thought!!

Another Sound Investment Decision by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc

Everyone who sees the video is shocked: Wal-Mart managers dressed in drag, parading around official Wal-Mart corporate meetings.

Bloggers have been weighing in on the never-before-seen footage, and while many note how offensive Wal-Mart’s mockery is (particularly in light of the landmark Dukes v. Wal-Mart gender discrimination case) many go on to add that the real problem here is how Wal-Mart treats its vendors.
Had Wal-Mart bought the rights to this footage in the first place, it wouldn’t have yet another public relations debacle on its hands.  May this be a lesson, that women working at and vendors working with Wal-Mart all learn from.

Wal-Mart corporate archivist selling access to recordings of exec meetings to plaintiff-side lawyers [Boing Boing]

Flagler Productions, a video production company in Kansas that spent years as Wal-Mart’s corporate archivist, is now selling access to thousands of hours of candid footage of Wal-Mart execs talking about the business’s dirty secrets.

Hell Hath No Fury Like a Wal-Mart Vendor Scorned [Daily Kos]

Ouch! Wal-Mart forgot to sign a contract spelling out the terms of their production services.  I’ve leave it up to the legal eagles on this board to offer a more informed opinion, but this can’t be good.....for Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart internal corporate videos up for sale [BloggingStocks]

As many of you may know, Wal-Mart was involved in the largest gender discrimination class-action lawsuit in this decade for alleged discrimination towards female employees in management ranks.

From Jezebel:

Wal-Mart has famously good lawyers, which makes it tough to get money out of them, for your incapacitating injury or class-action sex discrimination suit. So it’s a good thing they’re so stingy!

Did Wal-Mart Forget the Little Guys? [Wall Street Journal Independent Street Blog]

The biggest players in the world can’t function without smaller ones to keep them supplied, technologically-sound, and otherwise ticking. To stay afloat, Flagler offered to sell Wal-Mart the whole video archive for several million dollars. Wal-Mart, whose revenue is now over $375 billion, countered with an offer of $500,000.

And the little guy hasn’t forgotten.

30 Years Of Confidential Walmart Videos For Sale [Consumerist]

Other revealing moments include: “A former executive vice president and board member challenges store managers in 2004 to continue his work opposing unionization. Male managers in drag lead thousands of co-workers in the company’s corporate cheer. In another meeting, managers mock foolish or dangerous use of a product sold in its stores. In 1991, founder Sam Walton describes Hillary Clinton, then a Wal-Mart director, as “one of us.”

Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Thursday, April 10, 2008~~~~~~~

NOTE: You can type in Flagler archives into the search engine here. I see no evidence that any WalMart PR firm owns this video archive.

I remember reading that attorneys are buying tapes on as needed basis to substantiate their client’s cases involving WalMAa.t

ddrb,

“Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Thursday, April 10, 2008~~~~~~~”

Like I said, old dead news, which NO ONE has even talked about in almost a year, until YOU brought it up!!  Nobody cares about those videos anymore!!

Time will tell,time will tell.

Yes!  You have to, have worked at WAL-MART Store #2615 in Valdosta, Georgia to OVERSTAND the sick working environment employees must face each and every day--without any real voice. 

It is my belief.  That every worker at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., should have an equal chance to advance up the ladder on an equal footing, which is not presently being done in many departments according to workers. 

Today it was brought to my attention that workers are still being coached, and given a D-Days without merit in order to justify terminations. 

Moreover, if you become sick and use your sick time you may not have a job when you return.  (Workers name withheld, but available).

Wal-Mart Managers must understand that workers are adults, American Citizens, and should be treated with respect.  It is Un-American to treat WORKERS as if they were in China or in some other third world nation. 

Moreover as a Retired United States Armed Forces Military Veteran of the Vietnam Era.  I received training in people skills, supervisory, leadership and management.  And I am very much capable of recognizing a disgraceful working environment when I see one, and Wal-Mart Store #2615 is definitely such an environment. 

In addition, workers cannot speak up for themselves because they are fearful of terminations----as so many other outstanding workers. 

Why do I use the term workers instead of associates?  Because Wal-Mart WORKERS are NOT presently being treated as ASSOCIATES, as defined in Webster’s Dictionary. 

Even more sickening is why CUSTOMERS, and former WORKERS continue supporting the ill treatment of American Workers in the State of Georgia in the 21st Century at Wal-Mart Store #2615.

It seems that Wal-Mart Store #2615 and the State of Georgia EMPLOYEES need a union ASAP.  And as a person of conscious, my heart grieves when Wal-Mart WORKERS consistently tell me about Wal-Mart’s “OPEN DOOR POLICY.”

This is a door that LOOKS like, TASTE like, FEELS like, SOUNDS like, SMELLS like the real thing, (An OPEN DOOR).  But when workers try walking through this open door.  They find themselves getting UP, off the floor after running into---invisible Plexiglas.  Then out the door they go.  How Sad? 

But then again who cares? Surely, not Georgia Elected Officials who seem to have sold Georgia Workers down the drain, under Georgia’s unfair “At Will Employment Law.”

A law wherein workers can be fired “for cause, or for no cause at all,” and employers are NOT even required to inform workers why they were fired. 

This law also applies to returning United States Military Veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan War.  Yet Georgia politicians continue to tell the American Citizens, that they support our troops.  How sad?

It is up to the VOTERS to remove politicians from office, that keep Georgia’s sick “At Will Employment Law” alive in our nation, and in the State of Georgia. 

So please spread the word by writing letters, e-mails, and inform all Americans to educate themselves concerning the “At Will Employment Law.”

Together we stand-----and divided they win, again, and again, and again!  G.B.R.

GBR
Retired Military Veteran
A concerned citizen and brother of all humanity