Wal-Mart Watch Daily Clips- June 26th

MINNESOTA WAL-MART THREATENING TO FIRE WORKERS WHO ORGANIZE

• Wal-Mart accused of labor-law violations [The Minnesota Independent]
  Wal-Mart is threatening to fire pro-union workers at its store in the Midway neighborhood of St. Paul, according to a complaint filed today with the National Labor Relations Board. The charges, filed by United Food and Commercial Workers Local 789, allege that starting on June 11 corporate representatives began telling employees that they could easily acquire a list of union backers and that those people would lose their jobs.

• Minnesota union files unfair labor practice charges against Walmart [Workday Minnesota]
  United Food & Commercial Workers Local 789 filed charges against Walmart Wednesday, alleging the world's largest retailer violated the National Labor Relations Act by engaging in unfair labor practices at its St. Paul store. Workers at the Midway store and many other locations in Minnesota and other states are engaged in a union organizing campaign.

                                                           
OUTRAGE AS ORANGE COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION APPROVES 'WILDERNESS WAL-MART'

• ROUND 1 TO WAL-MART [Free Lance-Star (Va.)]
  A split Orange County Planning Commission last night endorsed a Wal-Mart retail center proposed in the Wilderness battlefield area. The 11-member advisory panel voted 5-4 to recommend that the Board of Supervisors approve a proposal by JDC Ventures of Vienna for the 51.6-acre commercial development.

• Trust Criticizes Vote On Wal-Mart Near Battlefield [Associated Press via WJZ-TV (Va.)]
  The National Trust for Historic Preservation is criticizing Orange County planners for approving a Wal-Mart Supercenter near a Civil War battlefield.

• Wal-Mart Step Closer To Store Near Va. Battlefield [Associated Press via WJZ-TV (Va.)]
  The 5-4 vote Thursday sends the proposal to the Board of Supervisors. That board is believed to be leaning toward approval of the 138,000-square-foot store within a cannon shot of the Civil War battlefield.

• Orange Planning Commission Recommends New Wal-Mart [Charlottesville Newsplex]
  Supervisors will conduct a public hearing before taking a vote on the proposal that has been criticized by some of the nation's top historians, as well as actor Robert Duvall. The Orange County Chamber of Commerce, meanwhile, is backing the project, pointing to the jobs and tax revenue a Walmart would bring to the county.

• Letter: Walmart is win-win [Orange County Review (Va.)]
  Like many of my neighbors in eastern Culpeper County, I shop a great deal at Walmart in the Town of Culpeper. However, if Walmart is built near the Route 3/Route 20 intersection, we will shift our shopping there. In my case, a round trip there is 12 miles less than the Culpeper store.
• Orange County, VA. Planning Commission Approves Controversial "Battlefield" Wal-Mart By One Vote Battlemart Blog]
  The first shot has been fired by public officials in what has become a bloody public relations war for the Wal-Mart corporation. Last night, by one vote, the Orange County, Virginia Planning Commission voted to recommend a special use permit for one of the most controversial Wal-Mart proposals in the nation---one quarter mile from the infamous Wilderness civil war battlefield.

LOCAL BUILDER OFFERS WAL-MART SPACE WEST OF BATTLEFIELD...WILL THEY CONSIDER?

• ORANGE BUILDER OFFERS WAL-MART 75 ACRES WEST OF BATTLEFIELD [Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star (Va.)]
  He recently contacted both parties to invite Wal-Mart to locate on 75 acres along State Route 3 west of Lake of the Woods. Marcantoni owns the property with business partner Robert Dudley of Stafford County.

WAL-MART CAUGHT NOT PAYING PROPERTY TAXES IN DELAWARE

• Delaware County Treasurer nabs delinquent dollars [The Star Press (Del.)]
  And so far, it's paying off for taxpayers. Earlier this month, Dorer collected $585,000 in delinquent property taxes in connection with the Southside Walmart simply by calling the company's corporate headquarters. "They absolutely agreed they hadn't paid," Dorer said. "They said they dropped the ball somewhere and didn't have the statement. It was just an oversight on Walmart's part."

WAL-MART RETREATS ON MISLEADING '$700' AD

• After Complaint, Wal-Mart Rolls Back An Ad Campaign [Wall Street Journal]
  Ever wonder if those shopping ads you see on TV or in the paper -- the ones that claim you can save hundreds a month by buying from their stores -- are actually telling the truth? (Of course you have.)

MORE ON WAL-MART'S QUESTIONABLE PRESCRIPTIONS DRUGS

• Wal-Mart faces ire over drugs from Ranbaxy [Business Standard]
  More trouble is brewing for the Daiichi Sankyo-owned Ranbaxy Laboratories in the US, as a campaign has been unleashed against the world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, for selling drugs manufactured by Ranbaxy. WakeupWalmart.com, an anti-Wal-Mart website which belongs to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), came out with a report two days ago titled, 'Wal-Mart's vaunted $4-prescriptions supplied by disgraced Indian manufacturer'.

ANOTHER HIGH PROFILE WAL-MART AD CAMPAIGN AIMED AT CHILDREN

• W-A-L M-A-R-T... M-O-U-S-E! [New York Times]
  Wal-Mart Stores is stepping up its push for a new line of home furnishings aimed at teenagers by joining forces with Walt Disney for an online promotion. The promotion is called "Rock Out Your Zone," after the name of the new line, Your Zone. The merchandise -- bedding, rugs, furniture, lamps, shelves and other bedroom mainstays -- is intended to give Wal-Mart, the nation's biggest retailer, a bigger piece of the private-label market in a growing category.

WAL-MART KNOWS WHAT YOU NEED THIS RECESSION: JEWELRY

• Wal-Mart gives prime placement to fine jewelry [National Jeweler]
  Strolling through a Virginia Wal-Mart store recently, industry analyst Ken Gassman noticed profound changes to the mega-retailer's fine-jewelry department that were hard to ignore, especially for an analyst who specializes in the jewelry industry.

BACK IN THE NEWS: WAL-MART BIKE LAWSUIT

• Wal-Mart bike suit comes back to St. Clair again [The Record (Ill.)]
  A product liability suit stemming from a boy's bike accident in 2006, is back in St. Clair County after unsuccessful attempts by defendants Wal-Mart and Dynacraft to remove the case to federal court. Plaintiff Lisa Willyard is suing over what she claims was a defective bike that injured her son, Tony Willyard. She is seeking unspecified damages, costs and medical bills.

GENERIC BRAND LABELS NOT JUST GETTING MORE SHELF SPACE AT WAL-MART

• Wal-Mart Great Value Brand Revamp Signals Mainstream Adoption of Private Label Products [Gerson Lehrman Group]
  Looking back, retail observers and pundits will identify the current recession as a tipping point when private label products emerged from alternative status and into the mainstream.  Wal-Mart's "Save Money. Live Better."

• Target relaunches its store brand, called 'up and up' [The Business Review]
  Target Corp. has relaunched its store brand of basic household products, as the retailer adjusts to changing consumer habits in the recession. The Minneapolis-based retail giant, which has 62 stores in New York and seven stores in the Albany, N.Y., area, said it has rebranded its core commodities line -- a product category that includes everyday items such as baby wipes, sunscreen, dryer sheets and plastic containers -- under the name "up & up."

CALIFORNIA SITE FIGHT: SITE PROPOSAL GOES BACK TO COURT

• http://www.triplicate.com/20090625106314/News/Local-News/Wal-Mart-proposal-goes-back-to-court">Wal-Mart proposal goes back to court [The Daily Triplicate (Calif.)]
  The local Wal-Mart's expansion into a Supercenter is not likely to begin until next spring or even later. While most of a local group's lawsuit against Del Norte County and Wal-Mart was dismissed in May, one particular issue concerning the county's decision to approve the expansion is still alive in the judicial system.

CALIFORNIA SITE FIGHT: WAL-MART REPORT WILL BE RELEASED SOON

• Wal-Mart report nearing release [Modesto Bee (Calif.)]
  City planning officials soon should have the final report that states how the proposed Wal-Mart distribution center will change the city. EDAW, the consultant writing the massive environmental review, is scheduled to turn over the final draft July 6 for city staff and attorneys to proofread.

Posted by Research Team on Friday, June 26, 2009

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