WalmartWatch.com Annual Report 2005:  Low Prices at What Cost?

My mother was recently terminated from Wal-Mart Home Offices in Bentonville, AR. She worked there for over a year, only recieving good merits and pay raises. She was the secretary to one of the highest employees at Wal-Mart. A little over 3 weeks ago she went to work like any normal day. Lunch time rolled around she went to lunch ACCIDENTLY forgetting to clock out. She got her lunch and realized that she had forgot to clock out. She told the fellow employees at the table that she forgot to clock out, that she would be right back. She went and clocked out and proceeded to finish lunch. Monday morning she was called into her managers office where they proceeded to fire her for ACCIDENTLY forgetting to clock out for lunch. She recieved no warning… NOTHING SHE WAS FIRED. If that is not the most redicious thing that you have ever heard I dont know what is. I would be a little more understand if it happened again and again but one time is pathetic.

i want $80.00

Whitney in Bentonville, AR

Even though your mother was recently terminated.  I’m sure both of you will still shop there and give Lee Scott your money.

When will you and everyone else learn.

I sympathize with your mother Whitney.  I was once an employee of a Wal-Mart in my hometown when it first came there, back in the late 80’s.  I worked there for three months, from October, and then on December 24th, I, along with about 20 other people were laid off.  Laid off on Christmans Eve!  What a nice present that was.

Has your mother used the open door to plead her case?  This is what she should do.  That’s one good thing about Wal-Mart, they listen and care about the associate who may have been mistreated.  Also she could call the ethics hotline to report this.

I am happy to say that I am 100% on the anti-Walmart bandwagon.  I just recently bought an electric Coleman cooler from a sporting goods store and happily paid $40 more than what Walmart was selling the exact same one for.  I refuse to give them my money and will gladly pay more $$for items at other stores rather than shop at Walmart.

I guarantee that no matter what a great deal that store has, I will never step foot in one.
Personal background on that one: my brother worked at Target for like six years, was making good money, had benefits, all that jazz.  A new Wal-mart is going to open in a nearby town and my brother applies. He is offered a position of Stereo/Electronics department manager and accepts. He works for three months getting the store ready to open. The store opens and he is NOT a manager, just a regular employee.
Target happily took him back immediatly.

I’ve noticed when talking with friends how unware folks are about the trickle-down effect Wal-mart’s importing practices have on our economy.  I just left a company in SC whose primary product 100 years ago was the paper cone used by the textile industry.  Now that SC has no textile industry (due in large part to Wal-mart I’m sure) the company has no reason to make paper cones.  Now that they’re not making paper cones, our paper mills don’t need to make the paper.  Now the paper mills are shut down.  And that’s when it affects me.  When I put it like that, they seem to understand.

I’ve also noticed that folks use the excuse, “Well Target and the others also have tons of products from China.” What they don’t seem to understand is that Wal-mart forced suppliers that also supply to Target and the others to relocate to China to keep Wal-mart’s business.  Target and the others have no choice but to get their stock from China thanks to Wal-mart.

I am 110% against WallMart - I tell everyone I know that this Corporation is the destruction of America! With the 60 Billion Dollar deficiate we face with China - Wallmart is helping the Chinese build a strong economy!  Wallmart to me is the Anti Christ, KKK, and AlQuida wraped up in one! I guess you have an Idea of my dislike of this Company

I concur with Dan 100%, When I lived in San Jose we had plenty of places to shop other then Wal-Mart & I never stepped into one nor did I care to (though my sister shops there). When we moved to North Carolina the choices of where to shop are limited, I grudgingly went into the store & was at once turned off to the whole “experience” I will willingly pay more to a local merchant (even tough we have limited funds) any day or buy off the internet rather then give WallyWorld our hard earned dollars!

Actually trade deficit with China was 162 billion in 2004.
Through march of this year you can add another 42 billion.
Wal-Mart’s share of this deficit in 2004 was around 20 billion alone--keeping in mind that hundreds of our multi-nationals
do business there.

hey, lets all be victims of wal-mart and write about it!! losers, get a life! I hope walmart takes over the world, will all be rich and u will be our servants, idiots.

Joel, I wouldnt normally call someone out on a blog, but you seem to be the idiot when you write the word “will” when you cleary meant “we’ll” (or We will if you understand that better).  Its obvious to me that you must work for Walmart since your grammar is just at the point where Walmart likes their associates to be.  That way they probably won’t understand how Walmart takes advantage of them.

Just imagine if Walmart got hold of our public education system:  we will all be too stupid to do anything but Walmart.

Good one, Kevin. 

Joel:  Sentences typically begin with capital letters, and “idiots.” should comprise a separate sentence, possible with an exclamation point, since it seems to be an exclamatory comment.  How will Walmart employees “all be rich,” again?  Most do not even have sufficient healthcare.

Joel, you are wanted in the paint department, aisle 7, to sniff more Walmart paint.  Your break is over, now get back to sniffing and make that $3/hr without benefits and enjoy it!!

Does anyone else question the word “associates” as I do? I find it offensive myself, unless their actually business partners or at the very least getting some kind of profit sharing (NOT!) then they are simply “employees”. WallyWorld is not the only company guilty of this type of patronization but I think they started the trend.

Tards,

If you want me to use proper grammer you are missing the point. Or you have little to no argument. I do not work for wal-mart, but am getting rich off the plethora of people moving to this area. You see 10 years from now, Bentonville has this master plan to put a large gate around it so nobody(tards like you) can enter our magical society without an invite. You know like all exclusive area’s (i.e. The Hamptons), I am sure you might be getting lost at this point becuase you have never been invited to such a place as the hamptons because you live online writing messages about wal-mart. Have a nice life losing and most importantly, being victims.

I’m not going to knock poor Joel in Bentonville for his grammar and spelling. 

But his message to “Tards,” and his response to the well-justified critque of Wal-Mart expressed on this website, put one in mind of something the Greek philosopher Socrates said so well 2,400 years ago (which is still true today):

“Wisdom seems like foolishness to fools.”

Joel is just trying to impress us. Apparently he is a future
plutocrat with an anger problem but a multinational colossus
on his side. Either that or possibly he’s just delusional. I
would opt for the second. It’s interesting however how he
comes on spewing pretty much nothing but insults and then
comes back to tell us we have no points to make. Okay. If
you say so.

Make no mistake about it, this is a DIRECT RESULT of republican party policies.  Walmart needs to be Enron’ed, their company officers indicted and incarcerated for colossal manipulation of the corporate structure.  In addition, the republican party needs to be subjected to legal penalties, perhaps a complete ban of their financing.  Once we have real progressive values and democratic representation, we can deal with corporations such as Walmart, effectively closing them and ensuring that businesses which are progressive and socially conscious are the only places we do business.

Until it is banned, the republican party is, has been, and always will be, America’s Ultimate Hate Crime, now at Walmart stores.

I need some help from walmartwatch.  I don’t really shop at walmart, but I hear the complaints about wages, benefits, products made in China, etc.  Please educate me.  What stores, that sell goods for resale, are you wanting walmart to emulate?  Any Retail category will do—department store, mass retailer, speciality store, etc.  I can easily avoid walmart, but what stores are “allowed” based on their corporate culture, governance, and policies.  Thanks.

I’d like to ask the same question. What retailer only sells american goods, pays their cashiers $20/hr, gives them 3 weeks of vacation, stock options and so on...you get the point.

The problem with this organization [UFCW] is, that they do not offer any solutions. You are very good at pointing out problems, but that’s about it. How can you call this effort a “reform” if your only goal is to destroy Wal-Mart and all the lives that depend on it?

I don’t think any of us is harboring the delusion that we can walk in to any store and find the utopian fantasy that you wrote about, Egar.
What I hope that people will realize is that WalMart does indeed employ huge numbers of people in the U.S., but pays a dismal wage, makes healthcare unobtainable, won’t allow unions, and apparently thinks that employees should work off the clock if deemed necessary by the boss.
Target, on the other hand, pays a better wage, routinely gives raises, has a decent healthcare package (according to 3 employees at my local store). Is Target perfect? I’m sure not. Are they better? NO DOUBT!!! Wal-Mart could still employ people and operate ethically. That would be the best solution, no?

I worked for many years at Wal-Mart.  Recently, I was forced to quit due to age and disability discrimination by my manager.  It seems that he wanted the younger women up front as Customer Service Managers (CSMs).  When I wouldn’t accept a lower-paying position which, incidentally, would put me in a small office with no windows and no access to the public, he made my life hell, and encouraged his “proteges” to do the same. 

As for Joel in Bentonville, AR: I think you are trying to get your “jollies” by irritating people.  You don’t fool me because I believe no one could be as stupid as you come across.

As for Kay in Bentonville:  Have YOU ever tried the Open Door Policy or called Wal-Mart’s Ethics hotline?  I have.  It took them over two months to get back to me (I was told they were extremely busy since it was during the “holidays” - and they were so sorry).  From the time I called until the time I was forced to quit (8 months later), Wal-Mart had “investigated” my complaints three times - without talking once to my witnesses.  They even put one of the managers I had complained about in charge of one of those supposed investigations.  Now the Feds are involved.

Wal-Mart could be very good - if it wanted.  But the greed by the Walton family members and its executives have destroyed any chance Wal-Mart ever had for being a decent company.

First off, if you have the facts and all the facts, that is GREAT, but since you do not have all the facts, SHUT UP. If Kay’s mother was a secretary for a “high up executive” she would NOT be hourly and clock in and out.  If you are unhappy with Wal-mart DON’T shop there.  I think the numbers speak for themselves.  Is Wal-Mart a perfect company? No, do they try? Yes!  Do they listen to their associates? Yes they do. 
It’s really pathetic that you all think you have to bring Wal-Mart down because you all have issues!  You can dig dirt on any person and any company as long as you dig long enough, Obviously it is better for you to try and bring Wal-Mart down to your level.  Guess what! Won’t happen. You will be at the bottom all by yourself!  Try rising up to Wal-mart!

Lilly
Bentonville, Ar.

Lilly in Bentonville

You need to get back to work before Mr. Sam fires you!

No wonder there is no one to help customers, a lot of the employees like Lilly, Egar & Joel (aka Sam’s & Lee’s slaves) are busy posting lies on this site.

Lee in Bentonville, AR

Doubt you know what you are talking about.  I DO!
No one is chained to Wal-Mart as an associate or a shopper, the beauty of this country is we have the right to shop and work where we want.  But we also have to have our facts right, which unfortunately YOU do not !  You do not have the facts!
How would you know there are no associates to help the customers, don’t you remember, you won’t shop there?
Once again you are so low to the bottom you are trying to bring Wal-mart down to your level, guess what IT WON’T Happen!  Get the facts and then write, but until then shut your trap and get some professional help.  You’ll feel better as will the rest of the world!

Grace, thanks for posting.  I noticed you said:

“Target, on the other hand, pays a better wage, routinely gives raises, has a decent healthcare package (according to 3 employees at my local store).”

Can I infer that this is hearsay since you referenced employess in your parentheses, or do you really have any facts?  I am just trying to figure out where to spend my hard-earned dollars.  I am okay boycotting Walmart, but what is the point if I have to boycott Target a week later.  Then Sears/Kmart, then Best Buy, etc, etc.

Is there someone out there who really has actual solutions based on fact, or precedence?  There are many progressive countries in this world (in Europe or Scandanavia, for example), so is there an example of a retailer based in those countries that have a better socialist policy.  Let’s give American Retailers a vision of what is expected, rather than just jumping on a bandwagon that is chic’.

Wow Larry, GREAT idea, are you about 6 years old?

To Uneducated.....

Noticed you wanted facts, how about asking someone who knows, obviously these are Union people who are upset because Wal-Mart won’t unionize.  So they are going to spread all the WRONG info about the company.
How about some real facts, Wal-Mart employs over 1 1/2 million associates, (by choice they are not chained or forced to work there), Benefits are BETTER than 90% of other company’s. 
If someone is really interested in facts they can go to Wal-Mart Facts and get the FACTS!!!!

Lilly

Get the facts

Lilly in bentonville, ar is correct.
I have been working every year starting in 1956.
I have worked for walmart only five years and have been treated better and also have the best benefit package iv’e ever had.
Since most of you think you know all about life and what you should get out of working, would you please tell me where i can get one of those great jobs.
Please hurry i dont have much time left.......

Well, this should be an interesting movie. At any rate, I stopped stepping foot into Wal-Mart since they had TVs all over the store blasting footage from the first strike (Operation: Shock and Awe I think it was) on Iraq like it was some kind of party. As a veteran myself, I felt ill for a week afterward. I also know for a fact, just like the US Military, Wal-Mart had a deadline for all their suppliers to put RFID (radio frequency identifiers) on all their product by January 2005. How do I know this, FREEPERS who will insult posters such as me? I know this because I can read such articles from sources who don’t bow down to big money such as the bones they throw you to spread their brand of hate for freedom of speech. Thank you and goodnight…

worked at Wal-Mart. It sucked. The only place I ever worked where a manager got in my face and yelled. I decked him, got fired, filed for unemployment, and won!

No health insurance for the first 4 months and then you have to pay more than $40 bucks a week for it. WAL-MART CAN AFFORD TO GIVE EVERY EMPLOYEE FREE HIGH QUALITY HEALTH INSURANCE! Wal-Mart also refused to give me Sundays off to go to church. To top it all off, Wal-Mart paid me the lowest wage I have been paid in 10 years.

I hated the damn vest, the stupid cheer, the chinnesse crap, and the criminal employees (about 1/2 of the employees are known criminals, most with at least two misdemanors). Kids working the baler, and a 90 year old woman pushing carts in the parking lot.

Wal-Mart’s antiunion video is all lies too.

I refuse to go to Wal-Mart and will not allow any of my family to shop there either. Keep the faith and don’t forget that little David kicked Goliaths butt.

I noticed all the pro-wal-mart folks are from Arkansas. B.R.Y. says it’s the best job since 1956. Wow, I new Arkansas was poor but damn dude that is poor. My guess is BRY doesn’t have much schoolin’ and learnin’. Lilly is a liar or just makes stuff up. Target has better wages and better benefits than Wal-Mart. That’s a fact. So does Sears. So does Costco.  Most of your Mall chain stores pay better than Wal-Mart including but not limited to Old Navy, The Gap, Radio Shack, Victoria’s Secret, JC Penny, Younkers, Foot Locker, Famous Barr, and many more.

Wal-Mart = cheap crap for poor and cheap people.

"I have a better idea, when ever you see a Walmart stop in and Sh** in their toliet! Don’t buy anything but take a dump on them!!! “

Larry in Tennessee

Larry, we wouldn’t want to Sh** in their toliet.  This would give Lilly in Bentonville, AR an idea to start to selling it by the pound in the deli. 

Lilly will do anything for ol’ Sam including standing out on the street selling herself under the label Old Lilly

Anything to make more money for Old Sam.

"Lilly is a liar or just makes stuff up.”

Lilly is Sam’s prostitute. 

Get off the street Lilly, go get a real job at Costco. I hope she does not start to sell Sh** now.

OH WOW

Kelly---She doesn’t have a clue what she/he is talking about too bad

Rusty---Illiterate--Darn!

Lee--PATHETIC--he must be the president of the Union that Wal-Mart refuses to have anything to do with.

The facts are You are all PATHETIC and must be so illiterate you have nothing better to do than to try to bring all the other pathetics down to your level.

I have a suggestion--stay out of Wal-mart and spend an extra $40.00 on a cooler, because gosh I am thinking Wal-Mart just may go out of business because of you 10 people!

When you know the facts you can then go slander the company but until then we will pray for you!

Rusty in Des Moines, Iowa has a lot to say, but i did not see any facts to back it up.

If all these other places are paying more money and have better benefits--why did Rusty go to work for walmart.

Give me facts not words----

My health plan only cost me $8.75 a week---that a fact, not just words.

Rusty if you think 45 years of working for a living is not a education you have a lot to learn about life.

I do not expect walmart to give me free health insurance, nor did i ever support my family with unemployment----

We all have family and friends all over the country that work for a living, so we know how much people make in different parts of this country---doing different jobs.

Please give us the true facts about the great pay and benefits all these other places have to offer......

We will be looking forward to your reply....the truth will set you free.

Wow.  It is rather entertaining sitting in the middle of all this (since I am not a shopper, nor an employee, nor a union member, nor a republican, nor a democrat).  I thought this sight (since called the walmartwatch) would be able to educate me on why walmart is so bad.  So here is what I have witnessed so far --

1) People would rather use profanity and call others names just because their opinions are different.
2) Opinions are commonly thrown around as facts.
3) The walmart insiders are atleast giving data to try to support their claims.
4) The walmart opposition sure enjoys throwing around information without any factual basis.  Hey Rusty, you mentioned several other retailers that are “better”.  Please forward me the annual reports, 10k’s, proxy’s, policy books, benefit books, etc to support your claim.

Lastly, does anyone know about any blogs where people really discuss issues and not just throw crap around at each other?

Good job walmartwatch at giving us the “real” story with “real” people and “real” facts.  (for most of you that didn’t recognize this, I was being facetious)

Im not going to insult your opinions about Wal-Mart but if you dont have a lot of money to throw around why wouldnt you just get a few things there? Yeah wallyworld pisses me off too for more then 1 reason but if your looking for something cheap and whatnot just go there insted of paying $40 extra for something thats cheap at wallyworld

Don’t have a clue? Throw around opinions as if they were fact? She?!

First off, Lilly, the name “Kelly” is Irish (Gaelic to be precise) and it means “warrior” which is something I have proudly lived up to. I am not a “she” any more than you are a woman. You want proof of Wal-Mart’s RFID mandate? Would you except something from ComputerWorld?

http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/erp/story/0,10801,82155,00.html

How about information week?

http://www.informationweek.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=163700955

How about CIO Insight?

http://www.cioinsight.com/article2/0,1397,1455103,00.asp

Maybe PCWORLD?

http://pcworld.about.com/news/Mar102004id115139.htm

Could it be in CNET News.com? Yep…

http://news.com.com/Wal-Mart+tagging+fuels+RFID+market/2100-1012_3-5501432.html?part=rss&tag=5501432&subj=news.1012.20

Internetnews.com anyone?

http://www.internetnews.com/wireless/article.php/3370211

NewsFactor.com?

http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/23904.html

Do you Yahoo?

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/cmp/20050526/tc_cmp/163701127

I could go on and on because those are just a few of over 5,000 news stories posted about this thing I have no clue about.

You want to attack the fact that I said I’m a veteran of the armed forces? Would you care to deny that Wal-Mart was showing the footage of the initial strike on Iraq on all its TV monitors? I didn’t think so. So who doesn’t have a clue? Who can’t read news stories right at their fingertips? I think I’ve answered that for you, Lilly.

According to your logic, since I have the facts so I can “slander”? No, I think I will just stick to stating those facts, dear.

To the “uneducated” shopper in Texas,
1) Wal-Mart considers full time 32 hours+ as a basis for insurance coverage, their Grocery store competitors are anywhere from 24-28.
2) In many instances a supplier will try to give Wal-Mart a price of goods increase, due to durables such as tin and aluminum and such rising with commodities markets, If Wal-Mart can get away with it they will ignore the price increase and continue to pay the original price, what can the supplier do? they are so dependant on Wal-Mart’s business they have no choice but to accept.
3) Wal-Mart will sue a City just to place an unwanted store in a community.
4) Wal-Mart typically takes 30% from existing hometown stores when they open.
5) Wal-Marts stated goal is to shutdown competitors, not to just be succesfull.
6) Wal-Mart is Union in China because they have no choice but to belong to the communist union.
7) Wal-Mart shutdown all of their meat cutting shops nationwide when they unionized in TEXAS!
8) Iam a store Manager of a non union Grocery Store, Iam a conservative republican, I have no love for the unions, but I have seen what Wal-Mart has done to the economy of small towns.
9)Wal-Mart,
just shut down a store in Canada resulting in a loss of jobs of over 100 families...because they unionized.

here are your issues that you requested, and it’s all true....Oh by the way Wal-Marts world headquarters are....you guessed it China.

Oh, I forgot to mention the RFID Journal has a story about Wal-Mart’s RFID mandate. Straight from the mouth of those who will provide…

http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/539/1/1

I love this: “Bentonville has this master plan to put a large gate around it so nobody(tards like you) can enter our magical society without an invite. You know like all exclusive area’s (i.e. The Hamptons)”. Why would anyone want to live in the Hamptons? It’s a disgusting area full of disgusting fake people. Anyway, I’m an American living in France, we don’t have Wal Mart here yet, but I’m sure they’ll show up. If and when they do, I’m hoping someone will bulldoze it. I believe that when Sam Walton started Wal Mart, he probably did so with good intentions (selling good products at good prices). But like so many things in our society, it’s gone astray. That saying “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” comes to mind. His children have become so greedy, and it’s sad to see Americans treating eachother this way, paying them low wages, treating employees like serfs, and firing people for unionizing. Corporations are organized, why shouldn’t employees be? I didn’t used to be pro-union, or anti-corporation, but the last 5 or 6 years has changed my outlook and made me see things differently. I hope that things change, and we realize what we’re giving up when we shop at Wal Mart. There’s a big difference between a good price and a good value.

Well said, Brian.

No matter how people feel about unions, in this country organizing is a right. It angers me that Walmart and others deny people the right to organize through intimidation and threats of firing. There would be no need for unions if corporations treated their employees fairly. Why is my government sitting back and allowing this to happen?
Is anyone writing their congresscritters and asking them why? Until there is pressure on the government to enforce existing labor laws, Walmart is going to continue flaunt the laws.

Sharon

JMHO

Hey Kelly, why is the RFID thing bad?  Didn’t this happen with UPC codes, like 20 years ago?  Did walmart mandate that or was it some other retailer?  You seem passionate about it, so clue me in.

To Brad, thanks for the response.  I have a few more questions.
1) Wal-Mart considers full time 32 hours+ as a basis for insurance coverage, their Grocery store competitors are anywhere from 24-28.  (So does walmart only give insurance coverage to fulltime workers?  If not, is this relevant)
2) In many instances a supplier will try to give Wal-Mart a price of goods increase, due to durables such as tin and aluminum and such rising with commodities markets, If Wal-Mart can get away with it they will ignore the price increase and continue to pay the original price, what can the supplier do? they are so dependant on Wal-Mart’s business they have no choice but to accept.  (How do you know this, since you work for a grocery store?)
3) Wal-Mart will sue a City just to place an unwanted store in a community.  (Have no idea about this.  Tell me the city this happened, and I will research)
4) Wal-Mart typically takes 30% from existing hometown stores when they open.  (Interesting number, where did you get it?  I would like to read more)
5) Wal-Marts stated goal is to shutdown competitors, not to just be succesfull.  (Where is this stated goal?  Annual report?  Proxy?  10K?  I would like to read more)
6) Wal-Mart is Union in China because they have no choice but to belong to the communist union.  (Doesn’t the Chinese government mandate this of all retailers in China.  So the US could do the same, I guess)
7) Wal-Mart shutdown all of their meat cutting shops nationwide when they unionized in TEXAS!  (Wow, lucky they had suppliers ready to send in pre-packaged meat so fast, since they reacted to the union vote)
8) Iam a store Manager of a non union Grocery Store, Iam a conservative republican, I have no love for the unions, but I have seen what Wal-Mart has done to the economy of small towns. (What question did this answer?)
9)Wal-Mart,
just shut down a store in Canada resulting in a loss of jobs of over 100 families...because they unionized.  (Seems like specualation on your part, but I don’t have any data to prove you wrong.  So you got me.

here are your issues that you requested, and it’s all true....Oh by the way Wal-Marts world headquarters are....you guessed it China.  (Wow, you are not very smart.  Walmart is based in Arkansas.  They don’t have a “world headquarters” in China.) You probably would’ve had some believers in you wouldn’t have done this.

Brad in Washington state
Sunday, June 05 at 05:41 PM

Uneducated Shopper:
1) So does walmart only give insurance coverage to fulltime workers?  If not, is this relevant)
A: correct

2) How do you know this, since you work for a grocery store?)
A: progressive grocer, Food marketing institute, wholesalers, vendors.
3)(Have no idea about this.  Tell me the city this happened, and I will research)
A: Lawrence KS., Turlock Ca, Manor Pa., San Marcos Ca., Tucson Ar. just to name a few.
4) (Interesting number, where did you get it?  I would like to read more)
A: I bet you would
5)(Where is this stated goal?  Annual report?  Proxy?  10K?  I would like to read more)
A: I quote from Tom Coughlin former vice chairman of Wal-Marts board At Wal-Mart we make dust, our competitors eat dust,”
6) Wal-Mart is Union in China because they have no choice but to belong to the communist union.  (Doesn’t the Chinese government mandate this of all retailers in China.  So the US could do the same, I guess)
A: right, so I guess it’s a concession Wal-Mart could make at home of its own free will.
7)(Wow, lucky they had suppliers ready to send in pre-packaged meat so fast, since they reacted to the union vote)
A: your absolutley right! wholesalers do jump when Wal-Mart calls.
8) (What question did this answer?)
A: nothing, just to show you Iam not Biased such as yourself.
9) (Seems like specualation on your part, but I don’t have any data to prove you wrong.  So you got me.
A: Jonquiere Canada is where this transpired.
10) (Wow, you are not very smart.  Walmart is based in Arkansas.  They don’t have a “world headquarters” in China.)
A: world procurement center under construction right now in Shenzen China, so Wal-Mart can keep an eye on all that quality product they ship to the states. check with your supervisor at Wal-Mart’s facilities management, or am I off base on that?

In response to the shutting down of ALL butcher shops due to 1 in Texas unionizing: Do you really think a decision to change the operations to pre-packaged meat at over 1,000 stores would be made overnight? This was something that was going to happen anyway, union or not!
Also, RFID’s are used to help the company keep track of their merchandise to keep in stock better. I’m not sure why this is such a big deal.
It’s easy to find things wrong when the target is so large, but what is the point? It seems like a lot of the things that are posted are either old news or based on someone’s opinion. Even some of the “facts” are questionable. Lots of filler and pent up anger being spread as “fact”. Might as well call this site “Guess what, I have a Wal-Mart story too”.  If you want to change the company how about coming up with reasonable solutions rather than complaining and sharing your opinions on why the company is bad. Wouldn’t focusing on that have a more positive impact than finding things to complain about? If you succeed in taking down Wal-Mart, what is the next company in line going to do? Raise wages, reduce healthcare for all, never discriminate, etc. There are lots of choices out there if people aren’t happy with the company. Exercise your free will and shop where you want.

J.B.,
You are absolutley right, In the end most people want to just save money regardless… This should be a company that should be admired for the quick financial success that it has had. but this success has had an impact on small town America and the Mom and Pop stores.
When a 193,000 sqf supercenter posts a 10,000 sgf Ma and Pa’s store ad there is something wrong with that!
When Crime in a community goes up after a Wal-Mart enters there is something wrong w/that.
When the welfare rolls increase after a Wal-Mart enters the Market there is something wrong w/that.
When an employee of a Wal-Mart impacted failing business has to go to work for Wal-Mart and take 2.00 an hour cut in pay and lose benefits, there is something wrong w/that.
In my opinion Wal-Mart is lowering the standard of living for America.

Brad, thanks for responding, as your answer just help substantiate my point about you making up facts.

Just a couple of examples:
1) Part-time employees do qualify for health benefits
2) You took a quote (not sure where from, but I am sure your source is credible) from Tom Coughlin and declared it as walmart policy.
3) Procurement office in Shenzhen already exists.  Just like 30 or so other procurement offices they have all over the world.

Some questions you even chose not to answer.

You probably have your hands full running the store and making stuff up, so I will leave you alone.

>>why is the RFID thing bad?<<

I’m actually glad that you asked this question. At first, besides the problem of causing many retailers to struggle for an affordable solution, looks like a really nifty idea. Pallets and cases of goods are tracked and inventoried more efficiently and more effectively than ever using the RFID tags. Problem is (and some people might have come across this allready) that even the packaging is mandated to be tagged and not all retail employees understand this, leading to some confusion when those silly security alarms go off at the door of a retail store like ShopKo here in Oregon. Why tag the packages? Well to cut down on “theft” and be able to “help the consumer” spend less time in lines by scanning their whole cart at once. Thus, finally eliminating some of those pesky cashiers with their stupid grins. Nifty, huh? More on that in a bit…

Now RFID tags far exceed the expectations of bar codes because they can be scanned from a distance and will “identify themselves” without the limitation of line-of-site scanning.  The problem lies in the fact that unlike what they told the public, they are designed so they can’t be turned off and/or deactivated in any way. There are people (yes, even liberals) who think this is a good thing because the packaging can be even tracked to the city dump. But what limitations are placed on who can scan these packages from a safe distance? Do you really want law enforcement officials, salesmen, or who ever decides to pay your house a visit, to know what products are on your shelf? Well, maybe some might think that it would be a good idea for police to know if Joe the phsyco has bought bullets or an ax recently before knocking on his door, but when does it become invasion of privacy?

We all know that information exchange ( web-surfing habits, financial information, email addresses, drug dependancies, spending habits, etc...) is a booming business with tons of profit to be made from direct advertisers, right? I’m sure that it’s safe to assume that people will try to cash in on the wealth of information they can get from just a drive-by scanning of someone’s home. Who’s to stop them? They are not actually breaking into your home to take it so you can’t really know that you’ve been “hit”.

As I said, more on that theft thing: I had an experience recently in a local ShopKo here in Oregon regarding one of the RFID tagged products that the employees didn’t even know was there.The product was a Remington Titanium MB 35 (mustache and beard) trimmer. I bought the product at the register with my other purchases and as I was walking out the door, this crazy alarm and flashing lights went off. I sighed, stepped to the side, and waited for security to inspect my bags, check my reciept, and as they watched (I figured it was in there since I had allready read several articles on RFID), I passed the product in front of the security system to set off the alarms again. The poor cashier swore up and down that she had deactivated the security strip on the product so I pulled the strip off and waved the package in front of the machine again only to have the alarm go nuts a third time. Finally, I explained to them what I thought was hidden in the packaging. Since they looked at me like I was from Mars, I went ahead and ripped open the package to show them the little circuit tag inside the cardboard. Not that they could do anything about it, but I thought that they ought to be aware that some of their packages (Remington supplies Wal Mart) have these hidden tags and they ought to be aware of this since it was going to be setting off more and more false alarms.

Now, being a native Texan myself (born and raised in San Antonio), I get a bit peeved about anybody invading my privacy or my home. Hell, if I could confront them, it would be one thing, but RFID is a slippery little critter that can be hidden easily in just about any package I bring into my home. Their even talking about making ones that have enough power to figure out if I’ve consumed most of the cereal out of a box so they can talk me into buying more. Now I’m not saying that they’ll be able to pull that off in the near future, but it would be wise to remember that nobody thought that people would ever sit an entire computer on their lap not that long ago.

Just to let you all know, Wal-mart does NOT shut down mom and pop shops--The customers do.  No one is forced to work or shop at Wal-mart !!!  Free country!
Why is it that when a new store opens up thousands of people line up for potential jobs?
Also health insurance and benefits are offered to all assoc. not just full-time assoc.  Wal-mart is very competive in their wages.  Let’s get real, does the average cashier at Sears, JCPenney’s, Target, KMarrt etc. etc. work to support a family or are they working to add to their income?  Most cashiers are supplementing their income!  Wal-mart is very competitive! 
Wal-Mart gives back to their communities THAT IS A FACT!!!!

Headquarters in China?  WOW you really are a bright one!

We have the right to work/shop/live/eat/do what we want in this country - That is the beauty of this country. 

Peace OUT

>>RFID’s are used to help the company keep track of their merchandise to keep in stock better. I’m not sure why this is such a big deal.<<

Ummm...yeah, for scrupulous companies maybe. But tell me, how many products do you have on your shelf are still in their package? How many books do you have in your home? And tell me, if Wal-Mart is the largest retailer in the country, do you really think that their suppliers will only put RFID tags in just the products that they supply Wal-Mart?

I also wonder, how many people with their little bar-code scanning wands will lose their job when every single product is RFID tagged? for that matter, why have more than a handfull of cashiers on hand to run the checkout stands since the whole cart can be scanned at once? Finally, do you really think ANY of the money Wal-Mart will save with these “more efficient practices” will end up saving the consumer (even the folks who lost their job) a dime? It’s all profit, baby! GM has robots building cars and all its human labor in other countries. Have you noticed a drop in the price of cars that I didn’t?

Look, I’m into efficientcy and technology just as much as the next guy. I have worked on thousands of machines and enjoy my work very much, but I love my country and my freedom more and I know that technology in the hands of greedy jerks is a very bad thing. Service, from a good company that cares about its employees and its community is a good thing. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this out.

At any rate, the lady in Texas asked if Wal-Mart was the only company that mandated the RFID tags from its suppliers and I forgot to answer her. There was one other organization that mandated this to their suppliers: The US Military. I can see why they would want to know where their equipment goes.

>>Wal-Mart gives back to their communities THAT IS A FACT!!!!<<

and there REALLY IS AN EASTER BUNNY!!!

ROFLMAO!!

This comment is for Kelly,
You seem a bit paronoid.  The voices in your head are really not in your head, they are hinding behing your bedroom closet door.

Seek help

>>You seem a bit paronoid.  The voices in your head are really not in your head, they are hinding behing your bedroom closet door.

Seek help<<

And you seem to have a public education. Little clue...there really are direct marketing companies and they really and trully are companies that track people surfing, travel, and spending habits. There are even these whacky companies that have people’s credit history on file. Will anyone believe it though?! OMG!!!

ROFL!!

Kelly,
Do aliens do experiments on your body?

You are a dumbass.

Jfat

If you think the closing of the Walmart store in Canada then just go to these websites:
www.walmartworkerscanada.com/news.php?articleID=00111.
www.montrealgazette.ca
www. globeandmail.ca

I think it’s great that Wal Mart stock keeps falling.  I check stocks for Wal Mart - (WMT) , Kmart ( SHLD ) and Target
(TGT) during the week and always look foward to the good news.

Wal Mart does not mind falling wages, but they certainly don’t like it when they are on the other end of something falling they have not control over- Wall Street investors. 

Obviously Wall Street does not have confidence in Wal Mart regardless of what lies Lee Scott or Lilly and all the other scum Wal Mart employees say. 

It’s obvious that Wall Street does have confience in the Sears/Kmart as this stock is worth 3 times what Wal Mart stock is worth and keeps climbing.  On or about 6/2, Sears/Kmart stock rose nearly $9.00 per share, while Wal Mart lost money.

Everyday more and more are finding out the truth about Wal Mart thanks to informative sites like this.

The world would be a lot better place without Wal Mart.

All of you are free to waste your money spending more for the same product elsewhere.  Just don’t try to get politicians and bureaucrats to take away my choice to shop at Wal*Mart.

All of you think you’re so new.  The arguments you’re using are so old and tired.  America’s gone through the same thing over and over.  The very biggest companies have always gotten that way by economies of scale and selling things with small margins at low prices to the most customers possible.  Of course their ineffieicent competition that had lower selection, quality, and higher prices never like that, and they squawk and yell.

At the end of the day the ordinary person benefits.  But the general interest doesn’t yell and fuss and put up hate sites.  Only the special interests, the minority that temporarily loses out, or the ignorant who are brainwashed by the deluded, make noise.  If they get too influential they cause tremendous economic damage.

If all of you WM lovers want some facts, follow this link to a Cal-Berkeley study on Walmart: 
http://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/lowwage/walmart.pdf
This will help you pull your head from the sand and realize what kind of pathetic company WM really is.  If this doesn’t do it for you, go to www.pbs.org and continue to the link for Frontline.  They did an investigative report on WM titled “Is WM good for America?” Try reading/watching this info and THEN responding with something intelligent to say.

>>Do aliens do experiments on your body?

You are a dumbass. <<

No, I’m pretty sure aliens haven’t experimented on me, but I would bet that pharmaceutical companies have experimented on people such as yourself.

Let me ask you something...did you come up with the last sentence all by yourself or did you have help from your “voices” in your closet?

>>The very biggest companies have always gotten that way by economies of scale and selling things with small margins at low prices to the most customers possible<<

Nope, they’ve gotten that way by breaking the rules and crushing all that oppose them. You want historic facts? Okay, not a problem…

Anybody not heard of the Rockefeller family? Then it probably is no big secret that they controlled the Coloroado Fuel & Iron company. A company so opposed to unions and decent working conditions that it perpetrated something known as the Ludlow Massacre on April 20, 1914. The Rockefeller’s pulled in a favor from the Governor of Colarodo and had the National Guard (tax dollars at work! whoo!) called in to “intimidate” and drive out the strikers from their little tent cities. Under the command of Lieutenant Karl Linderfelt, they rained machine gun fire on the tents during the day, killing anything that moved, and after darkness fell, they set fire to the tents. The next morning in a pit dug under one of the tents, they found the barbequed remains of two women and eleven children had been hiding there.

http://www.spunk.org/library/places/us/sp000937.txt
http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/govs/eammons.html
http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45b/030.html
http://www.du.edu/anthro/ludlow/cfhist.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rockefellers/sfeature/sf_8.html
http://archaeology.about.com/cs/military/bb/ludlow.htm

And that’s just a few articles about this historic event. That is how BIG companies get that way. Fortunately, Wal Mart couldn’t pull in favors from Canada so it shut down its stores and snuck out of town like a rat.

Personally, I don’t buy the same products that I could buy at Wal Mart at other stores. I buy my clothes from Macy’s (they last longer than cheap crap), my tools are Craftsman (lifetime guarantee means they stand behind it), and my electronics from other such stores that only sell quality. Pay more? Maybe, but I shop for quality and not bargain basement.

I simply believe that a corporation that is so large and affects so many should take HUGE responsibility about the low-quality products it sells and about the suppliers it routinely forces to move to China...for info see Frontline’s website and watch the previously aired show online at:

www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/view/

It is true that we can choose to shop there or to boycott. We can also choose to voice our opinion, it is our right. Or, we can choose to keep quiet.

I choose to voice my opinion and to boycott the stores.
Mainly because every time I have gone into any Walmart it has been dirty, cluttered, and not very well orgaized.  It is true that many items are less expensive there but I don’t just go shopping based on how much I am spending but also on the enjoyment of the experience. 

If I have a choice between a huge, overcrowded, dirty, flourescent-overloaded store with scary-looking, lazy, and gripy employees or ... a smaller shop with a cozier atmosphere and help from an employee who acts as though he likes his job and takes an interest in my needs.....guess what I would pick?

That is my choice and my opinion. I don’t expect anyone to agree or disagree with me and neither do I care if they do or not.

I do hope that some people would choose to watch the Frontline episode for which I pasted the link above...because…

the more you learn, the more you know!  ;)

Love and Blessings,
Veronica

www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/view/

veronica in houston, tx
that is the beauty of this country.  If you do not like Wal-Mart then by golly don’t shop there!

All of the so-called websites are not neccarily true, anyone can print B.S. and so forth.

It amazes me that these people have so much time on their hands to put down a company that they hate so much, stay the heck out of the store and shop elsewhere.  You have an axe to grind for some reason.  Obviously Wal-mart does more good than bad and you can’t handle that!

Facts are:  Wal-mart Gives a LOT to the community, Wal-Mart has good benefits, Wal-Mart pays competitive wages, Wal-Mart does NOT force suppliers to move to China, (get your dang facts right) Headquaters isn’t in China either! 

Lee, Kelly, JB get a real life and don’t shop at wal-mart
You are obviously pathetic, low life people who thrive on doggin success.  Deal with it, because whether you like it W/M will be around a long time.  Don’t you think by the number of people going thru their doors every day speak louder than your pathetic self?  Thougth so!

Try and get a real job and shop Target, Krogers, or wherever you want but shut your pie hole!
It’s apparent you don’t know what you are talking about!
Hugs to you all

>>Headquaters isn’t in China either! <<

Okay, you seem passionate about this. You won’t believe PCWorld magazine, PBS, or any other information source because “can print B.S. and so forth” about your beloved Wal Mart and get away with it.

Would you believe Wal-Mart’s own site then? Because they say:

“Wal-Mart procures high volume of merchandise from China and exports to the rest of the world through its Global Procurement Center located in Shenzhen.”

http://www.wal-martchina.com/english/walmart/index.htm

That would be Shenzen, China… in case you can’t figure that out.

>>shut your pie hole!<<

Oh, somebody here watches Fox News and probably even believes them to be “fair and balanced.” This statement takes...what...the emotional maturity of a thirteen year old?

You know, after reading that Chinese Wal-Mart propaganda (SHUDDER), I think maybe Wal-Mart does help some neighborhoods...IN CHINA! Here in the US, they are killing our exonomic system.

>>people have so much time on their hands to put down a company that they hate so much, stay the heck out of the store and shop elsewhere<<

I do stay out of their store. I and several others have stated that. Get a clue…

I have a suggestion that you can quote me on:

Take you half-baked FREEP somewhere else because your posts stink of so much BS that my eyes are watering…

On second thought, maybe its because I’m laughing so hard!

Kelly, you obviously do NOT know what you are talking about, that is fine, I will pray for you.
People that are so passionate about stuff they do not know about obviously have mental issues.  You would fit in that category.  We can argue til the end of time, Facts are W/M is a successful company, you are an angry woman!  You and your 12 friends can continue to shut down W/M.
Explain why over a million customers go thru the doors at W/M weekly if it is such an awful place.  When w/m shuts it’s last doors than I will concede you were right.
I really hate beating a dead horse.  This will be my last post, this website is very depressing, we put facts and you continue to ignore and conjure up your own lies, so beit.
Enjoy your pathetic life and try and find something that makes you happy.  (Besides being a W/M basher) That is sad.
Explain why W/M is so successfull if they are that AWFUL!
Yes W/M benefits all communities NOT IN CHINA, in the USA.
obviously you have not been in the USA so you would not be able to comment on that.

continue on your high horse becasue you are a huge THREAT
I will alert the stores w/m will be shutting down because of Kelly, thanks for the heads up.  Smart people like you will go far!  Welfare line?

Lilly

>>Facts are W/M is a successful company, you are an angry woman! <<

1 out of 2...better than I thought you’d do.

>>we put facts and you continue to ignore and conjure up your own lies, so beit.<<

What facts? Where are your sources? Truth is that everybody has put up facts for you and you have ignored them repeatedly. News articles from retutable sources and even a link to Wal Marts own web site in Shenzhen, China which is where both their Chinese headquarters and their GLOBAL PROCUREMENT CENTER.

What you have repeatedly done is something that is known in psychiatric circles as “projection.” For the cheap seats, that is when you acuse eveyone of commiting the same acts that you are currently or you are planning to. As one of your personalities, JFat, JFat1, or whatever you want to call it, suggested to me:

“Seek help"…

>>you are an angry woman! <<

I can only assume this part to be more projection since I am neither angry nor am I a woman. I could go into the fact that
you stated that other people need to get their “facts straight” when you can’t seem to rememeber that I specifically told you that I am not a woman just the other day. Again, the accusation that you levied against others is just more projection of your own faults.

>>I really hate beating a dead horse<<

How do you think I feel beating one with the IQ of a rock?

>>you have not been in the USA so you would not be able to comment on that<<

Oh, come on...are you really this desperate?! I fought for my country while you sat on your fat duff eating your $1.99 bon-bons from Wall-Mart.

>>Explain why W/M is so successfull if they are that AWFUL!<<

Because there are foolish people who believe that its better to save a freaking dollar and have a trade deficit with China then to bring up the working standards here in America. Greed and stupidity runs hand in hand.

>>Smart people like you will go far!  Welfare line?<<

I can only assume this is supposed to be some kind of insult. I have two college (can you say that BIG word) degrees and as I’ve said, I shop at Macy’s. I’m doing just fine, dear. Since you have to shop at Wal Mart and have to defend that choice with hollow lies and abuse, I can only speculate that the whole “welfare line” must be something your used to and more projection on your part.

>>I will alert the stores w/m will be shutting down because of Kelly<<

Do you need bus fare?

>>This will be my last post<<

Don’t let the door hit you in the…

I despise these stores...I shop at Target, Meijer, anywhere but Walmart.

They sell cheap, cheap, cheap junk. Had DVD player from them that lasted thru 5 movies and quit. Bought window AC and got it home (original box was re-taped shut). Pulled out of box when I got home and whole corner was smashed. When I returned it the guy at service desk got snotty with me and asked if I dropped it myself?? NO...box was on LR floor...on carpeting...and only pulled 1/2 way out of box before noticing damage. Pushed back into box and returned it to store. Another time I bought plastic “aquarium” with floating fish for my granddaughter. Pump didn’t work, fishes didn’t float. Returned to store and they said to contact mfg. I did and finally got new pump 7 mos later. By then I had thrown product in trash.

This is where all Walmart products belong…

Oh, JB, at least she’ll pray for you.  At her Wal-Jesus shrine.

Nise, your experience with returns is just one of the many reasons we’re willing to pay more to shop elsewhere-- Walmart has the worst customer service anywhere.  Unintelligent & rude employees in every store.

>>For Kelly:  No, she won’t need bus fare; I don’t believe the bus travels to the trailer park.<<

*SIGH* Yeah, you are probably right. After looking over all my posts to her, I noticed that I made some atrocious typos. I do not know if it was because I was angry or laughing too hard. The poor woman probably could not even tell. I’m pretty sure that since she kept telling us that she’d pray for us and all that jazz, she is what is commonly known as a “FREEPER” which is a right wing “Christian” nut job who visits boards like this. Personally, I’m a bit on the conservative side my self, but I can’t stand these ignorant, Fox News watching, morons that profess to have the “truth” about everything, damn the facts.

About that DVD thing, if you think about it, the company that made it made up for Wal-Mart’s ridiculous demands about price, time, and volume by cutting out two essential processes: quality control (QC) and burn-in (long testing under hard conditions) which is essential to a well-made electronic product, but it costs time and money that Wal-Mart wasn’t willing to pay for. The bottom line is that nobody (especially Wal-Mart) wants to give up their profit margin (and some manufacturers can’t afford to) so something has to go which usually means quality. When the quality goes down, you end up having to go out and buy new “junk” from Wal-Mart more often because “it’s cheap,” but try explaining to the people who shop there that they are paying more than we do for something well made. It’s a now win situation for anyone to award somebody for selling you crap.

Oh, well. Hopefully Lilly White Wal-Mart has left the room. If not, well…at least her ignorance is good for a few chuckles.

Kelly,

You say that you shop at Macy’s, not Wal-Mart.  Just a question, though, how do Macy’s benefits stack up against Wal-Mart’s? 

If you buy electronics there, where are they made?  I’m betting China.  What about their clothes?  Where are they made?  Ditto for Target, Best Buy, Sears, KMart etc.

I buy Craftsman tools myself.  Sear’s Hardware is a great store and I wish they would focus more on that format.  Last time I was in there, though, I saw lots of tools that were made in China.

Personally, I’m a fan of the free market.  It will always create some winners and some losers, but ultimately I think that consumers end up with better choices.

>>Macy’s benefits stack up against Wal-Mart’s<<

Good question that I probably should ask about, huh? All I know for now is that the people there dress nicer and act like they enjoy their job.

>>If you buy electronics there, where are they made?  I’m betting China.<<

Actually, my DVD player is Japanese, my TV and remote are American, the CPU in my computer is American, I believe the “mobo” is Tiawan, and the drives are American. My phone is AT&T (maybe China) and my cooking utencils are German and American. Unfortunately, Levis has gone to Mexico so I’m wearing Mexican pants. Ack!!

>>Personally, I’m a fan of the free market.  It will always create some winners and some losers, but ultimately I think that consumers end up with better choices<<

I believe that too as long as the playing feild is somewhat level, but I don’t believe that a corporation the size of Wal-Mart should get tax breaks and corporate welfare while they are investing that kind of money in China. Not just factories and jobs, but education and other such benefits that are basically paid for by us.

Look, it’s not just the fact that I don’t like the stores and all that, I have just witness on more than one occasion a new store cropping up and then the whole block goes to hell in a hand basket around it. They come in and purposefully sell anything that the other stores around them sells at below cost just to drive smaller companies without their clout right out of business. Look, just watch the PBS Frontline show that someone above gave a link to and decide for yourself.

www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/view/

It’s about time to start demanding our country and our jobs back. Not because I think that everybody here deserves a job and I hate the free market, but because our standards and our expectations should be higher about quality and good working conditions in ANY country. We know that China is overcrowded and people there need jobs and education, but lets raise the bar just a tad higher for ourselves too.

Kelly,
You mentioned about WMts global procurment in China.  I am pretty sure they have global procurment offices in several countries.  I will try and find that information to confirm.  I am pretty sure there are GP’s in England, India, China and a few other countries. 
The home office is in Bentonville, and that includes international .  Canada has a home office somewhere in one of the provinces.  From what I have seen lately, Wal-Mart has become a pretty big global company. 
Enjoy, I am looking forward to seeing more.  Word!

Whitney I am sorry you mom was fired. There are lots of jurks at Wal- Mart that do not follow proper procedure when it comes to fire some people. They jump the gun over react and someone else have to go clean up the mess they have made. Even home office has it’s jerks. No you mom should not have been fired, but what is she doing about it?

Is it just me, or does Bentonville Ar have a highly concentrated number of oblivious, mindless drones that seem to think the answer to all of life’s problems is Wal-Mart?
Hard to believe it’s 2005…

Wow!!!! It only takes a minute for you guys to tear down a person for shoping or working at walmart! I also enjoyed the way you refer to people who live in trailer parks in such an unsavory way, when what you seem to be trying to say is that the people who work for walmart are under paid and forced to live in trailer parks because of their low wages, way to stick up for the underdog!
Why would I shop at a store that charges me $40 more for a product that is exactly the same as the one I can get at walmart for less? Who is really being hurt by that decision walmart or me?
Lets face it, the real difference in the person who works at Macey’s and the person who works at walmart is commission.It’s not that they like being there anymore than a walmart employee.
To the guy who was yelled at by his supervisor, If this is the only time that has happened to you then lucky you.
As far as unions go, who do they really help? They go in demand better wages and benifits, better this better that, and what is it exactly that they do when your unemployed because the company chooses to move to a country that can get employees to do the same job for $2 hr? 
My only complaint with walmart is not enough American made products, but then again since we as Americans can’t work for less than $80,ooo a year maybe the problem is theres just not enough American made products. Maybe instead of constantly trying to raise our standard of living we should try lowering it a little then maybe companies will start to come back. Then maybe walmart will have less things made in china and more from The U.S. Then walmart employees can sell products made by American companies.

The way I see it walmart’s not the problem, we are.

>>the real difference in the person who works at Macey’s and the person who works at walmart is commission<<

Either you haven’t been in Wal-Mart or you haven’t been in Macy’s. I’m not going to specualate as to which because I don’t know you and frankly, it’s none of my business. Regardless, the difference is much broader than commision. In Wal-Mart, it’s noisy, crowded, has harsh unsettling lighting, and has monitors everywhere showing propaganda like Armed Forces recruitment videos. That would drive anyone a little whacky having to work under those conditions. Macy’s is a much more serene and pleasant enviorment.

>>I also enjoyed the way you refer to people who live in trailer parks in such an unsavory way, when what you seem to be trying to say is that the people who work for walmart are under paid and forced to live in trailer parks because of their low wages, way to stick up for the underdog!<<

If you had read the posts and the dates on them, you would have noticed that she started in with the whole “welfare line” bit herself.

>>what is it exactly that they do when your unemployed because the company chooses to move to a country that can get employees to do the same job for $2 hr?<<

How about when the union payed GM a ton of cash to help out its “financial woes” and GM used that money to build the factories in Mexico while leaving Flint, Michigan to be a ghost town? It’s all about greed, hon. People are disposable, money isn’t.

>>we as Americans can’t work for less than $80,ooo a year<<

You make 80 grand a year? Where do I sign up?! The truth is that most Americans are below poverty level. They don’t make 80 grand a year and don’t demand it. Maybe the executives of Wal-Mart push 80 a year, but the average American comes nowhere near that kind of income their entire life.

>>a country that can get employees to do the same job for $2 hr?<<

Back in the day, we had slaves that did all our labor for just the cost of bad food and leaky shelter. Maybe we should do that again? Or...remember that silly “great depression” where all those families drifted around while land owners with a ripe crop took advantage of their desparation? Maybe we should bring that desparation back to America! It’ll be just like old times! Ooh, I know...let’s abolish child labor laws and have them make Nike’s or starve to death. It’ll be fun!

>>Maybe instead of constantly trying to raise our standard of living we should try lowering it a little then maybe companies will start to come back<<

I’ll buy that if you can figure out how to make all the bills lower too.

On second thought, let’s just raise the tariff on imported goods and put that money towards education for our youth and building back the demand for the quality goods America was great at instead of disposable products and disposable lives? What do you say?

>>a country that can get employees to do the same job for $2 hr?<<

“In 2000, the National LAbor Committee found workers earning 3 CENTS an hour working 14-hour shifts, 7 days a week, 30 days a month...46% of the workers earned nothing at all and were actually in debt to the company. They were housed 16 to a room and subjected to physical and verbal abuse”—quoted from:

NATIONAL LABOR COMMITTEE “Made in China: The Role of US Companies In Denying Human and Worker Rights” at the web link:

http://www.nlcnet.org/campaigns/archive/chinareport/table_of_contents.shtml

also on page 19 of “Low Price At What Cost?” at walmartwatch.com

Howdy all,
Kelly wrote something that we all need to think about, she said

<It’s about time to start demanding our country and our jobs back. Not because I think that everybody here deserves a job and I hate the free market, but because our standards and our expectations should be higher about quality and good working conditions in ANY country. >

I could go off on a tangent about NAFTA, and all the other things politicians did (both blue and red state) to “help” move jobs out of the US, but that won’t do any good here.  What is done, is done and I don’t forsee any major changes, the companies are making more money with the less expensive labor.

She makes a profound statement about her dislikes (which is why she doesn’t like Wal-Mart), but more importantly about quality and our standards.  (well said) This applies to everything, not just retail.  All retailers are buying from overseas suppliers.  Target, K-mart, Wal-Mart, Fred Meyer (Kroger) etc etc, all get stuff from China.  I don’t think it will change. 

We are in a global free market, that is a reality of retail sales.  It is about the dollar and retailers are doing what they can, to get goods cheaper, so they can make more of a profit.  Our elected politicians helped move the busisnesses overseas.  If you want to help change it, start there. 

I do work for Wal-Mart in Anchorage AK, I love my job.  We don’t have the same problems as I have read other people have in their stores.  What I do like about the Mart is, when they came to Alaska, they brought competition and the cost of living decreased, and provided almost 3,000 jobs.  Plus I got a great part time job with benefits. 

I am interested to read other points of view.  I will listen to what you have to say and offer my opinion.  Kelly, I am still trying to locate that information on global procurment.  Thanks for listening.

Enjoy, Word!

You people are stupied! This is my first time in this website and it is bullsh**. Do you think that all of your comments and complaints are going to shut the doors on Wal-Mart NO! Yes I work for the company, and I don’t agree with a lot of things but who gives a rats a**. I have a job that pays my bills and gets me the things that I need. And as for Kelly in Oregon about the Shock and Awe in Iraq. My husband was in Iraq for almost a year and I support my country and I want to see every little thing that I can about the blowing that place to hell. And it’s great that they can do that while I shop!!

Wal-Mart used to be a great company. but like all companies that are given to the kids after the old man passes away the kids go corporate,get gredy, and run the company into the ground. I work for a beer distrubtor the same has happen the old man has passes away and all new employees are hired temp, given no bennifits and laid off toward the end of there temp time in which they could be hired full time and revieve benefits.

Like any major empire Wal-Mart will fall it may be next year or a 100 years down the road but if wal-mart keeps up it’s games the federal goverment and the people will previal. Let’s not forget the federal class action law suit for discrmination agnist women. I believe a man on here wrote about age discrmination that will probably end up going to a federal class action law suit. If you wonder where i’m going look at phillip morris they have all but gone broke over class action law suits.

Wal-Mart is a monopoly and needs to be broken up, why this hasn’t happen is something I and probably many other people don’t understand. Forget unionizing that won’t fix the prolbem, I don’t hate wal-mart they sell good at a low profit margin but ultizing a very efficent system.

The prolbem with wal-mart lies in it’s size, if somene tries to compete they will lose money to put them under, and that is the prolbem with wal-mart, they don’t want anyone else to make a dollar.

>>My husband was in Iraq for almost a year<<
Enjoying that burning sensation yet?

>>You people are stupied!<<
Sounds like you are. Good for you!

>>complaints are going to shut the doors on Wal-Mart<<
I take it that you have yet to see this:
http://www.walmartmovie.com/abandoned.php

>>I support my country<<
Yeah, I can tell. You probably have one of those Chinese made American flags on your car and a Chinese made “Support the Troops” magnet too. Good for you! Personally, I find it insulting to disrespect the American flag and our US soldiers that way, but I was just just an MI soldier in Iraq during the Gulf War so what the heck do I know?

You also do a great service to your husband by making sure that he has a nice strong American economy here for him by buying as much Chinese crap as you can with your budget. Way to support the US, hon!

>>want to see every little thing that I can about the blowing that place to hell<<
Why? Fox News doesn’t show it enough for you?! You enjoy seeing the NY twins fall with people screaming as they jumped from the burning building too? Glad Wal-Mart could get your blood lust quenched, doll. I have an idea for you: why don’t you do as the recruitment videos shown at Wal-Mart ask and join the US Marine Corps? You could see it first hand! Wouldn’t that be just dandy?!

Until your there and holding an M16 A-2, don’t you dare tell me that you know a darn thing about supporting your country. You know absolutely nothing, lady. Until then, enjoy looking at bloody car accidents, road kill, and getting yourself off on all that blood.

>>Kelly, I am still trying to locate that information on global procurment<<

Good luck. I believe that they have what are called “National Distrobution” centers in other countries which are not the same as a “Global Procurement” center like they have in Shenzhen. I tried looking for more of these “Global Procurement” centers too with no luck.

Kelly,
Two things, are you a veteran?  and...I don’t know about the national distribution centers.  The GP offices in other coutries research and purchase goods for sale in the entire retail chain.  (that is my understanding) I don’t know of any national distribution centers. 

Devin

>>are you a veteran?<<
Yes, I am.

>>The GP offices in other coutries research and purchase goods for sale in the entire retail chain<<

This is true, except that I can only find one Global Procurement Center so there is no plural to the office.

“Wal-Mart procures high volume of merchandise from China and exports to the rest of the world through its Global Procurement Center located in Shenzhen. “

“Increase procurement and support export of Chinese products to other countries in the world”

You can find that on Wal-Mart’s own site here:
http://www.wal-martchina.com/english/walmart/index.htm

>>I don’t know of any national distribution centers<<
Wal-Mart has several here in the US, making them just local distrobution centers while from what I can tell, smaller nations like Canada have one national distrobution center.

Hey, in doing research about distrobution centers, I came across a website by Wal-Mart saying that this site is making up facts about Wal-Mart. This of course might explain all the freak visitations it’s been having, but I’d like to see others comment on these “dispelled myths” found on this webpage:

http://www.walmartfacts.com/newsdesk/article.aspx?id=1091

Make no mistake about it, this is a DIRECT RESULT of democratic party policies.  Walmart is a great store and the company shoudl be lauded for the heros they are! In addition, the democratic party needs to be subjected to legal penalties, perhaps a complete ban of their financing.  With real republican values and republican representation, we can more great stores like Wal Mart, which will effectively close businesses which are socialistuic and communistic in nature.  Businesses like Wal Mart help ensure the American way!

Until it is banned, the democratic party is, has been, and always will be, America’s Ultimate Hate Crime.

Some people have don’t know what Wal Mart offers. Wal Mart has insurance, profit sharing, 401k, bonuses,paid vacation, paid holidays, paid personal time, many discounts like discounts on merchandise, houses, cars, trips, internet, restraunts, college etc.. That is for the people that think Wal mart doesn’t have benifits. I don’t think Wal mart is a perfect company but they do have benifits and they do pay more than minumum wage.

"Make no mistake about it, this is a DIRECT RESULT of democratic party policies.  Walmart is a great store and the company shoudl be lauded for the heros they are! In addition, the democratic party needs to be subjected to legal penalties, perhaps a complete ban of their financing.  With real republican values and republican representation, we can more great stores like Wal Mart, which will effectively close businesses which are socialistuic and communistic in nature.  Businesses like Wal Mart help ensure the American way!

Until it is banned, the democratic party is, has been, and always will be, America’s Ultimate Hate Crime.”
-M O Jekearthe

Okay, I don’t know how any of this applies, because last time I checked, the Republican Party is not affiliated with Wal-Mart.

Personally to me, Wal-Mart is simply doing (or getting away with) what other stores can’t.  They’re much like any company, and every companies goal is to make money.  Free Market here.  Yeah, maybe Wal-Mart could pay higher wages, but ya’ know, I wouldn’t expect to be paid well working there.  I’ve also never had a job where I got health benefits.  And if Wal-Mart offers some, well then sign me up.  As for the unionization thing, well, I don’t think UPS drivers should get paid $20+ and hour.  The job they do is mindless and requires little skill.  But, they unionized, so now the company has to pay its employees more.  To me, high wages should only be given to those who have actually earned it.  Such as going to college and getting a degree.  Not some GED toting individual. 

Well, if you all hate Wal-Mart, then maybe you should all go buy an Apple computer.  Why?  Well, you’re most likely using a Windows machine, which has Microsoft products, and it was proven in the court of law a few years ago that Bill Gates wanted to drive his competitors out of business.  So, it’s the same.  So go get ya’ a Mac, so you’re not such hipocrites.

Every large company is the same.  Pay your employees the least amount possible, buy the product at the cheapest price, and sell it at the best profit margins.  And since Wal-Mart has such muscle, they can do just that.  I shop at Wal-Mart, but no, it’s not a perfect company.  And maybe they do need to change, I don’t have all the facts, but that’s why I’m here, to learn more.  As for boycotting?  Naw, they’ve got everything I need under one room.  So until the government does something, I’m not gonna’ do anything.

Do you guys have any idea what walmart does for communities? They help so much with relief efforts and kids with cancer, and community projects (if you live in a small town, as I do). Apparently, Walmart is doin something right, otherwise, they would be out of business, and their not.

As a former Wal-Mart employee, I feel I can provide some insight into working at Wal-Mart. Obviously, we were not paid minimum wage, like most employees, and we were provided Health Benefits, unlike most employees.
I started at a brand new Wal-mart when it opened. For the first 3 months, there were a substantial number of full time employees. At the end of three months, approximately 30% of these associates were layed off, and all the rest were cut to part time, with the exception of the department managers.
No one except full time employees were eligible for health benefits, and most of those eligible were unable to afford the premiums. Only managers and pharmacists were provided with health benefits - and if such benefits were not offered by other employers of pharmacists, we would not have received them either.
When the pharmacy first opened, we were told to undercut prices of other competitors, even if we had to sell prescriptions below cost. The pharmacy lost money for the first year it was in business, but we did put 2 independant pharmacies out of business, since they could not sell below cost and have a large corporation subsidize their losses.
After the competition was reduced to another 2 chain pharmacies, we drastically increased our prices. We did have the lowest price in town, but ONLY by 50 cents per prescription. The price had to be on a receipt from the other store, so we could not be “cheated” by the customer. One of the chain pharmacies gave us a lot of problems by promising to undercut our prices, so the 2 pharmacists that worked there were both hired away by Wal-Mart at a higher wage and a $10,000 sign on bonus. By creating constant staffing changes in that pharmacy, Wal-Mart managed to drive away about 25-30% of their customer base. When they finally stopped trying to beat our prices, Wal-mart let them alone. Of the two pharmacists hired by Wal-Mart, one was fired for not following company procedures prior to working for 1 full year, and did not recieve the sign on bonus, which required a full year of employment as a condition for being paid the bonus. The other pharmacist was made a “traveling pharmacist” and had to work where-ever they needed him, something they forgot to tell him when he was hired. He quit before recieving his bonus.
As for me, I was a staff pharmacist, not management. I was paid the prevailing wage for pharmacists, had OK health benefits, and was pretty much left alone as long as I did not ask for a raise or complain about anything.  After 2 years with Wal-Mart, I gave 30 days notice. I was approached by the store manager to find out why I was quitting. I simply stated that I felt “the job was not as good a fit as I had hoped it would be, and I felt that I should move on.”
The pharmacy district manager showed up the next day to encourage to stay on, promising me things that I knew would not be delivered, based on the treatment of the other pharmacists. I simply re-stated that I did not feel I could stay on, due to personal reasons.
The following week, I was approached by a security person, who asked that I submit to a drug test, which I did, and which I passed. This was repeated 6 times in a two week period. I was also subjected to a “security interview” about “unexplained drug shortages”. Since we kept a perpetual inventory, it was possible to demonstrate such shortages did not exist. I was also questioned about using my employee discount “inappropriately” by allowing friends to buy stuff using my discount. At this point, I was told that all these allegations would be passed on to any future employer. The following day I showed up at work with an attorney and a request that they “cease and desist” from harassing me. I was fired that day. They never passed on any allegations to future employers, which the attorney told me he was sure they realized left them open to legal action.
I will never shop in or work for Wal-Mart again. I have no way of knowing if this was a unique situation, or if it is common to many employees. I do know that, from personal experience, and the way I saw other employees treated, it seemed to be the norm.

To Amy

I do have an idea of the charitable work in the community Wal-Mart does.  I do not see how this should somehow excuse Wal-Mart for its mistreatment of its “associates”.  Some of the charity probably goes partly to the underpaid workers of its companies.  The employees do not ask for charity they just want fair wages, break times that they do not work through, affordable healthcare that you do not have to wait 2 years to get as a regular part time associate.  These are all issues that they have not dealt with.  However, you are right they do have the right to toot their horns about how wonderful they are for donations while they ignore the people who help create the profit to make those large donations.

Lets all hear it for Amy. She is a freaking genius for making a dumb person like me see the glory in Wal-Mart.  Hooray, for Wal-Mart!

You all stink really badly and I love Wal- Mart

Pro or con?
I suggest anyone who is questioning what effect retail giants such as Wal-Mart have on our society, environment and economy see the Canadian docuentary “The Corporation.”
This film effectively changed the way I see the world and gives some positive direction for people who want a better world to follow. 
Visit http://www.thecorporation.com/ for information.  Thank you for your time and I hope you can see the film.

anyone supporting wal mart’s business practices has to be a real stupid ass.  i hold a degree in economics from UCLA and an MBA from UCI (university of california, irvine) and have studied wal mart’s practices extensively.  while they are efficient, and that is generally good, they are also using anti-competitive practices to kill the competition and wages of its employees.  to argue against that show your ignorance.  i once heard someone say that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.  if you only have a little knowledge about the subject, do America a favor and shut the F*#$ up.

dan

to: Rhiannon in Canoe
I went to the web sight. The Corporation, known as The Americas, is not available in the US.

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html

I read this article a year or so ago and it pretty much summed up everything I despise about Wally-World including the negative impact it is has on our national economy and our standard of living.

It also, mentions its historical predecessor, A&P, whose practices led to many of the anti-trust laws we currently have.

Boycotts might be good for attention, but I truly believe the only real change will have to come from political and legal entities.  Tariffs might be a good start…

http://www.thecorporation.com/ worked fine for me… User error?

Oops… my mistake.  Site’s working fine - just no showings in the US.

i read about half of these posts and must say it apalls me how many of you people have not figured out that lilly and many of the others in here are walmart employees not associates i know because i am an associate and if there were any companys left open i would not be no they are payed to do just what they are doing come onto any place their is discord related to walmart and make desention in the ranks i know my spelling and grammer are terrible don’t care i know i should not work for walmart but after they drove out the other buisnesses i have no choice unless i want to lose my home and move someplace else i can tell you for a fact walmart sucks i work on the night shift where it is policy to pay a small amount more to workers for working at night but they recently decided this was not a reasonable exspense so they changed the hours and now only half of my shift is after hours and they dropped everyone on nightshifts pay it is also policy that everyone in this store is hired as part time and only made full time after working 1000 hours in a certain period of time which they make sure does not happen being part time means no benefits of any kind no insurance no stock options no 401k furthermore any person working even one minute over scheduled time is written up or fired all new employees are informed talking to a union or even about a union will result in termination i am currently saving my pennies few that i get at a rate of pay under $6.00 an hour on part time and as soon as i can afford to i will have to let my house go and lose all i have paid on it so i can move somewhere else and get a different job i live in a small town there are no other options and i hate walmart with every fiber of my being many people i know and care about have lost everything to walmart and had to start over somewhere else it makes me sick everytime i have to put on the blue vest and go to work

this is for the obvious walmart employee uneducated
the corperate headquarters of walmart is yes in bentonville but the world purchasing and aquisitions headquarters is in yes you guessed it china and even yhough you are right about there being more procurment offices there is only one world headquarters and it is in china and as to you stating that part time employees are elligable for benefits that is a lie

now a short bit for marsha not to be rude but the average wal-mart supplying company in china pays .15 an hour not 2 dollars also as to 80 grand a year the average walmart associate makes les than 12 grand gross thats before taxes

This blog is really entertaining.  I thought this was going to be a serious blog about Wal-Mart, but was surprised by all the petty opinions and name calling.  Surprised in a good way.  Here in Lawton we have 2 Super Wal-Mart’s, 1 Kmart going down hill and a few grocery stores.  Lawton is a military town with Fort Sill comprising a huge chunk of the population.  If we want to shop elsewhere, we have to go to either Oklahoma city (90 miles) or Wichita Fall, TX (about 45 miles) Both have toll roads, so here in Lawton we have no real choice but to shop at Wal-Mart.  My wife and I hate it as much as some of you do but we have to eat and we need everyday supplies.  I am not a Wal-Mart hater nor am I a Wal-Mart lover. I will continue to shop at Wal-Mart until something comes along to give Wal-Mart some much needed competition.  So keep the entertainment going, this is a nice break in my work day.

Lee in Bentonville, AR said:

“Whitney in Bentonville, AR

Even though your mother was recently terminated.  I’m sure both of you will still shop there and give Lee Scott your money.

When will you and everyone else learn.”

To Lee the non-thinker, realize this is a feature of capitalism lee, you’re asking the poorest workers to go shop places more expensive, that’s called a catch-22 you know. Especially for people barely able to afford to live as it is.  We desperately need a new economic model with the incentives and industriousness of capitalism but none of its oppressive exploitive features, that drive people into depression and economic instability where they become desperate and resort to criminal activity to get what they need to survive.

Sean in Lawton, OK said:

“Here in Lawton we have 2 Super Wal-Mart’s, 1 Kmart going down hill and a few grocery stores.  Lawton is a military town with Fort Sill comprising a huge chunk of the population.  If we want to shop elsewhere, we have to go to either Oklahoma city (90 miles) or Wichita Fall, TX (about 45 miles) Both have toll roads, so here in Lawton we have no real choice but to shop at Wal-Mart.”

If there is a K-Mart and a few grocery stores in his community, why does he have no real choice but to shop at Wal-Mart?  Why can’t he shop at those stores?  And why is it that K-Mart is going downhill?

A reference was made in this blog, that Arkansas is poor, so we don’t mind low wages, but the Northwest corner of Arkansas, ( Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale and Fayetteville) is far from being poor.  Anyone who understands economics, understands that wages reflect economic conditions.  An area that has high wages, also has a high cost of living (ie. rent, taxes, etc.), lower wage areas have a lower cost of living basis.

As for “associates” that have been fired or quit their jobs at Wal-Mart, could it possibly have anything to do with their work ethic?  I have a son-in-law who was fired from Wal-Mart, he was also fired from Target, McDonalds, Blimpies and quit working at, Domino’s, Wendy’s and a number of other jobs.  And, guess what?  Every one of those jobs was a bad place to work and the employers treated him badly or screwed him over somehow.  The fact that he missed a lot of work and was late often, had nothing to do with it.  Neither did the fact that he always took at least 2 to 3 months to find another job.

I know many people who have worked at Wal-Mart for many years, some 10 to 15 years, and guess what?  They have not been fired, they have nice houses and cars, and think that Wal-Mart is a good place to work.

One last thing, ‘Waltons’, was a small Mom and Pop, Five and Dime store in Bentonville, Ar. that took on the discount leader K-Mart.  If a store can’t compete, who’s fault is it if it ends up closing?  The guy who paid $40.00 for a cooler, bought it from a place that wasn’t trying to compete, most people bought their coolers where they could get the best price, the store that was competitive (Wal-Mart).

I quitI started working for WalMart 4/26/05 and thought it was going to be a great job and I was totally wrong.
I had gotten a letter form a chiropractor that I could not lift a ladder or weight more than 20lbs. without assistance but was yelled at by the floor mgr. time after time,in which I reported but even though I was told something would be done about it,nothing ever was and was told by two different managers and an assistant manager,still but nothing was ever done.Sometimes if either manager or assistant manager was told I was told to speak to another somebody.I was also told both letters were lost and when I told them who I talked to which meant NOTHING and that that somebody was no longer there,but then again wouldn’t that information still be in the store in my file since I was still employed there?It is my information not his not to leave the store with him.I was helping an associate one day by getting a plastic chair as he and an assistant manager at that time were putting together a cloth gazebo type awning ang I lost balance fell backwards into a long lawn chair on my left side and it had closed up on my hand swelling up my left middle finger middle joint which when I reported it I was in a sense ignored and told to bandage or just take care of it myself not a write up or told to go to a doctor or nothing like it was nothing and then later on mentioned to that if I don’t write up on it and if we have a month with no injuries we would have a BBQ.And I

don’t know where the manager went and it was never reported or spoke of ever.Later on that evening when I got home I looked at my leg and had a long across my left thigh a long black painfull bruise and a painfull left inside of my left butt cheek like where the joint on left hip is and still is like a sciatic nerve pain.Reported it to the chiropractor around july and to this day 11/7/05 it still hurts like h-ll.By the way that manager or assistant manager no longer work at the store.Anything I ever mention to the new manager if he is not on vacation for about three weeks,it always gets passed on to talk to someone else or it will be taken care of never has been taken care of in any way.I was spoken to by a customer saying he saw the whole thing and will stand by me and testify about it ,whom I don’t even know.Now here is the question?Who do I take this to to take care of because I am in extreme misirable pain sometimes 24/7?