Wal-Mart Attempts to Address Labor Problems In Its Supply Chain
Labor rights violations have plagued Wal-Mart’s supply chain since the company abandoned its “Buy American” campaign in the early 1990’s. Wal-Mart’s business model relies on low prices, and those low prices are made possible by manufacturing products overseas where economies are weaker and human rights enforcement is lax.
Yesterday, the company announced that it will require suppliers to avoid cotton from Uzbekistan, which is known for using children to harvest cotton each year. From IWPR’s The Cost of Uzbek White Gold:
Gathering cotton in the autumn has been considered the most important part of life for an Uzbek citizen since Soviet times. But the hefty dollar revenues reaped by the government from its monopoly export and processing business are made on the backs of children who provide cheap labour.
Many other retailers have also started boycotting Uzbekistan’s cotton, and it is without a doubt an issue that should be addressed by every conscientious company. Wal-Mart use it’s purchasing power like this a thousand different times in dozens of countries and still not resolve all the problems in its supply chain. We only hope to see more efforts like this coming out of Bentonville.
Wal-Mart asks suppliers to avoid Uzbek cotton [Reuters]
Wal-Mart Stores Inc said on Tuesday it is requiring its suppliers to stop sourcing cotton from Uzbekistan, in an effort to end child labor there.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Wednesday, October 01 | 24 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart Downsizes in Japan
After years of struggling in one of the world’s most competitive retail markets, Wal-Mart announced today that it is downsizing operations in Japan. Wal-Mart bought a majority stake in Seiyu several years ago, and just last year the retailer bought all of Seiyu’s remaining shares. Wal-Mart has pumped over $1 billion into the Seiyu chain, but discerning Japanese shoppers (who view “low prices” as a sign of low quality, and can afford to shop elsewhere) have never taken to the store. Will Japan join the ranks of countries where Wal-Mart has failed?
Wal-Mart Japan unit to close 20 stores, cut staff [Reuters]
Wal-Mart Stores Inc’s Japan unit Seiyu Ltd said it will close about 20 unprofitable stores and cut 6 percent of its workforce as it struggles to gain traction in the world’s second-largest economy.
But Seiyu, which became a fully-owned subsidiary of the world’s largest retailer earlier this year, said it would also look to open stores in new regions and consider acquisitions to help it expand.
Seiyu Senior Vice President Ryo Kanayama said targets may include supermarket chains with a nationwide network.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Monday, September 29 | 27 comments | Permalink
Weekly Update for Elected Officials: Sept. 24, 2008
Check out this week’s issue of the Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials – a compilation of Wal-Mart news from across the country and beyond.
This week’s issue begins with reports of price gouging on the part of Wal-Mart. What’s truly abhorrent about these reports, however, is that they are being made by the very people affected most by the recent cavalcade of hurricanes to batter the Gulf coast. The Arkansas News Bureau and The Consumerist have more on these stories.
You’ll also find major news on the legal front. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed its second lawsuit against Wal-Mart in less than three weeks. The first involves the Americans with Disabilities Act in Illinois; the second involves age discrimination against a 67-year-old optician in Missouri. In addition to the EEOC lawsuits, Wal-Mart will now have to face another class action wage/hour lawsuit. Salvas v. Wal-Mart was originally certified as a class action back in 2004. Since then the case has gone back and forth through the Massachusetts court system, eventually being decertified and winding up in front of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on appeal. Well, the SJC released its opinion this week, ruling that the decertification was improper and that the lawsuit should be reinstated as a class action. A trial is possible, which could cost Wal-Mart hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid wages and damages. The Boston Globe and Boston Herald have the story.
Also check out the Product and Food Safety Report, where you’ll find stories on BPA (and a class action lawsuit regarding the chemical that includes Wal-Mart), dangerous soccer goals and baby cribs sold at Wal-Mart, and a pet food recall involving Purina products sold at the retailer.
And finally, check out our “Stateside” and “Wal-Mart International” sections to find out what’s going on with Wal-Mart around the country and across the globe.
Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials [September 24, 2008]
Posted by Corey Himrod on Wednesday, September 24 | 2 comments | Permalink
Asda Launches New Websites to Boost Recruitment
Wal-Mart’s wholly-owned UK subsidiary, Asda, has just spent over $180,000 launching two websites recruiting employees for its stores. Unlike in the U.S., where Wal-Mart is essentially unrivaled, the U.K. retail market is extremely competitive for Asda, and the store must be having trouble hiring and retaining employees. We can’t imagine that the company’s notoriously bad labor practices have anything to do with it.
The video above, taken from one of Asda’s new websites, discusses the benefits of working at Asda (read the transcript here (PDF)). Let’s take a look at just what those benefits are.
1. “It’s not just your salary or your car allowance at all.” Benefit number one: we will pay you!
2. “We get a benefits book which gives us all our discounts on theme parks and car parking at airports and things like that, just because you work at ASDA.”
Who needs a living wage when you can get a dollar off at the airport parking garage?
3. “I think my favourite benefit at ASDA is the Sharesave Scheme.” That is, just like everyone else in the capitalist system, employees are entitled to buy shares of the company stock. In fact, we’d love it if you did: the executives’ yachts aren’t going to repaint themselves.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Monday, September 22 | 27 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart China Unionized, Collective Contracts Signed
Within two months of starting an intense campaign to get Wal-Mart China stores to sign collective contracts, the Chinese labor union has declared success. All Wal-Mart store contracts include provisions on yearly wage and hour increase consultations in addition to including many, if not all, of the following provisions on: break time, holiday time, contract supervision, insurance, worker safety, women workers’ special rights and benefit protections, worker discipline, worker training, work quotas, etc.
Congratulations to the Wal-Mart China workers and their unions for negotiating and safeguarding their rights!
Wal-Mart China’s 108 Stores Sign Collective Contracts [Xinhua]
Wal-Mart’s 108 unionized stores in the China have all agreed to and signed collective contracts. This historic breakthrough was the result of the legal push by China’s labor union to organize Wal-Mart.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Research Team on Friday, September 19 | 74 comments | Permalink
The Bank of Wal-Mart Returns Again
No matter how many times Wal-Mart fails to create a “Bank of Wal-Mart,” the company always seems to find a way to bring it back to life.
Seven months ago, we helped keep Wal-Mart out of the banking business. But now, the Federal Reserve is looking into changing the rules completely - and may throw open the door to giant corporations like Wal-Mart to run their own banks.
At a time when our economy is already in crisis, we can’t turn the banking industry over to Wal-Mart. Please write a note to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the Banking Committee leaders in Congress, and let them know what’s at stake:
http://action.walmartwatch.com/NoBankofWalmart
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by David Nassar, Executive Director on Wednesday, September 17 | 46 comments | Permalink
Wal-Mart Fails to Meet Donation Goals - UPDATE!
You might recall several posts we did regarding Wal-Mart’s donations to China’s earthquake relief efforts. Those posts all cited numerous articles which detailed not only Wal-Mart’s meager donation pledges, but also that Wal-Mart had largely failed to follow through on their donations. Worse, another story surfaced about how Wal-Mart would potentially profit off the earthquake victims by building stores in the earthquake region.
All these posts were a bit too much for Wal-Mart China’s director of public relations Jonathan Dong. He even wrote us a strongly worded letter to express his dismay. Unfortunately for Jonathan Dong, this story just won’t end.
According to a recent article from Beibu Gulf ASEAN Economic Web, Wal-Mart STILL has not met its donation targets! Luckily, Jonathan has prepared a response: “Spending money is hard.”
Public relations director Jonathan Dong (董玉国) explained “contributing money is easy; spending money is difficult. On May 23, Wal-Mart decided to give away an additional 17 million . The company immediately looked for projects to aid, looking at subsidizing schools, orphanages, etc. But Wal-Mart found out that many [companies] were financing the same projects.” At present time, Wal-Mart is in the process of seeking suitable projects to support.
Imagine that.
Posted by Michael Mignano on Friday, September 12 | 26 comments | Permalink
Consumer Alert
According to a recent article in Bloomberg, a series of babies have fallen ill with kidney stones across seven provinces in China - one has died. It is suspected that melamine contaminated powdered milk manufactured by Sanlu Group is responsible. The Chinese ministry of health stated that Sanlu has recalled the milk powder while the investigation proceeds.
Bloomberg also notes that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is said to be pulling Sanlu milk powder off its shelves, citing Wal-Mart China spokesman Dong Yuguo. However, in a report from Ifeng Finance (China), Wal-Mart stores in Shanghai are still selling powdered milk “as usual”.
Exacerbating this horrific situation, “contaminated baby formula may also have reached the U.S., according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which warned consumers that illegally imported Chinese milk powder may contain melamine.”
China Says Sanlu Milk Likely Contaminated by Melamine [Bloomberg]
China’s health ministry said milk powder produced by Sanlu Group Co., 43 percent owned by Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd., may have been tainted with the chemical melamine and could be linked to kidney stones in infants.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Michael Mignano on Friday, September 12 | 8 comments | Permalink
View Wal-Mart Watch's videos on YouTube