0 comments

---

Last week we told you about Walmart firing 300 workers from its headquarters staff as the company goes through a major restructuring. The 300 jobs were just the tip of the iceberg, with 10 Sam’s Club stores closing, a major layoff of 11,000 workers at Sam’s Club stores, and a new decentralized set up for the company that will shift many jobs away from the main office in Bentonville to regional offices.

When we told you about those 300 layoffs, we wondered if there might by more job losses on the way. As it turns out, there may be. The Northwest Arkansas Times reports that as the company starts creating regional offices and moving positions there, jobs in Bentonville will be eliminated. According to the article,

“some headquarters staff members will face a choice of relocating, looking for other jobs or retirement, according to several people familiar with the situation.

Wal-Mart declined to put a number on positions that could be moved out of Bentonville. Those decisions will be made case by case and it will take time to figure out what works for each area”

We’ll certainly be keeping an eye on this transition to see how it affects the company. We can only hope that Walmart does all it can to ensure that jobs aren’t eliminated unnecessarily, or workers aren’t pushed out of their jobs. Walmart has a reputation, after all, for pushing workers with seniority out to reduce the cost of salary and benefits overall. It’s one of the reasons Walmart has such a high turnover rate. 

0 comments

---

Walmart is certainly shaking things up recently. A week ago, Walmart laid off more than 11,000 of its Sam’s Club workers. Two weeks before that, Walmart closed down 10 Sam’s Club stores putting 1,500 jobs at risk. Since the Sam’s Club layoffs, Walmart has announced other substantial institutional changes like splitting its US operations in to regions and establishing a global online organization.

Then today, Walmart announced it would laying off another 300 employees from its Bentonville, Arkansas headquarters. Just about a year ago, Walmart laid off between 700 and 800 workers from headquarters.

Between the two layoffs, Walmart has let go around 9% of the 12,000 headquarters staff.

The positions being eliminated this time around were in the corporate affairs, finance, human resources, information systems and legal departments.

We’re always concerned to hear about layoffs, especially from a company that is doing so well right now, racking up billions of dollars in sales.

With a 10% cut in Sam’s club staff, and a nearly 10% cut in headquarter staff, are there more layoffs on the way?

You can read more about the layoffs, and the memo from Mike Duke from the Associated Press here.

0 comments

---

Arkansas Watch echoes a rumor that we’ve heard as well: more cutbacks might be on the way in Bentonville. Possibly in the form of actual layoffs, but more likely in the form of hourly cutbacks.

When the layoffs were announced several weeks back, we asked if anyone had heard whether the layoffs were coming to full-time or part-time employees. It’s looking more and more like Wal-Mart is enacting the same policy at home office as it does its stores: force out older employees, and move as many workers to part-time as possible, to cut down on benefits costs and yearly raises.

More Reductions At Wal-Mart? [Arkansas Watch]:

The Watch has heard well-sourced rumors that Wal-Mart is reducing the hours of some of its headquarters staff. Specifically formerly full-time employees were told they could not work more than 30 hrs a week, or they would be fired. This of course reduces their hrs so that no health benefits need be provided.

We all knew about the job cuts at Wal-Mart headquarters, but the reduction in work hrs of the staff they’ve retained has gone under the radar.

16 comments

---

Surrounded by the enemy, with a story vaguely reminiscent of Frodo’s trek into Mordor (that’s for you Lord of the Rings fans - you know who you are), Target is wading into Benton County, Arkansas, home of America’s retail behemoth. A new store is scheduled to open tomorrow right in Wal-Mart’s backyard, with seven Wal-Mart supercenters, five Neighborhood Market grocery stores and two Sam’s Club outlets located within a 25-mile radius.

Like Wal-Mart, Target has steadily slowed its store growth, a trend that may continue depending on economic conditions. Ironically enough, the demographics in Benton County appear to be a good match to the template of Target’s average customer:

“Those demographics there [in Benton County], people have slightly more income on average, discretionary, and will tend to trade up from pure discounters...” And Target “is known very well for their housewares and apparel.” The typical Target “guest,” as the company calls its customers, has a median age of 42 with a median household annual income of $60,000, said Katie Benscoter, a spokesman at Target headquarters. A third of them have children at home and just over half have a college degree.

The store could have an ace in the hole - its new manager, Chuck Simmons, started his retail career at Wal-Mart and is familiar with the area. Still, to put things in perspective, Wal-Mart currently has five supercenters and 12 discount stores within 25 miles of Target’s home office in Minneapolis. And despite prices that are within 1-2% of Wal-Mart’s markdowns, Target continues to battle the perception that it is the more expensive of the two discount retailers.

Target set to open store in Wal-Mart’s backyard [Arkansas Democrat Gazette]

Read the rest of this story ...

16 comments

---

“If there is one constant in our organization, it is change.”

Perhaps also the extravagant wealth of the Walton Family, and consistently low wages of its workers.

Text Of Wal-Mart Press Release [4029-TV (Ark.)]:

To: All Home Office associates

From: Mike Duke, president and CEO, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Date: February 10, 2009

RE: Organizational Changes

Dear Home Office associates:

As the new fiscal year begins, we find ourselves living in unprecedented times, and I am reminded every day of how our company is uniquely positioned to help Americans weather the economic storm. We know that millions of working men and women are relying on our low prices more than ever before, and we must continue to be an advocate for them.

Starting today, and over the next few weeks, you will be hearing from your leaders about some important changes designed to align our staffing and organizational structure to increase operational efficiencies, support our strategic growth plans and help reduce our overall costs. Some of these changes will involve reductions in Home Office positions while others will create additional management jobs elsewhere. And, as part of our overall store growth plan, we will continue to add thousands of jobs in our stores and clubs this year.

We expect the changes to impact approximately 700-800 Home Office positions including merchandising, real estate, marketing and support divisions in Walmart U.S., Sam’s Club merchandising and some corporate functions. The restructuring will not impact store and club operations.

We do not make these decisions lightly, and every individual decision was carefully considered. We recognize this is a difficult development for the members of our Wal-Mart family who will be leaving the company. While the number of associates that will be impacted by the restructuring is very small compared to the 2.2 million associates we have worldwide, I can assure you that we will treat them with care and dignity and help support them during their transition, consistent with our basic beliefs and respect for the individual.

If there is one constant in our organization, it is change. We are committed to our purpose of helping people save money so they can live better and we will continue to take appropriate steps to further align our support structure with our business plans. We must also challenge costs in every corner of the company in order to keep our business strong today and well into the future.

We care about our associates, especially during times like these. Thank you for everything you have done and will do to serve our customers and help make our company better.

Mike

24 comments

---

Our sources on the ground tell us Wal-Mart called an 8:00 AM meeting and broke the bad news to its home office employees. No statement yet from Wal-Mart, but we’ll keep you updated.

Reports of Layoffs at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club Home Office [KFSM-TV (Ark)]:

Multiple sources, including current employees, are telling 5NEWS Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. began laying off employees at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club home offices this morning.

5NEWS spoke with Ed Clifford, president of the Bentonville/Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce. He says he has heard about the layoffs, but cannot confirm any details. Clifford says the affects of any Wal-Mart layoffs will be widespread across Northwest Arkansas, not just Bentonville.

Wal-Mart has not released a statement about the layoffs.

We will pass along more information as it becomes available

0 comments

---

Despite Target’s worse-than-expected third-quarter earnings, due in part to losing customers to Wal-Mart in a depressed economy, they have found several ways to stick it to the world’s largest retailer.  Other than pledging a ‘price-war’ against them, they are also hitting Wal-Mart where it counts: Bentonville.  Construction is nearing completion and signage is erected at Target’s newest location: Bentonville, Arkansas, Wal-Mart’s home when not in vacationing in China. 

Slated to open in March, the store will be located on the east side of I-540.  Jenn Glass, a Target representative was quoted in the Benton Daily Record (Arkansas):

“Target opens new stores in October, July and March of each year,” said Jenn Glass, Target representative. “We’re projecting a March 8, 2009, opening in Rogers. “According to Glass, the Rogers location will be a traditional Target retail store, not a Super Target. The Minneapolis-based retailer has 70 new stores scheduled to open in the United States in 2009.

Not to be outdone, Wal-Mart plans to open a Neighborhood Market DIRECTLY across from the new Target, in an awkward, immodest attempt to keep the citizens of Bentonville shopping at the “right store.” Wal-Mart doesn’t typically open Neighborhood Markets as frequently as they used to, and seem to be making every attempt to upgrade all of their regular stores to Supercenters.  Way to keep the gloves on, guys.

Target set to open in March [Benton County Daily Record (Ark.)]

ROGERS - Target Corp. ‘s red bull’s-eye is hardly a household trademark in Benton County. For years, the nearest Target store has been in Fayetteville, in neighboring Washington County. But the bull’seye has been shining brightly along Interstate 540, in the shadows of the Pinnacle Hills Promenade, for the past couple of weeks.

Crossland Construction crews continue to erect Benton County’s first Target store, situated across the street from the Pinnacle Hills Promenade, along the east side of I-540. The exterior of the 127, 000-squarefoot Target store is nearing completion, the signage has been erected, and the parking lot has been paved. But for those who are planning to get some holiday shopping done at the Minneapolis-based retailer, it’s still going to require a drive to Fayetteville this winter.

Read the rest of this story ...

0 comments

---

This comes courtesty of Writing on the Wal. We’ve issued reports on Wal-Mart’s use of various tax schemes, including captive REITs, 80/20 companies, and captive employee leasing companies. All of these strategies have been used in the name of avoiding paying state corporate income tax. Now, one website has gone ahead and documented some additional tax issues, these of the unpaid variety.

Below are examples of tax liens placed on Wal-Mart, ranging from $104 to, well, a whole lot more. Liens are granted after notices have been sent to a debtor but the owed taxes remain unpaid. Its nice to know that, in addition to not paying taxes, Wal-Mart forces states to spend MORE money just to collect these debts. YAY!

EXAMPLE ONE:

Debtor Information
Name: WAL MART STORES INC
Tax ID: 710415188
Address: 702 SW 8TH ST
BENTONVILLE, AR 72716-6209
BENTON COUNTY

Creditor Information
Name: SC DEPT OF REVENUE

Filing Information
Filing State: SOUTH CAROLINA
Original Filing Date: 1/17/2003
Amount: $2,463,114
Release Date: 1/28/2003

Filing 1
Filing Number: 50458809
Filing Court: GREENVILLE COUNTY RECORDER
Filing County: GREENVILLE

EXAMPLE TWO:

Debtor Information
Name: WAL MART STORES INCORPORATED
Tax ID: 710415188
Address: 702 SW 8TH ST
BENTONVILLE, AR 72716-6209
BENTON COUNTY

Creditor Information
Name: STATE OF INDIANA

Filing Information
Filing State: INDIANA
Original Filing Date: 4/15/2008
Amount: $1,600,933
Release Date: 6/13/2008

Filing 1
Filing Number: 06819151
Filing Type: STATE TAX WARRANT
Filing Court: MARION COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
Filing County: MARION

Read on for more!
Wal-Mart: Examine the history of the tax liens in the millions

2 comments

---

The collection is from an undisclosed company - unnamed because of state tax confidentiality laws.

The REIT loophole issue, which focuses on the use of captive real estate investment trusts to avoid paying state corporate income taxes, has been in the national spotlight for going on two years now. In North Carolina, Wal-Mart saved millions of dollars in state tax bills by essentially transferring its properties to its own REIT and paying rent to itself, then writing it off as a tax deduction. These transactions were frequently followed by rather suspicious looking characters in black masks trudging back to Bentonville with big old gobs of money that could have gone to funding state programs.

North Carolina got wise to the scheme and assessed Wal-Mart for back taxes. Additional states have sought ways to close the loophole up, either through attacking it directly or by adopting combined reporting. Maryland is one of those states - last year Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot announced that his state would no longer allow payments to captive REITs to be deducted from state tax returns. Now following its first publicized audit since then, Maryland will receive $10.8 million in back taxes for a 3-year period from the unnamed company.

We’ve chronicled again and again that Wal-Mart is one of the worst offenders in this area. Simply closing the loophole is one way to fix it. Adopting combined reporting is another. At least in Maryland’s case, the effort has already resulted in nearly $11 million coming back into the state treasury.

Maryland collects millions after closing tax loophole [Washington Post]

Read the rest of this story ...

57 comments

---

WAL-MART AND THE ‘POORING OF AMERICA’
I’m not sure where the phrase “Pooring of America” came from, but it’s perfect to explain Wal-Mart’s effect on working families. Seeking Alpha ponders why Wal-Mart and McDonald’s are doing so well right now.

What are McDonald’s and Wal-Mart Telling Us? [Seeking Alpha]

I am very intriqued by our top 2 choices for the “Pooring of America” trend - Walmart (WMT) and McDonalds (MCD) - what exactly are the charts above telling us?  If we are to enter a long drawn-out recession, which I have believed, these seem to be screaming buys here. The only question is credit - how does a lack of credit potentially hurt both. They are not expanding a ton, in the U.S. at least - perhaps with Wal-mart it’s financing of inventory, but I cannot wrap my mind around this behavior.

Wal-Mart gets downgraded while stock up in 2008 amid the turmoil [BloggingStocks]

Will Wal-Mart weather the storm? To a point, it already is. Sure, all retailers are expected to have a dismal holiday season this winter, but Wal-Mart will do better than the competition. It has more stores, more pricing leverage and more wherewithal to hold customers hostage with lower prices and inventory turns at a time when it’s needed most. Perhaps we’ll see WMT return to the $60/share level by Thanksgiving—if not sooner.

Read the rest of this story ...