Fact Sheets

The Employee Free Choice Act Legislation that will truly make a difference for Wal-Mart workers

Wage & Hour Issues Read how Wal-Mart continually fails to pay every worker for every hour worked

Health Care Wal-Mart's still insures barely over half its employees on the company plan

Always Low Wages Poverty-level wages make life extremely difficult for Wal-Mart's 1.4 million workers

The Environment How Wal-Mart's business model is detrimental for our planet

Research Center: Community Impact

TITLE DATE
Save Money, Live Better: Wal-Mart’s State Tax Avoidance Schemes Wal-Mart, using tax avoidance schemes provided to it by the accounting firm Ernst & Young, has short-changed many states out of millions of dollars of state tax money. 07/21/08
Wal-Mart and the World (NOW with Bill Moyers) The debate over Wal-Mart’s effect on American towns and the American workforce is not new. “Wal-Martization” has become a code word for suburban sprawl. Yet this fall, the volume of that debate appears to have been turned up.  07/01/08
Wal-Mart’s Taxing Strategies A report that looks at Wal-Mart’s tax loophole strategies. 05/30/08
Does Wal-Mart Sell Inferior Goods? A report from Emek Basker at the University of Missouri that questions the quality of Wal-Mart’s goods. 05/30/08
The Wal-Mart Debate: A False Choice Between Prices and Wages A study from the Economic Policy Institute examining Wal-Mart’s low prices, and whether the company could afford to pay its workers better. 03/31/08
The Impact of the Wal-Mart Phenomenon on Rural Communities A report by the Farm Foundation on the impact of Wal-Mart stores on local retail sectors. 02/05/08
What Do We Know About Wal-Mart? An Overview of Facts and Studies This report from the Brennan Center “is intended to help New Yorkers make informed policy decisions about economic development in their communities.” 01/14/08
Wal-Mart:  A College Curriculum “Wal-Mart: A College Curriculum” is a 37-page, multi-disciplinary curriculum designed for college and university professors to incorporate into their undergraduate courses.  01/04/08
Wal-Mart’s Tax Avoidance Schemes How Wal-Mart’s Pursuit of Lower Taxes Has Cost States and Communities Millions 01/03/08
Results of Wal-Mart Watch/Westhill 2007 Public Opinion Survey A summary of the findings of Wal-Mart Watch’s April 2007 poll of consumer perceptions of Wal-Mart.  01/03/08
Consumer Safety at Wal-Mart As the world’s largest company and the nation’s leading grocer, Wal-Mart’s actions have a tremendous impact on the health and safety of Americans.  01/03/08
Wal-Mart 2006 Expansion Plans: New Store Openings A Wal-Mart internal document detailing all new US store openings in 2006. 12/20/07
Survey of Attitudes Among Voters, Staten Island, NY. Polling data on Staten Island residents’ views of a proposed Wal-Mart store. 12/20/07
Asda Wal-Mart: The Alternative Report This report from War on Want reviews Wal-Mart’s record over and against its rhetoric on corporate social responsibility and recommends action, both to send a message to Wal-Mart and to redress some of the damage inflicted by the company’s operations. 12/20/07
Frontline: Is Wal-Mart Good for America? This television special from PBS’s “Fronline” examines the impact Wal-Mart has on several aspects of American life. 12/19/07
The Wal-Mart Tax: Shifting Health Care Costs to Taxpayers This report from the AFL-CIO examines Wal-Mart’s practice of shifting costs away from the company and on to taxpayers. “This abuse of poverty health care programs means Wal-Mart is directly contributing to the nation’s Medicaid crisis.” 12/19/07
Wal-Mart Exports from China, Exports Ohio Jobs More than half of the jobs lost from Ohio’s manufacturing sector were shipped overseas. Not surprisingly, as Ohio lost significant numbers of manufacturing jobs, imports from China surged. 12/19/07
Wrestling with Wal-Mart: Tradeoffs Between Profits, Prices and Wages A working paper from the Economic Policy Institute examining the costs and benefits of Wal-Mart stores.  12/19/07
The Impact of Big Box Grocers on Southern California: Jobs, Wages and Municipal Finances This report, prepared for the Orange County Business Council by professors at UCLA and UC Irvine, examines the impacts - both positive and negative - of supercenters on local economies. 12/19/07
Community Benefits Agreements: Making Development Projects Accountable This report from Good Jobs First explains and describes Community Benefit Agreements (CBAs) — deals between developers and coalitions of community organizations, addressing a broad range of community needs. 12/19/07
Economic Impact of Wal-Mart Supercenters on Existing Businesses in Mississippi (ISU, MSU) A report from professors at Iowa State University and Mississippi State University examines the effect Wal-Mart stores have on existing businesses. 12/19/07
Shopping for Subsidies (Good Jobs First) How Wal-Mart Uses Taxpayer Money to Finance Its Never-Ending Growth 12/19/07
Wal-Mart: An Example of Why Workers Remain Uninsured and Underinsured (AFL-CIO) This report from the AFL-CIO examines why fewer than half of Wal-Mart’s employees are insured under the company plan. 12/19/07
A Downward Push: The Impact of Wal-Mart Stores on Retail Wages and Benefits This study from U.C. Berkeley’s Center for Labor Research and Education examines Wal-Mart stores’ effect on local wages and employee benefits. 12/06/07
University of Pennsylvania: Wal-Mart and County-Wide Poverty Wal-Mart unequivocally raised family poverty rates in US counties during the 1990s relative to places that had no such stores. 12/05/07
Labor Rights are Human Rights A review of Canadian labor rights from a human rights perspective. 11/26/07
Campaign to Organize Wal-Mart in Canada A look into UFCW’s attempts to organize Wal-Mart Canada. 11/26/07
UK Competition Commission on ASDA A report from the British competition watchdog about concerns regarding ASDA and other local retailers’ retail practices. 11/26/07
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. 2007 Sustainability Report “We have found that there is no conflict between our business model of everyday low costs and everyday low prices and being a more sustainable business.” 11/19/07
Bank of Wal-Mart? Wal-Mart attempts to open an industrial loan corporation 11/02/06
Issue Background Documents Background information on various issues related to Wal-Mart 11/01/06
Shameless: How Wal-Mart Bullies Its Way Into Communities Across America This special report reviews Wal-Mart’s bullying tactics through a series of local case studies. 10/17/06
Maryland Fair Share Health Care Legislation Examining Wal-Mart’s battle with the Maryland legislature over the Fair Share Health Care Bill 10/16/06
Handshake With Sam Research Documents Backup research documents for Wal-Mart Watch’s Handshake with Sam 10/13/06
Store Wars: When Wal-Mart Comes to Town A look at the populist spirit that engulfs a small Virginia town when retail giant Wal-Mart comes knocking, blueprints in hand.  The ensuing debate, which pits neighbor against neighbor, illustrates the struggle between conflicting versions of the American dream. A truly American story, Store Wars is about the right of a community to determine its own future. 07/01/06
Beyond the Wal-Mart Economy “Behind Wal-Mart’s ‘everyday low prices’ lurk hidden costs-from the exploitation of workers in the US and around the world, to increased sprawl and pollution-that we end up paying as consumers, taxpayers, workers, and citizens” 04/07/06
The Hidden Cost of Wal-Mart Jobs A report from the UC Berkeley Labor Center on the toll Wal-Mart takes on local tax infrastructures. 02/06/06
Wal-Mart Bullies Cleveland City Officials Wal-Mart executives send letters to the Cleveland City Council President, threatening legal action in response to city ordinances against big-box stores. 05/25/05
Low Prices at What Cost? Wal-Mart Watch’s 2005 Annual Report Our look at some of the most important issues surrounding Wal-Mart’s business practices. 05/23/05
Economic Impact of Wal-Mart: An Assessment of the Wal-Mart Store Proposed for Chicago’s West Side This study assesses the likely impact of a new Wal-Mart store on other local retailers and the resulting employment and tax revenue impacts on the City of Chicago and its residents.  03/31/04
Everyday Low Wages: The Hidden Price We All Pay For Wal-Mart A 2004 report by Congressman George Miller finds that, “while charging low prices obviously has some consumer benefits, mounting evidence from across the country indicates that these benefits come at a steep price for American workers, U.S. labor laws, and community living standards.” 02/16/04
Subsidizing Wal-Mart: A Case Study of the College Grove Redevelopment Project This report from the Center on Policy Initiatives examines the impact of a Wal-Mart development on College Grove, California. 11/21/03

Choose a Subject or Document Type to browse our archives, or enter a Search Term to customize your results.