wal-mart

[hagfish]

The wal-mart nearest me is by far the best place to go to get common household stuff and other general items. It's only real competition is k-mart and that particular store is terrible. But in nearby towns I've visted their wal-marts, targets, and k-marts and 99% of the time I am more likely to find what I need at wal-mart and usually at a cheaper price.
I've not noticed any major difference in the appearance of the people either working or shopping in any of those stores. But then, I'm not really paying attention to that when I'm there.
BTW, our k-mart is the worst business on the planet. They specialize in nothing, yet generalize in too little. Their prices are high and their stock is low or not available. And they only have 5 people working in the whole store it seems. Just terrible.

 

[hagfish]

About wal-mar and it's fish. Our local wal-mart is quite awful at this. They only have FW fish, but sometimes I take a glance at them for kicks and I'll see that 80% of the WAY overstocked fish have ick. Very sad.

 

[jokerswild]

Originally posted by NM reef
My feelings on Wal_Mart can be best explained by relating a true story...
A few years ago a new Super center opened here and I was in it on business on day...I over heard a conversation between a exutive type and a vendor(Pepsi)...the conversation was about the concept that Wal_Mart is about safing people money...and all the good they do in communities. We'll I heard enough propaganda to make me want to vomit so I causually mentioned that I'd heard the conversation but had a question....
My question to the Wal_Mart excetutive was this..." If what you say is true...that wal_Mart is about saving folks money...then why is it I see the children of Mr. Walton on the richest people list and why is it y'all have so many multi-millionaire upper level management folks....seems to me you SAY you save us money.....but you really intend to rob us blind!"
True story...needless to say the management dude was very pissed!!!!!!!!:yes:

I live in Bentonville Arkansas so I get to see the evils of wal-mart everyday. Wal mart all but driven out mom and pop shop here. Its not about saving anybody money it about making their pockets fat.

 

[pwnag3!!]

funny.... i can go 5 miles in 3 directions and find a walmart... that isnt including the walmart neighborhood markets around me.
GLOBAL DOMINATION THROUGH COMPETITIVE PRICES AND FREE MARKET SYSTEM!!!!!!

 

[magooo2]

Make that Global domination By employee exploitation. (Ill save that for later)
If the free market were truley free, the sellers would be able to see their merchandice in these store at a competetive price. What Walmart has done is shifted the structure. They tell you what you will sell your product for regardless if you have the ability to produce it for the stated #. It then forces the seller to find ways of manipulating the price so they can have the walmart shelf face. """hear this now"""". The maufactuerer then moves his/her plant overseas where it can be produced for pennies on the dollar, taking the the jobs that walmart says it cares about so much. Follow the money trail guys....It's alwasy about the money.
Employee exploitation goes something like this....
Does walmart provide it's employees health care benifits or do they provide the option only for you to purchase health care. On the average in the Milwaukee metropolitain area the avg health care coverage for a familiy is $900 a month. With a full time 9-11 /hr job how does one go about buying health care at that price. So the working poor do what they can and they go to the e room for health care because they cant be turned away. Now they have no way of paying for these services , it falls on you and me taxpayer. So walmart now subsidises its health care plan on the backs of the U.S taxpayer.
If walmart cared about its employees they would provide an affordable health plan . O but thats right most are just PART -TIME and they wont afford part time employees health care benefits.
Employee exploitation + fixed pricing subject to change once the competition is gone, = 5 of the richest people in the world.
I await a rubuttal- I can rant on this all my life

 

[pwnag3!!]

very well said!

 

[bergamer]

O but thats right most are just PART -TIME and they wont afford part time employees health care benefits.
this is an untrue statement!
in fact wal mart is one of the only fortune 500 corps to give part time employees health care.
I wish I could say more about wal mart, but I cant due to confidentiality.
But if you knew how wal mart really worked, you would support it!
By the way, I would not be caught dead in a wal mart, the people are so damn trashy.

 

[pwnag3!!]

and you being a law student are above trashyness

 

[reefraff]

Originally posted by jokerswild
I live in Bentonville Arkansas so I get to see the evils of wal-mart everyday. Wal mart all but driven out mom and pop shop here. Its not about saving anybody money it about making their pockets fat.
Who was in Bentonville first, Walmart or Mom and Pop? If Walmart drove them out it has taken them over 30 years to do it. I personally get so sick of all the Walmart bashing I could puke. It might make sense to some to go to the hardware store and cover the overhead for the store operations in the price you pay, and then go buy the kids shoes, a new toaster oven and groceries and do the same thing at each stop but I can't afford that. I will stick to being able to buy all the items at a single stop and only cover overhead once thank you very much.

 

[magooo2]

in fact wal mart is one of the only fortune 500 corps to give part time employees health care.
The key word in this is give....The ability to "afford" and the ability to "OFFER" are on different sides of the spectrum.
Lets not even get on the subject of unionization in any walmart store. The fact that they have classes in how to spot unions and union sympathizers tells me despite the fact that even tho it is in the law of this land not to 'infringe on the right of an indivivual the right to form or organize without reprisal' walmart will to see to there dieing day that anyone with a thought like this will be disposed of. Can you talk about this ,or is this also in your confidentialty agreement.

 

[nw2sltfsh]

I like most people may not agree with the inner workings and motive of walmart, but feel that regardless of what Fortune 500 company you talk about all the same facts apply. But sadly I have been at Walmart in the past month - in fact several times
I am not trashy, nor am I going on welfare week as stated in a post. So I am jsut curious ... How many people have actually been in Walmart and shopped within the last month?

 

[moraym]

Originally posted by bergamer
But if you knew how wal mart really worked, you would support it!
No, if you knew how it treated its employees you would never support it.
Ask a walmart employee about "time theft". And how going to the bathroom unless you're on your specified break, talking to other employees, and calling your sick son is "time theft". It's stealing time from the precious company, and is grounds to have you fired.
Ask the walmart employee about "casual friday" where they have the option of wearing jeans to work. But have to actually pay money for the privilege. Wow, what a deal.
Walmart's bulls#$t mantra about how it's about the people, and how much they care, is just propaganda. They treat their employees worse than almost any other company I have researched, and that's just the recorded abuses. There are several other stories running around as well.
tyenee, if your wife is fortunate enough to work for a decent human being and a decent management staff, then she's one of the few lucky employees not stuck in the typical walmart management scheme.
But overall, walmart's exploitation of their workers is the saddest thing of all. Even more pathetic than their exploitation and negotiation ethics (or lack of) when dealing with suppliers.

 

[moraym]

Originally posted by NW2SLTFSH
I like most people may not agree with the inner workings and motive of walmart, but feel that regardless of what Fortune 500 company you talk about all the same facts apply.
You should try to find a copy of this month's Fortune magazine. It lists the top 100 companies to work for, and you will find MOST belong to the Fortune 500, Global 1000, or America 100 lists. Many of those same companies are also on Working Mothers Top 100 companies for working mothers to work for.
I am fortunate enough to work for a company in the top 25 of Fortunes Best Companies to Work For list, and has been on that list for all 7 years of the lists' existence. So I have seen several examples, and there are many more out there, of a company able to balance billions in revenue with treating employees right. 'Efficieny and profit' and 'the ethical treatment of employees' are not mutually exclusive concepts.

 

[pwnag3!!]

Originally posted by NW2SLTFSH
I am not trashy, nor am I going on welfare week as stated in a post. So I am jsut curious ... How many people have actually been in Walmart and shopped within the last month?

I was in there to buy most of my moving out stuff just a few weeks... walmart has some good prices on kitchen stuff.

 

[dvs]

Originally posted by bergamer
O but thats right most are just PART -TIME and they wont afford part time employees health care benefits.
this is an untrue statement!
in fact wal mart is one of the only fortune 500 corps to give part time employees health care.
I wish I could say more about wal mart, but I cant due to confidentiality.
But if you knew how wal mart really worked, you would support it!
By the way, I would not be caught dead in a wal mart, the people are so damn trashy.
I shop there sometimes. Does that make me trashy?

 

[hagfish]

DVS, no that doesn't make you trashy. If you lived in my city you wouldn't have another worthwhile option to shop at that was close.
As for Wal-mart putting mom & pop stores out of business, what do you think Target and K-mart do? Or Home Depot or Lowes. Or Shnucks, or a hundred other companies. It's the modern marketplace. These companies can get more things to us at a cheaper price. How many of you really want mom & pop stores to be the more dominant type of business these days? Do some of you actually prefer to drive from store to store and spend much more on your products and much longer getting it done than you would at any of these other stores?
Employees not liking it there? Well, most of the jobs there are part time and or near minimum wage just like many other stores of various types, fast food places, and restaraunts. It's not easy to find ideal working conditions in any such place when you're on the bottom rung. Those kinds of places are clock nazi's because that is the easiest place to cut costs. As for casual friday. Who cares? It's not like they're wearing suits to work in the first place. They look pretty casual to me as they are.

 

[tyenee]

Well said, Hagfish. This is Tyenee's wife and I just wanted to add a couple of things.
First, I never wanted to work at Wal-Mart because of these same things that have been mentioned in this thread. It was on the bottom of my list and I only applied there because it was taking too long to get hired on anywhere. Since working there I have been pleasantly surprised. As compared to other places that I have worked, they treat their employees very well.
I get a lot more benefits that I did at most other places. I was hired on full-time, that was a first. I am used to working at places that will only hire part-time associates in order to avoid giving benefits. Every associate in my department is a full-time employee. As for the actual hours, they have never been below 38.
Wal-Mart does not discriminate against people when hiring. I know all businesses say this, but so many have this "image" they want to project and thus will only hire thin, attractive people. Wal-mart will hire an overweight person just as well as a thin. They have positions that are designed for people who need special accomodations. And, they encourage their employees to work up the ladder. Most of those executives you spoke of that make tons of money each year started out as low-class people who never dreamed they could achieve so much. How wonderful to have an opportunity to improve your way of life when other avenues are closed to you.
Lastly, one dollar you have to donate on Fridays in order to wear blue jeans is directly donated to the Children's Miracle Network, which Wal-Mart raises millions of dollars for each year, not counting the many other charities they support. Most recently, they donated $1million dollars to the Tsunami Relief.
Now, if that still seems like oppression, I want you to be comforted in knowing that we can wear jeans every single day, they just can't be blue. We can even wear capris and shorts.
Oh yah, time theft...Any place I have ever worked gives x amount of breaks for x amount of time. Associates who abuse that are subject to termination if they continue that behavior...everywhere. When you are at work, you are paid to work, not talk on the phone. That is pretty universal.
I hope I am not sounding rude, but Wal-Mart is a step above the rest in the way they treat their employees and I hate to see rumors turn into the image everyone believes to be truth.
-Kabeka

 

[moraym]

Originally posted by hagfish
Employees not liking it there? Well, most of the jobs there are part time and or near minimum wage just like many other stores of various types, fast food places, and restaraunts. It's not easy to find ideal working conditions in any such place when you're on the bottom rung. Those kinds of places are clock nazi's because that is the easiest place to cut costs. As for casual friday. Who cares? It's not like they're wearing suits to work in the first place. They look pretty casual to me as they are.
There's a difference between being clock nazis and mistreating employees. Many companies are clock nazis, having to charge every half hour of time to a client code, and have to be a certain % billable. That's different than actually reprimanding and firing employees for going to the bathroom other than a specified break period, writing employees up for carrying on a conversation w/ a coworker while folding clothes, or firing a mother who takes a few minutes to call her sick son to make sure he doesn't need her. Those item are common employee rights. There's an obvious line that can be drawn between being a clock nazi and not letting an employee use the bathroom. And we know which side of that line Walmart falls on.
There's also a clear difference between not liking your job, and being mistreated at your job. You're right, many of these people are on the low rung, and most people don't like their job, but that doesn't mean they have the financial stability to just up and find another job.
I never once said anything about caring if they like it there or not. It's not a matter of them liking their jobs or not. It's a matter of exploiting employees because you know most are on the bottom rung, and don't have an option or mechanism to combat their treatment.

 

[moraym]

tynenee's wife, sounds like you may work in a decent walmart, and i'm not saying they don't exist. It greatly depends on the management team I'm sure, as does any corporation that owns so many stores. Congrats on your job, sure you're happy, but that doesn't change my findings on the internal workings.
But the overall theory and management style Walmart employees is severely damaging. Walmart aggressively seeks to keep wages low, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if they strive to keep prices low. But they do cross the line. There are currently 40 lawsuits in the state of Virginia alone against Walmart for failure to pay overtime, and failure to pay properly based on company documents that guaranteed employees otherwise, breaking contracts established. There are over 30 lawsuits here alone in which WM has forced out older employees or pregnant mothers to bring in younger and cheaper employees. WM is settling every one of them to avoid the PR blitz. And the most shocking statistic is that 2/3 of WM workers can’t afford to participate in the company health insurance plan, which costs about 20% of a worker’s paycheck (based on Apr 2004 statistics, straight from WM Corporate themselves, and Brownstein's analysis. Tyenee's wife, your actual % may differ depending on wage/status/plan type, this avg derived from sub-manager Q2 Report statistics). Since 1993 WM has increased the premium cost for its workers by 200%, well above the rise in cost of health insurance.
So maybe you got lucky with a decent WM. But that doesn't change the overall tactics WM uses, tactics that I'm sure you won't be finding on their corporate career website, a true comedy of wording. I spent too many years, from business through MBA, learning the ways WM operated. I even shadowed there for several analyses. I've interviewed countless WM employees and managers. But don't take my word for it, just search Google for the word "ethics and walmart" or something similar, and just read the credible University and professional organization sources.
I'm not a 'mom-and-pop store advocate' or against Walmartization, I actually set out in my research on the side of WM. I originally undertook my research project to prove it wasn't as bad as th undercover account of working at WM from the book 'Nickel and Dimed', b/c I disagreed with many of Barbara's comments in the book. Unfortunately after the long-term project ended, I could only manage to prove some WM's were better than the account in the book, but the overall trend proved her literature account more accurate than my hopes.

 

[magooo2]

Thanx MorayM
Very well said ...Now i dont have to off on another tangent.
It doesnt make anybody a bad person to shop there, I just choose not too.
In regards to the time Nazi's.... ask some of the dept heads how many times they are "punched out" and still working to meet the department quota. Employee exploitation runs rampant in these stores , its a shame the employees feal they have no recourse. In this case with walmarts billions tho they prob don't.