Filthy Wal-Mart

[mrhnau]

If this was K-Mart, Cosco, BJ's, anything else... you would not find those pictures posted. You find a store manager that is bad, or when they are about to clean merchandise off the shelves, or after an accident, of course you are going to find mess. Personally, I know stores like that in my area. I simply stop going. There is a Walmart close to me, but when I need to go (which is not that frequent) I'll drive an extra 10 miles to go to a nice one.

It's just Americans issue with "Big" stuff... its either "Big oil", "Big pharma", "Big whatever". Exactly how many people are employed by these "Big" companies? How many people in small companies interact with these "Big" companies and bring home a paycheck from them? How would our country be doing w/out these "Big" industries?

My thing, just leave Walmart alone. Don't want to shop there? Fine. Boycott if you like. Let other people show/work there if they want. Free enterprise my friend. Market economy. Hats off to the Walton family for doing so well. People protesting Walmart will find someone else if Walmart disappears. Always have a bone to pick about something. Never happy...

 

[ArmorOfGod]

Costco. Costco. Costco.

That is all ye need to know....

I live in South Carolina, and there are only two Costco's in the state. One is in Charleston and one in Myrtle Beach. Both are by the ocean coast, so 2 stores in a whole state doesn't work for me.

AoG

 

[ArmorOfGod]

MallWart has contributed more to the destruction of American industry, declining standards of living, loss of local small business and deterioration of labor standards than any other single entity in the past twenty years. Un-**** 'em. ****ing is too good for 'em.

Completely 100% true.
I worked at one for a few years right after high school and I remember the store manager coming in showing us a newspaper article showing that David Glass (then head of Wal-Mart) was the richest CEO in the US. Yes, he was showing that to a break room full of single mothers and men, all of which were being paid below poverty level and were on Medicaid/Food Stamps. All of which could not afford to get the expensive health insurance because we were being paid minimum wage at around 25 hours per week.

I also remember in about 1994 the speakers of Wal-Mart advertising a song/cd by a county star. The song was about a big mega store moving into town and shutting down all of the little mom and pop stores. They played that song several times a day. Ah, the irony.

AoG

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

While I do not condone treating employee's unfairly or taking advantage of them in any way I have actually observed some positives from having a WalMart in our small town. One of these is that the local retail, hardware stores have become more competitive and here is the big plus many of them are giving some of the best customer service that I have ever seen. Take for instance when I bought a lawn mower last summer. I did not have my truck with me so the local hardware store where I bought it delivered it right to my house at the time of purchase.

They really stepped up and guess what they earned repeat business from me even if their products are a little more expensive.

I also like Costco but unfortunately we do not have one closer than an hour away.

 

[Lisa]

I love me Walmart. I even worked for them for a while. They treated me well, I enjoyed the customers and the people that I worked with. I had a great management team and I can honestly say our Walmart never was allowed to be dirty. However, that being said the Walmarts in Winnipeg don't have fresh fruit and veggies in them.

Costco is great too. Just, sometimes, I don't need 12 litres of mayonaise

 

[JBrainard]

I tend to feel it must be one of the signs of the apocalypse or at the very least I agree with ArmorOfGod it is "The End of Western Civilization"

"It's funny 'cuz it's true."
I see it more as capitalism at it's worst. Well, actually, Mcdonalds is worse but that's off topic...

People protesting Walmart will find someone else if Walmart disappears. Always have a bone to pick about something. Never happy...

I dunno, Walmart is the only store I've ever boycotted.

 

[Nobody]

What do you expect at a place that underpays you! The amount of product that goes through a Wal-Mart is huge. Per-person the amount of pallets that i was expected to stock per shift an this was at the overnight grocery position was three pallets a night plus help other people do there area an was expected to have that done in 2 hours the stocking so the cleaning the shelf happens in every six months. I finally quite there do to how they treated people an what was expected continued to increase per time unit. The pallet are usually over 3000 pounds.

I agree the way Wal-Mart treats people an than say we can not pay you more than 6usd an hour when they make around 12 million at anyone store in the USA. A staggering total per store adds to like 56 billion for the Wal-Mart as a whole at least when i worked for them now it is probably more.

PS that is a nice avatar Bob the one with the pyramid, it has my vote if you hold one of those who has the best avatar was going to vote for someone else but they changed there's.

 

[crushing]

What do you expect at a place that underpays you!

I've worked at a grocery store for minimum wage and no benefits before. I always worked hard and never considered my low pay to be a reason to not do my job or as an excuse to become a bad employee.

 

[CoryKS]

I've worked at a grocery store for minimum wage and no benefits before. I always worked hard and never considered my low pay to be a reason to not do my job or as an excuse to become a bad employee.

Second that. Back in '88, as an unskilled new high school graduate, I worked at Meijer for like $3.65. Plus I had to pay $40 out of my first two paychecks to join the crummy union *spit*. Someone asked where anything was, we took them to it whether it was our dept. or not. None of this pointing crap. And if we were out of shelf stock, we had to go to the back and look through the rest of the stuff to see if we had any more. Any more, it's (everyone together now) "If you don't see it on the shelf, we're probably out."

 

[Carol]

I third that.

Then again...maybe that's a reason why neither of us are working for minimum wage anymore

 

[Nobody]

See now i am not saying i did not work hard cause i was one of the fastest on shift an why some people don't cleanup is something i can not answer as far as me and helping you find something if it was out of stock i would go check in the back but i will not carry you to were something is in the store an get it for you, you have to have the nut to get it your dam self an i will admit i just could careless about how you feel about it cause i am not your ******. I had one person cure me of that he asked for something that had so much sugar an i was standing right next to it he was trying for the pity thing an i just at that point never again went out of my way for anyone, cause the guy started calling me names. I also don't believe that you should ever spend anytime talking between you an other employees. Which i don't ever.



I don't posses a sense of care for other's is why even after thirty years in martial arts i don't teach, cause i don't care if you don't get it, it's not my problem. You have to want something enough to do it yourself.

 

[Mark L]

The problem with that classic "vote with your feet" capitalist screed is that it runs into problems in the real world.

First, WalMart has market power. Their presence kills off the competition, particularly small and locally owned businesses. If they are in your area the alternatives become few, marginalized and often completely non-existent.

Second, they tend to negotiate (or demand) and get huge public subsidies in the form of tax breaks, "regulatory relief", not having to pay for the costs of installing and maintaining public infrastructure and so on. Reports from a couple of years ago put those subsidies and resulting artificially lower prices at the tens of billions nationally.

Third, they use their economic power to get local laws and ordinances passed which are favorable to them and their business models in effect using the power of government as a way of lowering their costs.

Fourth, they have a pattern of lowering prices temporarily - until the competition has been driven out of business.

Fifth, their labor practices make it impossible for workers to negotiate for decent pay and conditions. They are famous for discrimmination on the basis of sex and age, knowingly hiring illegal aliens and firing anyone who even suggests unionization let alone tries to organize one. They also lower their labor costs artificially by squeezing out benefits such as health care in ways that somewhat smaller competitors can not do. They have the economic and political power to do so. There was a bit of a scandal a couple years back where their national policy on health care for workers was revealed. Except for a chosen few the procedure was for the managers to have a list of local charities and social service agencies. In other words, they sloughed the cost of health, dental and accident insurance off onto the taxpayers and the generous.

They really are that evil.

Ok, they do all that. If you don't think voting with your feet works, how would you propose Wal-Mart be brought in line with your version of acceptable business practices? If the answer involves the government, I'll respectfully decline. I certainly don't want some federal or state bureaucracy voting for me. As has been pointed out before, Communism isn't the answer.

I'll continue to vote with my feet on this and other issues. Maybe the results aren't as dramatic or even noticed (GM screwed me in 1990 on a vehicle defect, I've personally talked a half a dozen friends and relatives out of GM purchases in the past 17 years, and I still relate my tail to anyone in the new vehicle market,) but it makes me feel better and appeals to my ideological stance.

 

[tellner]

Start by rescinding their special tax goodies, making them obey the law, and otherwise having to follow the same rules as other businesses. That would get rid of some of their artificial advantages.

 

[Nobody]

The fact they set the price that they will buy product from some company is what gets me still.

I read that valasic(sp?) was forced to sale there pickle at the price that Wal-Mart told them to sale at.

So, i would agree that they ned to be put under the same rules as everybody else.

 

[Mark L]

Start by rescinding their special tax goodies, making them obey the law, and otherwise having to follow the same rules as other businesses. That would get rid of some of their artificial advantages.

Absolutely! Everybody should play by the same rules. So, is your problem with Wal-Mart or the agencies that are letting them get away with the above?

I'm going to disengage now, since I'm starting to feel like I'm defending a company that I don't much care for. My intent was to defend the notion of free market economy.

Good discussion ...

 

[Sukerkin]

I know that at least some of the posters here know that I used to be an Economist (for my sins) in a past life, so I hope that that small fact will add a little extra weight to what are sure to be unpopular words with a few.

Unregulated, corporate, capitalism is not in the best interests of anyone but the shareholders of the corporation.

In the short term, it may appear to even the most sceptical that Big Business does well for itself but also helps everyone else in an incidental fashion. However, that is only true until effective competition has been eliminated. Then, when the customer base can no longer vote with their feet (because there's no where else to go) the exploitation gets even worse. The same result can happen earlier if a corporation gets so powerful that it can bend the legislature to its will.

Wal-Mart is probably the most easily pointed to, visible, example of what happens if what amounts to a practical monopoly is permitted to evolve ... but it is not the only example.

We have a similar 'viral' retailer eating the heart out of the household grocery and goods trade over here in Britain ... it's called Tesco. About the only good thing it does is keep Wal-Mart out (mostly) .

We have anti-monopolistic laws that have been in place for quite some time but their scope and power has slowly been eroded by the growing power of those very organisations the laws were created to control.

At present, I don't see an effective way out of the cycle as those of us who can afford to support those smaller retailers we'd like to see remain in business are getting fewer (due to the fact that the minimum-wage, service industry, environment has the developed world on a gentle slope down to the bottom).

We do our 'bit' by not shopping at Tesco's unless we have no other choice and actively searching out those that sell locally grown produce. We pay a premium for that but we can afford it (for now) as I don't work for Ronnie Macs ... yet :scared:. Many don't have that luxury and so feed the ravening maw of the Beast, ironically making it grow.

To round up, the best natural analogy for the end result of this particular phenomenon is the locust swarm. It gathers, grows and consumes, swelling ever larger and more potent until there is nothing left for it to feed on. Then it disappears. Unfortunately, by the time that happens what is left behind is something of a wasteland.

So, for crying out loud, don't act as apologists for the likes of Wal-mart and, if you are able, don't support the very institution that is seeking to remove your ability to excercise that most vital of economic powers ... choice.

Ex-professional rant over ... slinks off back to keeping the National Grid functioning and dreaming of the time when I used to enjoy working for a living as a curator of ceramics.

 

[Blotan Hunka]

Theres nothing being sold at WallMart (here at least) that I couldnt buy for close to the same price elsewhere. As I said, if I want a middle quality product like a cheap ladder or some paint/auto supply/cheap tools, they have em. When I want something of better quality and dont mind spending a little more for it, theres plenty of other stores around. As for WallMart I rarely go there. The whole Idea that WallMart is the ONLY place to shop just doesnt hold true in my circumstance. I have however been to some rural/isolated spots in the US where the WallMart is "IT". But they love those stores because the small "mom and pop" stores didnt carry what they wanted. And the next closest place to shop was hours away by road.

 

[crushing]

The fact they set the price that they will buy product from some company is what gets me still.

I read that valasic(sp?) was forced to sale there pickle at the price that Wal-Mart told them to sale at.

So, i would agree that they ned to be put under the same rules as everybody else.

Another example: WalMart owns a significant portion of the retail fishing market and mostly why Zebco and other once 'All American' brand products are no longer made in the USA.

Here is my take on a discussion between two companies a few years ago:

Walmart says, "If you want access to the US retail fishing market you will sell us your Zebco products at these prices. We other manufacturers lined up that want into this market that are willing to meet these demands."

Zebco replies, "We can't meet those demands without moving our manufacturing to China and replacing the metal parts with plastic ones. You got us by the 'nads, because to not move our manufacturing and significantly lower our costs to stay in your stores, we go out of business."

Oops, I continued a hijaak of the thread and got away from why that single store was so filthy. Sorry mods! :*

 

[bluemtn]

I pretty much avoid Wal- Mart at all costs... I'l go to the mall for clothing/ nice smelling bath stuff (like Bath and Body Works), shoe's (have to buy them there for bad feet), and grocery? There are a lot of other choices... Basically, it's because of where I live- a lot of the employees don't know the meaning of good customer service, managers are even worse, there is no mall in my county, so the store is always busy. Used to be I'd wind up going there for electronics, but now there's going to be a GameStop coming in close by- where you can buy games and movies, and exchange your old one's in...

It also doesn't help the fact that I used to work at the Wal- Mart... It's bad when customers complain to you about how YOU (asoc.) are treated, how badly run the place is, and when you go to a completely different grocery store, they tell you that since so many of you are at this new place, that they're shopping here from now on....

I'm quite certain that Wal- Mart's troubles aren't nationwide, however there are a number of stores that really are just bad. I feel that the company has over- expanded, and basically each store in an area is divided up in devisions and managed from there.

 

[ArmorOfGod]

Another example: WalMart owns a significant portion of the retail fishing market and mostly why Zebco and other once 'All American' brand products are no longer made in the USA.

Along that line of conversation, the toy department is huge (which is why Toys R Us is about to sell off many of its stores), and I challenge anyone to go to that very large toy area and find 1 product made in the USA.
Good luck with that.

AoG