Why is Wal-Mart bad?

[Neoma]

Not that i don't know why...
But can you all pile up the facts on wal-mart here?
Be handy.

[FloridaPat]

1. They discriminate against women and older people.

[Worst Username Ever]

2. They have closed down any store that has unioinized

Unless there is an exception I don't know about

[politicaholic]

3. Their growth plan deliberately targets American small business/towns.

[EVDebs]

4. Hypocrisy: Used to be WalMart "made American", now anything but

The whole 'globalization' and worldwide supply chains are all out to weaken US labor, weaken the dollar, weaken environmental standards...just more "Race to the bottom" policies.

[Chovexani]

5. Good link

Walmart Factchecker:

http://factchecker.purpleocean.org/

They have a downloadable PDF that breaks down the lies in one of those PR ads Wally World put out.

[Cyrano]

6. The destruction of small town businesses, therefore the destruction of

small towns. No union representation. Overtime with no pay. No benefits such as health care. A corporate giant that eats up the lives of the middle and lower class. A BushCo example of what they want this country to be. And so much more that there's just not enough space on ANY website to enumerate.

Oh, and by the way, every time you pay less for something, someone, someplace in the third world it getting paid three cents an hour.

If you give a shit about any of this, shop elsewhere. The money you save today will destroy the value of any money you may have tomorrow.

[Toucano]

7. The exercise undue influence over WHAT is produced.

If Wal Mart says they won't sell pink trash bags, the manufacturer stops making pink trash bags.

Not that I'm a big pink trash bags fan, but it's just an example.

That's too much power.

[Geo55]

17. In depth look,

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html

[Toucano]

25. Excellent link

I remember when that story came out. I remember thinking Vlasic has played with fire and gotten burned. But fire never had a bright yellow smiling face before.

[saltpoint]

8. WalMart is malevolent, not just bad. Every WalMart --

-- I've ever seen is on the FAR outskirts of a city, which means that small business like hardware shops, etc. in towns are bled to death slowly until they go out of business, while all the red state folks burn up gas to get out to WalMart.

Then WalMart, after sucking the life out of the center of American downtowns, hoists the American flag on its goddam property and wraps itself in a red-white-and-blue advertising campaign.

They are the richest company in the WORLD and they underpay their employees.


What a bunch of shitflies.

[Worst Username Ever]

9. They push out local small businesses and also

destroy non-local businesses. If a business gets a contract with Wall-mart, it will make their career... for awhile. Wall-mart understand that they can make or break any business with their volume... once they have been buying from a carrier for awhile, they will then demand that the prices be reduced, over and over, until profitability is destroyed. The carrier has no choice but to go along with the price cuts, or else lose all that business, and basically be run into the ground. Wall-mart does not care, there is always another company eager for the contract, and Wall-mart will do the same thing.

Also, the fact that the create jobs in communities is a MYTH. There is simply a job SHIFT, the small pharmacies and drug stores are run into the ground, and the employees then go to Wall-mart to work. The profits from the small businesses, that used to be pumped into the local economy, are now being shipped out of state to Wall-mart. Disastrous.

[G_j]

10. What Studies Show about Wal-Mart and Big-Box Retail

What Studies Show about Wal-Mart and Big-Box Retail
We recently updated and expanded our list of studies that examine such questions as: Does Wal-Mart create jobs? Do big-box stores boost the tax base? Do independent stores benefit the local economy more than chains? Organized by category, with summaries and links.

http://www.newrules.org/retail/econimpact.html
============================
http://www.alternet.org/story/21658 /

Wal-Mart's Culture of Crime and Greed

By Jonathan Tasini, TomPaine.com. Posted April 4, 2005.


Manipulation, greed and wrongdoing in the name of profit are as much a part of the Wal-Mart business model as are those low, low prices.
The Beast of Bentonville (better known as Wal-Mart) is grappling with a spate of management dismissals and investigations over the past few months that appear rooted in internal petty thievery. But rather than a few bad apples being rooted out, it's clear that crime, greed, wrongdoing, malfeasance and cronyism are deeply embedded in the Wal-Mart business model. Indeed, Wal-Mart could not survive without manipulating the system and breaking the law.

In case you didn't catch it, Thomas Coughlin--a former vice chair of the company and at one time a potential future CEO candidate--was forced to resign from the board because of, as the British Financial Times reported on its front page, an "alleged unauthorized use of corporate-owned gift cards and personal reimbursements that appear to have been obtained from the company through the reporting of false information on third-party invoices and company expense reports. The amount in controversy is estimated to be in the range of $100,000 to $500,000." Translation: the guy padded his expense accounts.

In the current investigation, three other employees, including a company officer, were also dismissed. And back in December, three other executives and four employees were fired for violating "unspecified" company rules. I would venture to guess that those rules had nothing to do, for example, with treating workers badly (that kind of conduct actually calls for a promotion at the Beast of Bentonville, or at least a one-time visit to the company's executive washroom) but with other financial wrongdoing.

But why should this be surprising? The culture of Wal-Mart encourages and condones misbehavior among its leaders every day. Let me tick off just the highlights--or lowlights, as the case may be.

..more..
================
The Hometown Advantage (updated articles and news)
http://www.newrules.org/retail/index.php

[kaitykaity]

11. It kills small towns.

For every 2 jobs Walmart brings it, it kills 3 in the
local community. Small down downtowns become ghost
towns because the local merchants can't compete with the
low prices at Walmart.

But because the low wages, Walmart employees use social
services -- Medicaid for the kids, emergency services because
Walmart does not provide health insurance, food stamps.

Just a primer.

http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0626-06.htm

[MazeRat7]

12. They tend to drive locally owned businesses out of business (n/t)

[johnnyDoc]

13. Too many made in communist china goods

Although their starting pay was at least $2/hour more than the minimum wage I got at the union run grocery store when I was in college

[Amy6627]

14. Local businesses can not compete with them. They get HUGE

government subsidies, not to mention CORPORATE WELFARE, that companies that are not publicly traded DO NOT qualify for (with very few exceptions). Wouldn't it be nice to receive a few MILLION dollars to open a business? Check out AMIBA.net, great resource! Here is an example of a community standing up to Wal Mart:
http://www.amiba.net/pressroom/wal_mart_faces_zoning_hurdles_7.20.04.html

[TwentyFive]

15. Who gets rich off of Walmart? Who suffers at the hands of Walmart?

All the Walton children are on the Forbes400 richest people in America. They are all Billionaires.

I don't have a problem with this. Getting rich is a good thing. But, look at who have they harmed in order to do this:

1. Local Businesses. Locally owned business have been run into bankruptcy...killing off good career jobs & local owners who supported their communities.
2. Walmart employees. They make an average of $10/hr, and are often the #1 receivers of state welfare.
3. US manufacturers. Walmart is the #1 importer of Chinese goods. When they drove local businesses into bankruptcy, manufacturers followed suit.
4. Local communities. Walmart often gets long term tax abatements from the city/town they move into. They pit towns against each other. However, once they are there, they cost money in extra police, fire, and wider roads required to accomodate the extra traffic.

The good thing about Walmart? Products cost less at Walmart than at your locally owned store...but only because they were made in China with slave labor, and Walmart employees are subsidized by your state welfare system.

Gas costs us more, because China is now competing to buy more oil on the world market. Your local taxes will go up, to help pay for the Walmart tax abatement. You state/federal taxes go up to make up for the lost tax revenue from local business and manufacturing...plus added welfare cost.

But, hey, at least we get to buy more trinkets at cheaper prices.

[napi21]

16. I can give you the list of reasons why I will never shop there.

They abuse their power against their low level employees solely for GREED.

They constantly insist on lower prices from their suppliers, (on every new Purchase Order)and don't care if that supplier goes out of business if they comply. They try to put each supplier in the position of having so much raw material inventory, they must have a supplier the size of WM to pay for it, and then squeeze them out of every penny of profit. They put them out of business, then go on to the next guy.

They operate with disreguard for our laws, calculating that the penalties cost less than the profit those actions provide.

Because they squeeze their suppliers so much, the merchandise they carry is 98% junk!

Their ultimate goal is to be the World's only retailer!


Boy, after reading what I just said here, that WM philosophy soulds frighteningly similar to Shrub's ideal, doesn't it?

[mcscajun]

18. Here's another great link on Wal-Mart issues.

http://www.ufcw.org/press_room/fact_sheets_and_backgrounder/index.cfm

[Radical Activist]

19. Every time you shop at Walmart you send more American jobs to China.

They are the biggest importer of Chinese-made goods and have pushed a lot of manufacturers to make their products there. Dirty communists!

[Baclava]

20. "I never shop there...I just go to Walmart to pick up chicks"

(picture needed)

[pacalo]

27. You might want to try another candy store...

The Wal-Mart/Sam's shoppers I've seen look like this...

[Akoto]

21. They destroy local businesses.

Fair competition is one thing. That's existed for as long as there's been merchants. Wal-Mart is a completely different story, though. They do everything they can to bully their way into a particular area, even against the objections of its citizens and politicians. Once they take root, they bury nearby small businesses with their financial power, not fair competition.

[B Calm]

22. Anti Labor Anti Union

[Lone_Wolf]

23. They extract the wealth right out of any community they are in...

n/t

[Amy6627]

24. I just got this

http://www.taxpayer.net/TCS/wastebasket/transportation/2005-4-11WalMartWelfare.htm

[libertypirate]

26. Would you give Walmart free money?

Your states did to the tune of 1 billion dollars for their infrastructure growth. That means that on top of their 8 billion in profit the American tax payer ever so willing to take it in the rear for corporate america threw in an extra billion.

This should be considered what it is a scaming of the American tax payer.

http://spinwatch.server101.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=83

Good Jobs First, a research group monitoring state and local job subsidies, found 244 cases in which Wal-Mart retail stores or the distribution centers that service them have received state or local economic development subsidies. The subsidies amounted to just over $1 billion according to the report released Sunday.

The study, the first comprehensive national examination of subsidies received by the giant retailer, found more than 240 cases in which the construction of new Wal-Mart facilities was assisted by public resources. In addition to 160 retail outlets, the study found subsidies at 84 of Wal-Mart's distribution centers, representing more than 90 percent of the network of huge warehouses the company has built to facilitate its rapid expansion.

[Balbus]

29. Going to vote in Mesa, AZ

whether to give Walmart 37 million in order to build ANOTHER store in town.

[solinvictus]

28. Price fixing and racketeering

They use both of these tactics on suppliers. Additionally, Wal Mart will move into an area and sell products at a loss to run competitors out of business. Then, once the competition is gone, they raise prices above normal retail.