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June 18,
2003
| Wal-Mart
Ordered to Recognize Union; Workers Win Historic Bargaining Order; Company
Ordered to Turn Over Information to Union
Workers look to unionize when conditions are so poor that there is no choice. "Wal-Mart is facing dozens of state and federal lawsuits in 30 states, in which employees say the retail giant saves money by pressuring employees to work off-the-clock." - abcNews.com |
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Local business owners have a vested
interest in treating their employees well. They live in the same
community as their employees. We know of no Liverpool company that
pressures its employees to work off the clock.
| Wal-Mart seeks to reshape the
competitive structure of retailing to suit its ends. Its business model
is to prey upon small communities, dislodging economic activity from a
variety of traditional venues (often locally-owned firms) and concentrating
it under one roof, where it can be serviced with fewer jobs overall. Because
of its global nature, Wal-Mart stands apart from the local economy, relying
on comparatively few local suppliers. The natural result is the decline
of Main Street, reduction of overall employment opportunity, the concentration
of wealth in an out-of-state enterprise, and fewer benefits to the local
economy.
Wal-Mart's standard response is that consumers like their low prices. The brilliance of this strategy is that by ravaging the landscape of small business and playing hardball with employees who want to unionize (the company would rather shut down an operation than have to negotiate wages and working conditions), it creates more Wal-Mart shoppers — people who can afford only the low-end of consumer offerings. Wal-Mart's
dominance exacts a growing price
|
Ancillary
costs offset Wal-Mart tax windfall
In Port Richey, Florida,
"...The expected financial windfall (of a Wal-Mart SuperCenter) hasn't
materialized. Wal-Mart pays $75,000 in city property taxes, or the approximate
equivalent of the salary and benefits for two police officers. ... The
(police) department blew its $22,180 overtime budget by $50,000 five months
before the end of the fiscal year" due to increases in demands made on
the police.