Low standards – always
The nation’s number-one retailer and employer went on an offensive against its critics last month, with its CEO appearing on numerous talk shows to promote the launch of a new Web site – walmartfacts.com.
Some of the “facts,” though, are incomplete. They say their “average wage” is $10 an hour, but that’s skewed by including higher-paid executives and management. Another figure citing the number of full-time workers neglects to mention that “full time” at Wal-Mart is considered 34 hours a week.
Historically, unions have been the ones to represent workers’ interests through collective bargaining, but no such negotiation is possible at a company that has eliminated jobs and closed down entire stores to prevent workers from joining up.
With questions over outsourcing, female discrimination, child labor laws, and illegal immigrant workers, it seems that the cost of pursuing a promise of “always low prices” may be a little bit high.