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Mexico's Supreme Court slams Walmart's labor practices
" Mexico's Supreme Court compared the practices of US retail giant Walmart in Mexico to employer-worker relations during the dictatorship of former president Porfirio Diaz." " Mexico's Supreme Court compared the practices of US retail giant Walmart in Mexico to employer-worker relations during the... more
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Unions against Wal-Mart for forced dem. bashing meetings
The US Federal Election Commission (FEC) is being urged to investigate whether Wal-Mart broke the law by holding mandatory meetings for employees where Democratic legislative proposals were attacked.
The American Federation of Labour and Congress of Industrial Organisations (AFL-CIO) - which represents over 50 unions - the Change to Win labour group, American Rights at Work - a worker advocacy group - and WakeUpWalMart.com have together filed a complaint with the FEC.
The quartet claim Wal-Mart broke the law by disparaging the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), a law that will almost certainly be enacted if Senator Barack Obama is elected president. The law makes it easier for workers to organise a union, a situation that Wal-Mart vehemently opposes, and which Republicans are also against.
"If an employer can manipulate or intimidate its employees into voting one way or another, it seriously undermines political democracy," Stewart Acuff, a spokesperson for the AFL-CIO, told guardian.co.uk.
It is a violation of federal election law for an employer to try to manipulate its employees' votes. Wal-Mart has denied the allegations and analysis shows that in this election cycle its political action committee has split donations almost evenly between the parties.
Wal-Mart spokesman David Tovar said that if anyone representing the company "gave the impression we were telling associates how to vote, they were wrong and acting without approval".
"We believe that if the FEC looks into this, they will find what we've known all along, that we did nothing wrong," Tovar said in an e-mailed statement to AP.
The EFCA will allow workers to join or form a union as easily as the employer can join the chamber of commerce - simply by signing a card or petition. And when more than 50% of workers have signed up, the union is established. Currently, secret ballots are used.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal has said it has received a recording of a Wal-Mart meeting where the company tells employees that their wages may be reduced to minimum wage for up to three months before a contract is negotiated; that union authorisation cards violate workers' right to privacy by including their social security numbers on them; and that if a small unit within a store voted to unionise, the entire store would be unionised.
Lawyers told the newspaper that those are inaccurate interpretations of US labour laws in general and the EFCA in particular, and could be interpreted as a violation of labour law. The US Federal Election Commission (FEC) is being urged to investigate whether Wal-Mart broke the law by holding mandatory meetings fo... more -
Wal-Mart Union in China, but not USA
US retail giant Wal-Mart, which has drawn criticism over allegations it is union unfriendly, has reportedly seen staff in China start their first union.
The union was the initiative of some 30 Wal-Mart workers in the south-east province of Fujian, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, has 60 stores in China.
In March, the company said it planned to hire an extra 150,000 staff in China over the next five years.
A spokeswoman for Wal-Mart in China said she was unaware about the Fujian union.
Wal-Mart, which started doing business in China in 1996, has previously said that its employees are free to set up unions if they wish and has insisted it conforms with Chinese law.
Wang Zhaoguo, president of All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) - which was established by the ruling Communist Party and claims some 150 million members - has been putting pressure on Wal-Mart.
At the start of July he singled out the firm for failing to establish unions at its stores, while also suggesting it should be compulsory for foreign companies to set up unions for employees.
The Wal-Mart workers were reported to have set up the union in Jinjiang, Quanzhou, in Fujian province.
"One of the major tasks of the ACFTU in 2006 is to push foreign-funded or transnational companies to unionise," Xinhua quoted Xu Deming, the union's vice-president, as saying.
Wal-Mart has attracted criticism in the US and Canada for its perceived anti-union stance, and there have been union pickets outside its North American stores.
Independent trade unions are illegal in China, with all workers belonging to ACFTU.
However, labour analysts say the ACFTU has had a poor record in improving worker rights.
China is a major source of cheap goods for Wal-Mart's US operations, with $18bn of merchandise sourced there in 2004.
But in terms of Chinese outlets it has lagged behind Carrefour of France, which has 78 stores, although there are plans for Wal-Mart China to build 18 to 20 new stores during 2006.
Why haven't people started a Wal-Mart union? I do not even work at Wal-Mart and I want to start an anti-Wal-Mart petition/Wal-Mart Union.
According to the documentary "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices" (2005) it does not seem that Wal-Mart has good standards and is not a good job anywhere.
Are you a Wal-Mart employee? Are you a Sams Club employee?
Do you think a Walmart union will improve their workers job?
Since Walmart claims to provide many jobs to people when they come into a town, could a Walmart union improve the average US working conditions for those without college degrees? (Ones who work in the low wage/store employment) US retail giant Wal-Mart, which has drawn criticism over allegations it is union unfriendly, has reportedly seen staff in China start ... more -
Why are Democrats taking money from Walmart?
Where does a politician, or a political party, draw the line in the willingness to sacrifice principles for a few bucks? When we talk about the need to "change" the political environment and the culture of money and politics, isn't there some place where you can say, "right here, this is the perfect example and we aren't going to let this go on anymore"? I would argue that the place to draw the line is the relationship between the Democratic Party and Wal-Mart. And the time to draw the line is now.
I outline the facts in a moment. But, the premise for the need to draw the line now is this: There may be no corporation in American today that has been a more persistent, regular violator of the law than Wal-Mart. There may be no corporation in America that has been as virulently anti-union as Wal-Mart, firing workers repeatedly for trying to organize. There may be no corporation in America that has attacked the rights of workers and undercut the living standards of Americans more than Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart has at least 80 class-action lawsuitsin 41 states pending against it.
Wal-Mart illegally denied full rest or meal breaks in violation of state wage and hour laws-a violation that may cost the company $2 billion.
Wal-Mart abuses women, and is the defendants in the biggest sex discrimination case in history.
Wal-Mart is a habitual tax-dodger.
Wal-Mart's heirs buy expensive paintings but won't give their workers decent health care.
Wal-Mart sued a disabled women, demanding she give back money she won in a settlement.
Wal-Mart exploits children in Mexico.
Wal-Mart lead a global corporate lobbying campaign to block a very modest improvement in Chinese labor laws-because Wal-Mart's business model depends on exploiting cheap labor, here and abroad.
And that's just a sample. Why would any political leader, who represents him or herself to be a defender of the working person, want to be affiliated with such a company?
The answer is clear: money. The Democratic Party is almost even with the Republican Party in the money it receives from Wal-Mart, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The Center's data, published in an article in today's Wall Street Journal (I'll come back to that article in a moment), shows that 12 years ago, Wal-Mart's PAC gave 98 percent of its money to Republicans. In the current cycle, Democrats have received 48 percent of Wal-Mart's PAC expenditures.
Here is the list just for the 2008 cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. In the House, the list is breath-taking in its scope:
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Politics of change? How can Democrats purport to be the party of the people, when they take money from corporations like Walmart? Where does a politician, or a political party, draw the line in the willingness to sacrifice principles for a few bucks? When we talk ... more -
Walmart Is Hiring Islamic Extremists
Walmart executives were accused today of trying to pressure their workers to vote Republican in the fall. In fact, Walmart is already searching for replacement workers. An ad in today's Huffington Post advertises Walmart jobs and includes photo of an attractive Muslim woman smilings for the camera. Walmart executives were accused today of trying to pressure their workers to vote Republican in the fall. In fact, Walmart is already ... more
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US: Wal-Mart fearful of Democratic win
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the worlds largest corporation, is mobilizing its store managers and department supervisors around the country to warn that if Democrats win power in November, they'll likely change federal law to make it easier for workers to unionize companies - including Wal-Mart.
In recent weeks, thousands of Wal-Mart store managers and department heads have been summoned to mandatory meetings at which the retailer stresses the downside for workers if stores were to be unionized.
According to about a dozen Wal-Mart employees who attended such meetings in seven states, Wal-Mart executives claim that employees at unionized stores would have to pay hefty union dues while getting nothing in return, and may have to go on strike without compensation. Also, unionization could mean fewer jobs as labor costs rise.
The actions by Wal-Mart - the nation's largest private employer - reflect a growing concern among big business that a reinvigorated labor movement could reverse years of declining union membership. That could lead to higher payroll and health costs for companies already being hurt by rising fuel and commodities costs and the tough economic climate.
The Wal-Mart human-resources managers who run the meetings don't specifically tell attendees how to vote in November's election, but make it clear that voting for Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama would be tantamount to inviting unions in, according to Wal-Mart employees who attended gatherings in Maryland, Missouri and other states.
"The meeting leader said, 'I am not telling you how to vote, but if the Democrats win, this bill will pass and you won't have a vote on whether you want a union,'" said a Wal-Mart customer-service supervisor from Missouri. "I am not a stupid person. They were telling me how to vote," she said.
"If anyone representing Wal-Mart gave the impression we were telling associates how to vote, they were wrong and acting without approval," said David Tovar, Wal-Mart spokesman. Mr. Tovar acknowledged that the meetings were taking place for store managers and supervisors nationwide.
Wal-Mart's worries center on a piece of legislation known as the Employee Free Choice Act, which companies say would enable unions to quickly add millions of new members.
Business-backed organizations are also running ads aimed at building opposition to the bill, including the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, which counts several hundred industry associations as members.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has made defeat of the legislation a top priority. In the past six months, it has flown state and local Chamber members to Washington to lobby members of Congress. On Thursday, the Chamber began airing a television ad in Minnesota and plans to run ads in other states as part of a broader campaign.
The bill was crafted by labor as a response to more aggressive opposition by companies to union-organizing activity. The AFL-CIO and individual unions such as the United Food and Commercial Workers have promised to make passage of the new labor law their No. 1 mission after the November election.
The November election could bring that extra support in Congress, as well as the White House if Sen. Obama is elected and Democrats extend their control in the Senate. Sen. Obama co-sponsored the legislation, which also is known as "card check," and has said several times he would sign it into law if elected president. Sen. John McCain, the likely Republican presidential nominee, opposes the Employee Free Choice Act and voted against it last year.
Wal-Mart's labor-relations meetings are led by human-resources managers who received training from Wal-Mart on the implications of the Employee Free Choice Act. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the worlds largest corporation, is mobilizing its store managers and department supervisors around the country t... more -
How Wal-Mart Became the New FDA
The giant retailer, along with CVS and Toys ‘R Us, says it will stop selling baby bottles containing a controversial chemical called bisphenol-A. The California state Senate has voted to prohibit the use of BPA in children’s products. Nalgene, which makes water jugs, is phasing out BPA, too. And powerful Congressmen want BPA removed from cans of infant formula.
The question is, why? The FDA says bisphenol-A is perfectly safe. So do Japanese and European regulators, who tend to be more cautious. Even the government of Canada, which plans to ban the chemical from baby bottles, recently assured its citizens that this was done “as a precautionary measure.”
BPA, you should know, is everywhere. The chemical is used to make polycarbonate, a rigid, clear plastic used in bottles, bike helmets, CDs, DVDs and automobile headlights. It’s also used to make epoxy resins, which are used as coatings in food and drink cans as well as dental sealants. You’re probably carrying around some BPA right now: About 93% of Americans tested by the Centers for Disease Control had the chemical in their urine. About 6 billion pounds of chemical were made last year.
The trouble is, numerous studies of laboratory animals have linked small doses of BPA to breast cancers, prostate cancer, brain abnormalities and reproductive health problems. Other scientists argue that the chemical, which has been widely used since the 1950s, is perfectly safe. The fact is, there’s a good deal of scientific uncertainty about bisphenol-A. That’s not surprising, because we rely on animal studies to predict the effects of chemicals on humans, and extrapolating from mice to you and me isn’t easy. The giant retailer, along with CVS and Toys ‘R Us, says it will stop selling baby bottles containing a controversial chemical called b... more -
Blackwater, Archer Daniels Midland and Walmart Inducted in Corporate Hall of Shame
Today Corporate Accountability International announced the 2008 inductees into the annual Corporate Hall of Shame: military contractor Blackwater, agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and big box retailer Wal-Mart. More than 30, 000 votes were cast online and through the mail.
Inductees have been responsible for the murder of innocent civilians in Iraq, gross labor law violations, and accelerating climate change.
"The voting tells us that people are frustrated with a broad range of corporate abuse," said Leslie Samuelrich, deputy director of Corporate Accountability International. "They are tired of being lied to about corporate greed under the veil of environmentalism and they are tired of seeing their hard-earned dollars subsidizing human rights abuses abroad."
In the weeks before the polls closed:
· Blackwater was raided by federal agents in a firearms probe;
· Wal-Mart was fined $2 billion by the State of Minnesota for cutting worker break time and forcing employees to work off the clock;
· ADM has been called to task by Rainforest Action Network and Greenpeace for helping make Indonesia the third largest emitter of CO2 behind the U.S. and China.
With 28 percent of the vote, Blackwater earned the dubious honor of the year's most abusive corporation. More than 20 percent of the votes went to ADM and 15 percent to Wal-Mart for runner-up. Wal-Mart, the largest corporation in the world, is facing its second consecutive nomination.
Corporate Accountability International will now continue to monitor Blackwater, ADM, and Wal-Mart's activities, exposing abusive practices throughout 2008. In previous years, corporations like Columbia HCA and Waste Management have earned their way out of the Hall by reforming their practices in response to this type of direct pressure.
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We need to keep up the pressure. Today Corporate Accountability International announced the 2008 inductees into the annual Corporate Hall of Shame: military contractor... more -
Wal-Mart faces $2 billion in labor law violations
"A Minnesota judge has ruled that Wal-Mart Stores Inc violated state wage and hour laws, requiring employees to work off the clock, and the discount retailer could now face more than $2 billion in possible fines."
Another example of Big Business breaking the law. I have a feeling Wal-Mart won[t get away with this one, however, I also have a feeling they won't see a drop in profits as a result of these criminal acts "A Minnesota judge has ruled that Wal-Mart Stores Inc violated state wage and hour laws, requiring employees to work off the cloc... more -
Wal-Mart Defender To Direct Obama's Economic Policy
Just days after clinching the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Obama is naming as his economic policy director an economist who has clashed with critics of Wal-Mart by defending the company as a boon to poor Americans.
The appointment of Jason Furman, 37, a former Clinton administration official who is a visiting scholar at New York University, immediately met with skepticism from some who have faulted Wal-Mart for being stingy toward its workforce.
“It’s surprising because this guy seems to feel that Wal-Mart’s low-wage, low-benefit business model is good for America. That’s just flat-out wrong,” the executive director of Wal-Mart Watch, David Nassar, said. “This guy helped to lend credibility to the Wal-Mart business model. That was disappointing then and it’s disappointing now given this position,” said Mr. Nassar, whose group is backed by a board that includes the president of the Service Employees International Union, Andrew Stern. Mr. Nassar quickly added that he was “not critiquing the Obama campaign.”
A New York-based labor organizer and writer, Jonathan Tasini, said he was puzzled by the selection of Mr. Furman. “It’s legitimate to give you pause,” Mr. Tasini, who ran an unsuccessful primary challenge to Senator Clinton in 2006, said. “There have been concerns raised about where Obama’s economic policies will trend,” the writer said.
Mr. Tasini noted that, while Mr. Obama spurned labor groups by voting for a free-trade agreement with Peru, his past suggests he would be an ally of labor. “It’s hard to believe that during his community organizing work in the poorest neighborhoods of his own city he didn’t have something sink into him about income inequality. There’s no way to read anything he has put out there as anything but rejection for the Wal-Mart model,” Mr. Tasini said.
As the company became a pariah in Democratic circles, Mr. Furman stepped out on the issue in 2005 by publishing a 16-page paper titled, “Wal-Mart: A Progressive Success Story.” He argued that the huge cost savings the company has delivered to its customers, who tend to have low incomes, far outweighed any impact the chain may have had on wages.
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First AIPAC and now this? Just days after clinching the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Obama is naming as his economic policy director an economist... more -
AC/DC's new album will only be sold at Wal-Mart
They wont sell their stuff on Itunes, but have no moral qualms about making their fans step through the doors of Wal-Mart? Lucky for me I hate AC/DC They wont sell their stuff on Itunes, but have no moral qualms about making their fans step through the doors of Wal-Mart? Lucky for m... more
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How Wal-Mart keeps prices low, even while prices everywhere rise
With gas, grain, and dairy prices exploding, you'd think the biggest seller of corn flakes and Cocoa Puffs would be getting hit by rising food costs. But Wal-Mart has temporarily rolled back prices on hundreds of food items by as much as 30% this year. How? By pressuring vendors to take costs out of the supply chain...
1. Shrink the goods
2. Cut out the middleman
3. Go locovore
Is this cutthroat capitalism at its worst or an attempt to help consumers deal with rising prices? With gas, grain, and dairy prices exploding, you'd think the biggest seller of corn flakes and Cocoa Puffs would be getting hit b... more -
Food Price Rise Could Last Another 2 Years
You may have to get used to paying more for your groceries for another two years or more.
Experts say an increase in global food consumption combined with increasing use of crops such as corn and soybeans for alternative fuel production are partly to blame.
Agricultural economists who've studied food price fluctuations cite historical trends that show run-ups in farm commodity prices typically happen in five-year cycles.
Prices flare up in the first two to three years of the cycle and then start to moderate by the fourth or fifth year, said Chris Hurt, agricultural economist at Purdue University .
If 2007 was the first year of this latest cycle, Hurt said farm supply could start catching up to demand by 2010, helping to push down milk, bread, cereal and other grocery prices.
Until then, "Americans will be moving backward in their [food] lifestyle." By that he means that more families will trade down to cheaper food alternatives, or eat out less often, in order to adjust their budgets to both higher food and fuel costs.
Wal-Mart, the No. 1 discounter and supermarket chain, said Tuesday that spending patterns in its stores already support the trend. The retailer said shoppers are buying more white meat and less red meat, stocking up on larger package sizes and buying more boxed frozen meals as eating at home replaces going out.
"This is the first price boom we've seen since the 1970s," said Bill Knudson, professor of agricultural economics at Michigan State University, agreed. "There's an old industry saying that high prices cure high prices. My personal opinion is that food prices will remain high for another two or three more years."
The good news, however, is that "there's no grave concern" of a pending food shortage in the United States, Hurt said.
Why Is Food More Expensive Now?
Experts point to four main global trends for the rise in food prices.
First, growing incomes in developing countries such as China, India, Malaysia mean citizens in these countries are eating better and more frequently, thereby putting more demand on the global food supply. You may have to get used to paying more for your groceries for another two years or more. ... more -
Walmart: low prices and equal opportunity healthcare
A Missouri woman who suffered brain damage in a car crash must reimburse Wal-Mart $470,000 for medical expenses because of an insurance settlement.
The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Debbie Shank's appeal. A federal appeals court in St. Louis had found that Shank must repay everything Wal-Mart's insurance plan paid, even though the settlement with the insurer of the truck driver who hit her falls short of that amount.
Shank, 52, now living in a nursing home, was a Wal-Mart employee at the time of the crash.
As if things couldn't get worse for Debbie, her 18 year old son recently died in combat in Iraq. A Missouri woman who suffered brain damage in a car crash must reimburse Wal-Mart $470,000 for medical expenses because of an insuranc... more -
For the little terrorist
From the fine folks at Walmart: the toy set your kids have been dreaming about, a Russian RPG set! Also available: Street Heat 2 Gun Set. ... Which means there was a Street Heat 1 Gun Set. Thanks Walmart, you go where the NRA always hoped you would! From the fine folks at Walmart: the toy set your kids have been dreaming about, a Russian RPG set! Also available: Street Heat 2 Gun S... more
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don't mess with hillary
senator clinton and walmart's marketing guru.
more on the love affair:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jonathan-tasini/hillary-a...
http://visiblevote08.logoonline.com/2007/12/13/hillary-...
http://www.nysun.com/article/27089
http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0021,harkavy,15052,5.h... senator clinton and walmart's marketing guru. more on the love affair: ... more -
Polly Pocket Knife
Here's a story that makes you wonder what sort of tools the workers at Mattel's factories use. A "shank" (a blade wrapped in electrical tape, to be exact) was found inside a sealed Polly Pocket toy purchased at Walmart.
At least it wasn't the paint this time. Here's a story that makes you wonder what sort of tools the workers at Mattel's factories use. A "shank" (a blade ... more -
Going Big box vs. Going Local
What are the effects of our shopping? That big box chain may seem convenient, but is it? How much is all of our shopping costing us ? and the planet? This great new film by Amy Wolf, a film fellow for the Movement Vision Lab, gives us the chance to step back and re-think how we buy what we buy and why! What are the effects of our shopping? That big box chain may seem convenient, but is it? How much is all of our shopping costing us ? ... more
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The Ugly Side Of Microlending
Taking advantage of the poor in this manner who only wish to have a chance to live as others do while maintaining dignity is the lowest form of human behavior. Giving them the small loans they need and then charging them 120% interest thus making it impossible for them to actually get ahead simply keeps them down while making these banks richer. And if you read further enough in this article, Walmart is now involved in this as they have expanded into microlending in Mexico and in other places around the world. How insidious. I wish CURRENT could do an expose' on this exploitation of the poor because you will never see this exposed on the mainstream media in this country where Walmart is considered "charitable." //////Excerpt:///Wal-Mart Stores (WMT), which obtained a Mexican banking license a year ago, began offering loans for purchases at 16 of its 997 Mexican outlets in November. In the U.S., the retailer markets itself as a friend to the budget-conscious. In Mexico, it charges interest rates that might set off popular and political revolts back home, although Wal-Mart describes its terms as appropriate to the Mexican market. At one store west of Mexico City, a 32-inch LG plasma TV with a price tag of $957 can ultimately cost as much as $1,474, thanks to a 52-week payment plan that carries an annual percentage rate (APR) of 86%./////end of excerpt. Taking advantage of the poor in this manner who only wish to have a chance to live as others do while maintaining dignity is the lowes... more
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Brainwashing through corporations
Let's give charters to independent businesses and create some soul in society.
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