Wal-Mart, time to boycott?
Ewiges — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:17
Everyone loves Wally World! Wal-Mart is the only place in the world where you can walk in, and walk out with whatever you wanted at the cheapest price around. At Wal-Mart I can go back to school shopping, grocery shopping, buy some dickies shorts, and pick up a case of beer and anything I need for my truck all in one shopping trip. Not only that, but know I didn't over spend.
Over the years Wal-Mart have been putting thousands of businesses out on the street. This includes everything from ma and pop stores to national retail chains. Now Wal-Mart has declared they will be starting 'Project Impact' in which they will be aiming at closing Rite-Aid, K-Mart, and Toys-R-Us. Has Wally World gone to far?
As a consumer, we have to come to a decision of whether we want a choice, or one simple place that makes all your dreams come true. When is it time to boycott Wal-Mart? Is it bad what they are doing? What do you guys think? Will Wally-World be the new circle K, one on every corner... but no where else to go to?
But Walmart does, on average,
Shihli — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 14:30But Walmart does, on average, offer a base wage that is twice the minimum wage of the states it's in.
Again, not saying they're godly - 'cos they aren't and many news reports will echo that - but again, demonizing Walmart because they're doing something that any business does is just ... well, frivolous.
The average hourly pay,
starstalker — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 15:55The average hourly pay, nationwide, for a walmart worker in 2005 (lastest I could find) was $9.68, translating to yearly wages of just over $17,000 (based again on average hours worked by a walmart worker). In 2005 the national minimum wage was $5.15. Not quite twice. Close, but considering average price of rent nationwide in 2007 (closest year I could find) was a smidge over $1000/mo, it hardly makes it living.
To top it off, walmart employees, if they managed to actually qualify for health care under walmarts restrictive standards, want to join the plan, will pay anywhere from 5% to 25% (based on coverage and deductibles) of their paychecks. Between housing and health care eating up their checks, its no wonder the estimated cost of federal subsidies to *just* walmart employees was 2.5 billion (with a b!) dollars a year.
I think I'd worry about the
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 15:55I think I'd worry about the millions of workers making minimum wage before I got up in arms about Wal-Mart paying nearly twice that. Especially since the majority of minimum wage workers don't get the aforementioned benefits either.
Also, according to the average wage and health care stats you listed, the 75% of $9.68 left after paying for health care is $7.26, still well above the minimum wage.
As far as the cost of rent, your numbers may not present an accurate picture. If the $1000/mo is the average of the entire set of rentals in the nation, then applying that figure to the Wal-Mart Employee's cost of living assumes that the rentals made by Wal-Mart employees are equally distributed across this same full set of all rentals in the nation, which is VERY unlikely, though I couldn't confirm that without research.
No one is saying that they have a great standard of living, only that they are far from the bottom and not so far displaced from other retail workers as many people seem to think.
I see your point about the
starstalker — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 16:39I see your point about the accuracy of rentals in regards to walmart employees, but it would be very hard to come up with a more average set of numbers (given walmarts status as the largest private employer in the world). If walmarts workforce couldn't be averaged out with a given degree of accuracy, I don't know of any other corporation that could. Yes, there will be regional anomalies, but I don't see how that would be different than any other chain serving the same regions.
It's not the regional
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 16:54It's not the regional differences I worry about, it's the "price brackets," if you will. If 90% of Wal-Mart workers rent living spaces in the lowest 10% of rental prices, then the they aren't, on average, paying $1000/mo.
However, the inaccuracy resulting from this issue would be further compounded by the diffences in the price distributions in each market, e.g. different variance, skew, etc., some markets are likely not normally distributed at all. If you took the price at like -2.7σ from the mean for each market, and found the average of that number accross all the markets nationally, I'd bet you'd be much closer to what the average Wal-Mart employee pays for housing.
Here is the article I was
Ewiges — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 18:32Here is the article I was basing my information off of: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1920698,00.html?xid=fee...
Its a time article with CNN partnership so it can't be completely BS right?
There is not a single line in
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 18:58There is not a single line in there that directly shows that "project impact" lists killing K-Mart or Toys 'R Us off is one of the stated goals. All of that came from quotes from this "Burt Flickinger," who is listed as a "Wal-Mart watchdog." I'm sure his comments are unbiased statements of fact regarding Wal-Marts strategic planning. Reading comprehension guys, sheesh. Anything from any news source can be (and probably is) biased, you have to learn how to recognize it.
Dufe, taking obvious
Ewiges — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 19:14Dufe, taking obvious information and making it offensive.
Anyways, yeah. Wal*Mart does not say directly they are doing X X or X beyond the simple, "cleaner stores". And I believe every news source is biased, why wouldn't it be? The idea is you take information from the most reliable source... reliable, opposite on unreliable. Flickinger words has a shit load more credibility than my words, so instead of me saying something I quote him. He is my source. What else can you ask for?
What else can I ask for? How
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 19:39What else can I ask for? How about quotes from somebody who isn't admittedly in open opposition to (or support of) Walmart? Biased = unreliable.
So I've been pricing Wii's
Ewiges — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 18:40So I've been pricing Wii's (hinx my other thread) and I just noticed something about Wal*Mart.
So the price of a nintendo Wii anywhere you go is $250 (yes a rounded to the dollar). This includes the console, 1 remote, and the Wii sports. The price for a nintendo Wii is set by nintendo, stores can not undercut eachother.
What I've noticed: For $250 Wal*Mart has the basic Wii package (Explained above) but also your choice of any Wii game for free. I could not find this deal at any other major retailors website. I checked Target, BestBuy, CircuitCity, and Gamestop.
This is an example of how Wal*Mart will take a hit themselves to get you, the consumer, into the store.
So taking a purposeful loss
Shihli — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 20:14So taking a purposeful loss (as you put it) to try and encourage people to shop at your store is evil how?
1. I am not biased, just read
Ewiges — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 20:541. I'm not set on a boycott for Wally World, just read the OP.
2. Not completely sure that a Wal*Mart watcher is completely against Wally World but rather a statistical tracker... if that makes sense.
3. Shihli, I was just saying that Wal*Mart has the power to make sacrifices that other companies can't. Like how rocketfeller would sell oil below value so other companies couldn't compete, then buy them out when they had no other option.
Lastly, not everything is Wal*Mart's fault. I'm boycotting Target because of what they did to my family, which actually makes me shop at Wal*Mart more. Target indirectly made my mom unemployed and caused her to lose around $20,000 in savings.
Anytime you see "X watch
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 21:52Anytime you see "X watch group," X watcher," or "X watch-dog," it really means group/person opposed to X. the term is used VERY frequently in all levels of politics/activism these days. (See also Nuclear Watchdogs, etc)
I didn't mean to imply that you are biased, but rather the Fluckinger fellow.
You're right, no other store
Dufe — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 18:44You're right, no other store in the world ever has a sale or promotion to get more customers in the door.
Star, you and I are spoiled
Shihli — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 15:55Star, you and I are spoiled in that we don't have to *earn* minimum wage to get by.
Yes, just minimum wage is not enough to support a family, but it's all many people can get. Walmart offers more than that, so why demonize it when it's offering better wages than many places?
For example - I earn more on unemployment (25% of my typical income) than Allikat does in her job, standard.
I know a young lady 1/2 my
Aidin — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 14:36I know a young lady 1/2 my age who just got a job at Wal-Mart...and she makes TWO dollars less an hour then I do...and I make an OK living...not great, bearly decent. But 2$ less ...TWO...
if anyone's interested in an
Kwondre — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:49if anyone's interested in an organized, semi-sophisticated discussion about Wal-Mart (it's kind of my career to know about Wal-Mart), we can set up a time and vent channel =)
I will say this though, there are two sides (with legitimate points) to this argument - as is often the case with many arguments in the universe....
while i love this idea, i
Grasen — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:47while i love this idea, i cant afford to boycott walmart lol
Project Impact says they will
Aidin — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:29Project Impact says they will update the stores...and lower prices...
Lower prices?? You have my business...period.
I think that's the root of
garreth — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:32I think that's the root of the problem, Aidn ;)
Well until I can afford to
Aidin — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 14:07Well until I can afford to shop where I want...I will remain the root of the "problem" ...us poor folks need all the help we can get.
Or maybe we can chase the root back even further then me being broke and shopping at Wal-Mart. Say to my government that says "sorry we can't help you feed your kids, you make too much money." but gives Sally the dope whore with 6 kids from 6 unknown fathers a place to live, food to feed her family, child care, and even out right CASH to spend on her crack habit.
Though documentaries are
garreth — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 13:26Though documentaries are hardly unbiased, this was good:
http://www.netflix.com/Movie/Wal-Mart_The_High_Cost_of_Low_Price/7004080...
You can instant watch it, I recommend everyone check it out. The Ayn Randian side of me is at odds with the bleeding heart side of me over Wal Mart.
Garreth has a heart? Lies.
Karli — Wed, 09/09/2009 - 16:41Garreth has a heart? Lies.