This is no secret. I didn’t have a problem with them until I worked there and saw, from the inside, how evil a corporation it is. So, it was with dismay that I read this entry in Say Anything, happily reporting that 1500 more Wally Worlds are slated for opening.
I have no idea how many people the average Wal-Mart store employs, but a recently-built store outside of Chicago just hired 325 people.
That’s lovely. Now, where did those 325 people work before they went to Wally World? Could it have been someplace like Rubbermaid, in Canton, Ohio, who just announced is laying off 300 people? You say that it’s not because of Wally World?
Consider this, Wal-Mart has a lot of purchasing power. And Rubbermaid needs to get their products to people that will buy them. So when Wal-Mart says “You need to provide us this product for $2 (a piece) cheaper than last year or we’re going with your competitor” then Rubbermaid has to find a way to make that product cheaper. The easiest (and most popular) way to do that is to 1.)lay off employess and 2.) force the remaining employess to take pay and benefit cuts. Then, of course, you have former Rubbermaid employees looking for jobs.
Good thing for them Wally World came along, huh?
This story can be repeated over and over with American manufacturing. Once upon a time Wally World proudly boasted that they supported the American worker and promoted “Made in America” in their stores. But over time the guys at the top got more and more greedy. They wanted cheaper made products to boost their own products. And so they put on the squeeze. Then they gave their business to companies that moved out of the country, where workers work for pennies an hour, 12-17 hours a day, with no benefits (and nothing like OSHAA or labor laws to impede them). So more and more American factories closed their doors, more and more Americans became unemployed and needed (more than ever) Wal-Marts cheap prices. They also needed to work there.
Good for the economy, huh?
How does Wal-Mart affect the community? Some would say that it benefits the communities that allow them to put up their big ol’ box stores. I beg to differ. Many companies follow the prevailing wage law (like my husband’s). This means that they average regular pay at an areas major employers and then decide if they will give their own employees raises (such a “cost-of-living” raise). In my area, Wal-Mart is one of the biggest employers, and they pay their employees an average of $6 per hour. Very generous, I know. Average that high rate of pay out and pretty soon no one seems to need a raise.
Thanks, Wal-Mart.
Let’s not forget about their “saturation” policy. This is an unwritten policy of opening as many stores in one area as they can- such as in the Canton/Massillon area (if you count the Sam’s Club there are 5 stores in a 10 mile radius). They then go into competing stores (including locally owned businesses) and secretly inventory the goods there, the prices, and the movability. Suddenly all the Wally World’s in the area carry these goods- at highly discounted prices- and the smaller stores (the ones without the purchasing power) suddenly find that they can’t compete. Soon the local competition is gone and the excess Wally World’s begin to close (no point in competing with yourself, huh?). Don’t worry, though, all of those employees can fight for seasonal positions at the remaining Wally Worlds. What happens to those empty stores? They just stand there, used as storage or maybe just rat traps.
Great boon for the economy.
Plus, think about all the lower prices communities will enjoy once local businesses have to compete with Wal-Mart rock-bottom prices. There;s nothing like some healthy competition to keep prices low for consumers.
Yes, think how wonderful those low prices are. It’s a good thing, too, because your job could be next. Maybe I’ll see you in the foyer of a local Wally World…
“Welcome to Wal-Mart.” (Don’t forget to smile, eh?).
Popularity: 4% [?]
Sphere: Related Content
Powered by FireStats