A smackdown you say…

In his making his case for Wal-Mart I’d like to see him use numbers that weren’t themselves produced by Wal-Mart.

It’s a hilarious (and Rovian) ploy to pivot liberal outrage at Wal-Mart’s labor violations as ‘condescending’. The median male worker earns 50 cents an hour less than in 1979 while the top 5% a male worker is getting $10 an hour more. The decline of labor unions is a large part of this.

We used to pity Third World economies (and their resulting corrupt, inefficient governments) for their extreme income disparities. Now the Republican Party regards this disparity as a goal.

Left by Preston on September 14th, 2006 at 12:05 pm

The argument Will posits makes all the sense in the world if all that matters is the economic well-being of U.S. citizens so they can consume more. The problem with smug conservative thought of the likes of George Will is the premise that more low-paying jobs and cheap goods are all that really matters. The Wal Mart way of conducting business does far more than create jobs for low-income people so they can go spend their hard earned money on cheap goods. More $8-per-hour jobs and artificially cheap groceries have huge hidden costs on society and detrimental downstream effects on the rest of the planet. That’s the beef that “liberals” have with WalMart. The fact that Will doesn’t address or even mention these issues makes one wonder if he’s actually bothered to research the arguments of those who oppose WalMart coming into their local communities.

Left by L. Houston on September 14th, 2006 at 12:34 pm

artificially cheap groceries

Actually, I question this. Of course they are able to offer lower prices than stores that pay their employees a middle class salary but I think that Wal-Mart is very clever with their pricing. They lure you in with the $30 dvd player but I’m not certain at all that all of their prices are lower.

But in general I agree with your point. The way Wal-Mart does business has hidden costs that ‘conservatives’ would pass on to society. Their employees’ subsistence level wages (and the subsequently high level of government assistance) are just the beginning.

It’s typical right-wing economics: privatize the profits, socialize the costs.

Left by Preston on September 14th, 2006 at 1:00 pm

We’ll see how desperate Walmart is for employees here in my county. I’m headed to Walmart Supercenter in a few minutes .. needing a variety of things. We are an affluent county with a very low unemployment rate of less than 3%. I’m going to see if they are hiring…I might even ask a clerk or two what they think of their jobs, their pay and benefits, etc. I’m sorry. I don’t buy all this whining about how terrible Walmart is to its employees but I could be wrong. I’ll let ya know.

Left by dianne on September 14th, 2006 at 2:20 pm

I might even ask a clerk or two what they think of their jobs, their pay and benefits, etc.

I’m interested in hearing what they say but given Wal-Mart’s union busting history I wouldn’t expect anyone to stick their neck out and say anything too negative.

Left by Preston on September 14th, 2006 at 2:42 pm

Back from Walmart. I asked three personnel. First, I should say I took a look around the store at the demographics. Johnson County is 87% white and it looked to me like the personnel make-up was about the same..I only saw one black guy and did talk to him and saw a couple of hispanic and one asian. All the rest I saw were white. Anyhow,

First was a late 20’s jewelry clerk female. By the way, I told all of them that I had been having a discussion with friends about what it was like to work for Walmart and wondered if they’d share their thoughts with me..they didn’t have to of course. The jewelry clerk said it was ok, but not a place you would work at for a long time..not bad, but it could be a lot better. The second was a 30’s something black guy who was the customer service manager. He told me he had worked for Walmart for 13 years and that it was a good place to work. He knew they were getting a lot of bad press recently that he didn’t think they deserved. The third was my checkout clerk, 20 something and she also said she liked working there. A few minutes later she spoke up again and told me they got medical and dental insurance and profit sharing. I asked her how long she had to wait for the insurance and she said 6 months. All three people were very nice and forthcoming and I think they were telling me the truth.

The above were all young people. I did see several older people, possibly retired and picking up extra income but didn’t speak to them.

This is a very nice store in a good location. I’d have to conclude there is little if any unrest in this store. I’m sure all of these people would like to make more money, (I didn’t have the guts to ask them their wages) but I think they were all quite happy with the jobs they had and I’m sure insurance benefits are very important to them and possibly one of the main reasons they work there. I know some people who are young, self-employed people who must pay $700/month for insurance and that kind of benefit adds a lot to a salary.

Left by dianne on September 14th, 2006 at 5:29 pm

You can bet if George Will wrote about it, he researched it to the nth degree.

And by all means, unionize Walmart so their under educated employees can earn $20-$30/hour. Makes sense to me. But my suggestion is : If Walmart employees are unhappy with their lot in life, then they need to go back to school and get a degree. That way, the under educated could continue to fill the void left by the newly degreed ex-Walmart employee.
There will always be those who have a limited education and Walmart fills a need by employing those who might otherwise be found standing on the sidewalk in a labor pool, waiting to be called.

Left by Leah on September 14th, 2006 at 5:42 pm

Still on line and just read Leah’s comment and so wanted to add a thought or two about what she said.

Leah, not everyone can afford to go to college and some people just aren’t cut out for it, but all people must eat and pay bills, raise a family, etc. They work at Walmart, or some of them are skilled tradesmen/women. I do think that the pendulum has swung to and fro to the point that people are being exploited more again and unions do have a place. Do you know that federal employees have a union? Actually, I think that’s rather outrageous … I used to work closely with the Center for Veterinary Medicine and even the professional veterinarians I worked with making upwards of 80-100K per year were in a union…that’s ridiculous..but I think the trades do need unions and even the service employees. Not all employers are benevolent as we all know.

We’re in changing times in this country. It isn’t the 50’s, even the 80’s. I have a degreed son-in-law who is making a pitiful wage in my opinion. He got his degree in IT about the time the IT bust occurred and the bottom fell out. He’d have to go back to school and get new certifications, etc. to be able to make a decent wage and he just graduated a few years ago! My son-in-law is a wonderful person and he is so good to my daughter, but I just want to kick him in the ass. He’s almost given up and I just can’t understand that. That kind of thinking doesn’t exist in my brain.

I listened to a man I deemed a very smart economist recently who said a person has to think strategically. Root yourself in a job that is not likely to be exported and acquire a skill that puts you a notch or two above the person who has no formal education of any kind. Lots of people are going to be competing for your job and the job of tomorrow.

But, back to Walmart. Hey, right now I think they’re a whipping boy. They used to be considered the greatest success story on the face of the earth. I think we need to look at the whole picture.

Left by dianne on September 14th, 2006 at 6:09 pm

Great post, Dianne. I think that’s right. Of course, we want to educate as many people as possible but there is a perverse thread of American thought that seems to feel that these workers don’t deserve a fair shake. (As if it’s going to be easier for them to get an education if they are only making 20K a year…)

(Though I don’t know the situation at all regarding your son-in-law it seems like he did the right things but it didn’t pay off. I can understand how that could be deflating- but hell I’m in school again so I can understand you might never really finish training…)

Left by Preston on September 15th, 2006 at 6:34 am

Preston writes:

In his making his case for Wal-Mart I’d like to see [Will] use numbers that weren’t themselves produced by Wal-Mart.

Can you produce more accurate numbers? Or should we just accept your ad hominem slur as persuasive?

Left by Heather on September 21st, 2006 at 2:04 pm

Dental Insurance…

Given the escalating expenses of dental treatment, it makes sense for the people to get coverage under dental insurance. Dental insurance falls under two categories, group dental insurance and individual dental insurance. Before discussing these two ca…

Left by Dental Insurance on February 27th, 2008 at 10:53 am