Quote:
Originally Posted by MrYorkiecrazy  Those are propaganda films to make you feel bad for being a successful American. Don't you believe it.
1. If it weren't for companies 'like Walmart', those 'poor' people probably wouldn't even have a job at all.
2. Their low wages are relative to their low cost of living. Obviously not to our standard of middle class, but relatively lower-to-middle class.
3. Buy almost anything, truly ANYTHING today (even a Harley-Davidson motorcycle!*) and you ARE supporting third world country labor.
4. Despite what the left wings are telling you, supporting third world country labor is a GOOD thing, for crying out loud. People working is good for their country. Charity sure won't build their country. Buying their products sure beats the h3ll out of sending them cash!
Research is good, but don't forget to research both sides.*For years now, Harley-Davidson Motorcycles has not been legally able to stamp their motorcycles as "Made In USA" because less than 51% of their product is made in the USA. Check the tags on their replacement parts and their licensed products (jackets, etc.)! |
Ok Lets say that without their jobs most people in these countries would not make any money at all. Lets say that in their country it is ok to have a lil 8 yr old boy work 14-16 hrs without a break. So here is what my research has turned up and I guess all of these resources are left wing too Even The ones from China.
But what about the American walmart workers:
And even after reading all of this.. Please let me state AGAIN.
I was just commenting on the fact that I WATCHED the movie and did not or do not expect anyone else to stop shopping at Walmart.
In 2001, sales associates, the most common job in Wal-Mart, earned on average $8.23 an hour for annual wages of $13,861. The 2001 poverty line for a family of three was $14,630. ["Is Wal-Mart Too Powerful?", Business Week, 10/6/03, US Dept of Health and Human Services 2001 Poverty Guidelines, 2001]
A 2003 wage analysis reported that cashiers, the second most common job, earn approximately $7.92 per hour and work 29 hours a week. This brings in annual wages of only $11,948. ["Statistical Analysis of Gender Patterns in Wal-Mart's Workforce", Dr. Richard Drogin 2003]
Wal-Mart Associates don't earn enough to support a family
The average two-person family (one parent and one child) needed $27,948 to meet basic needs in 2005, well above what Wal-Mart reports that its average full-time associate earns. Wal-Mart claimed that its average associate earned $9.68 an hour in 2005. That would make the average associate's annual wages $17,114. ["Basic Family Budget Calculator" online at
www.epinet.org]
Wage increases would cost Wal-Mart relatively little
Wal-Mart can cover the cost of a dollar an hour wage increase by raising prices a half penny per dollar. For instance, a $2.00 pair of socks would then cost $2.01. This minimal increase would annually add up to $1,800 for each employee. [Analysis of Wal-Mart Annual Report 2005]
Wal-Mart forces employees to work off-the-clock
Wal-Mart's 2006 Annual Report reported that the company faced 57 wage and hour lawsuits. Major lawsuits have either been won or are working their way through the legal process in states such as California, Indiana, Minnesota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington. [Wal-Mart Annual Report 2006]
In December 2005, a California court ordered Wal-Mart to pay $172 million in damages for failing to provide meal breaks to nearly 116,000 hourly workers as required under state law. Wal-Mart appealed the case. [The New York Times, December 23, 2005]
A Pennsylvania court, also in December 2005, approved a class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart Stores Inc. by employees in Pennsylvania who say the company pressured them to work off the clock. The class could grow to include nearly 150,000 current or former employees. [Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, January 12, 2006 ]
In Pennsylvania, the lead plaintiff alleges she worked through breaks and after quitting time — eight to 12 unpaid hours a month, on average — to meet Wal-Mart's work demands. "One of Wal-Mart's undisclosed secrets for its profitability is its creation and implementation of a system that encourages off-the-clock work for its hourly employees," Dolores Hummel, who worked at a Sam's Club in Reading from 1992-2002, charged in her suit. [Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, January 12, 2006 ] For 2005, the year for which the most recent figures are available, Wal-Mart led the Journal of Commerce's annual Top 100 Importers rankings. Wal-Mart also led the list in 2004 and 2003. In 2005, Wal-Mart imported the equivalent of 695,000 20-foot equivalent container units (TEU). [Journal of Commerce, May 29, 2006 and Journal of Commerce, May 31, 2004]