Is Walmart right or wrong?

by JH 35 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  roybatty

  Walmart is wrong. I stopped shopping at Walmart because of the way they pay and treat employees.

  I stopped shopping there because of the way they treat their vendors.
• 

  czarofmischief

  I support unions.

  That being said, if a union would destroy the profit, then the management has the right to close the store.

  Nobody said forming a union was easy - it takes sweat, tears, and blood to make it happen.

  As for Quebec law, well, they should investigate the books. But Walmart reducing its presence in your state might actually be a good thing. The local stores will benefit greatly, as will the local groceries, mom and pop photo shops, etc...

  Trust me, you are better off without them.

  CZAR
• 

  ezekiel3

  Wrong, wrong, wrong.

  What makes Walmart so popular? Cheap prices, one stop shipping, sure. But after all the smaller stores close, Walmart is your only option. Walmart is effectively cornering their market.

  And a critical element to cheap prices is labor. Labor is usually the single greatest cost of any business. Walmart knows that unionization would raise the prices on their goods and level the playing field. If this mode continues, the quality of service will decline, the quality of life for Walmart employees will decrease, and prices will increase.

  Without unionization, Walmart holds all the cards.

  Hell, maybe someday it will be the only place to shop and that isn't free market economy. That's called a monopoly.
• 

  jeanniebeanz

  Hell, maybe someday it will be the only place to shop and that isn't free market economy.

  SheepMan! :) While that may temporarily be true, as soon as they try to raise the prices, some little mom and pop shop will beat them and start something else that works. That's free market economy.

  Think Jet Blue :)

  Jean
• 

  Gopher

  Walmart reducing its presence in your state might actually be a good thing. The local stores will benefit greatly, as will the local groceries, mom and pop photo shops, etc...

  This is a great point! If Walmart tries to move into this area again, or into any area where the workers are mobilized, their approach won't work.

  I read that Wal-mart tried to negotiate with the union that was to represent this store's workers but couldn't reach a compromise.

  Wal-mart has a business model that works, and if people don't wish to work within that model, maybe more of its stores will meet the same fate that the one in Quebec did.
• 

  JH

  There are about 30 Walmarts is Quebec. One more or one less won't change much.

  Since Walmart closes stores where people want to unionize, every Walmart store should bring in the union simultaneously. I doublt that Walmart would close every one of them...
• 

  ezekiel3

  Dammit capitalists turn me on...

  Ok Jean, but by that time an entire culture of economy will have been raped by a big box.

  Seriously, pre-union economy was a sweatshop with nothing but grunts working long hours.

  ...gives up and takes a cold shower...
• 

  czarofmischief

  There are about 30 Walmarts is Quebec. One more or one less won't change much.

  Perhaps. But a Walmart closing is an earthshaking event. I remember working at another mega-chain, Starbucks, and when a couple of stores closed down on the other side of the COUNTRY it made the gossip rounds. Everyone was hushed, terrified, stunned.

  Now what those displaced workers need to do is get some capital together and start up their own businesses to fill the void left by Walmart. Perhaps the government can fork over some startup dough...

  Lucky Canadians, with your guaranteed health insurance; half the reason I support national health care is simply to reduce the burden on entrepreneurs!

  CZAR
• 

  Double Edge

  I HATE that oversized corporate whale! Such sleeze.

  
• 

  M.J.

  Are JWs allowed to be capitalists but not socialists? Never mind.

  I think that unions have been necessary to keep companies in check, but then in many cases the power has swayed way too heavily to the unions' side. I think that one way to maintain balance is to for a company to have the option to do what Wal-Mart is doing. By the way, aside from labor issues, I do think that Wal-Mart has excelled in managing its supply chain and doing business efficiently, which overall is a good thing for inflation.