In the richest nation in the world, this shouldn't be too much to ask...

[Triana]

But - apparently, it is.

[Th1onein]

1. I agree.

Instead, they offer classes on how to get food stamps. Sorry bastards.

[JDPriestly]

2. Funny, industry-wide bargaining kind of went out in the 1980s Reagan era.

But Walmart all by itself has pretty much brought it back to life. What irony. Walmart's success comes from its ubiquity and its uniformity across America, It systematically squeezes out competitors where it goes. And now its sameness and everywhereness are the very strengths/weaknesses that make it vulnerable to effective and determined strikers.

Walmart -- you gotchurself. Too smart for your own good.

I would bet on the strikers in this one. Walmart can't break a nationwide strike should this develop into one, and needs to make a deal. In one swoop, unions could gain huge numbers of members. And Walmart workers would stand to gain. This is a good one. It might make competition in the retail field possible in local communities across the country.

[Scootaloo]

4. The trouble is that so many workers see it as a "temp job"

Just like fast food. Who seeks a lasting career in retail or fast food? it's usually "just until something better." And with it being that way, a lot of he workers don't see any value in working to better the position - it's a lot of extra work, thatm ight not pay off, might leave them jobless, and that most believe they won't enjoy the benefits of anyway.

Trying to organize people who pretty uniformly hate their line of work is probably the toughest thing in the business.

[Jamaal510]

3. The R's in Congress should

get off their arses and approve a minimum wage increase, so that Wal-Mart and other chains will have to do the right thing. Those big chains obviously will not boost their wages on their own free will, so the federal government is of course going to have to intervene here.

[Triana]

5. GOP-dominated CONgress will never do anything to help average Americans or workers

So we can forget that.

[Flatulo]

8. Hah! That's a good one. The R's think the minimum wage is already too high and that the working

poor are living high off the hog, what with supplementing their lavish wages with all those food stamps.

I wish someone could get it through their thick skulls that minimum wage jobs are a net drain on the budget.

[valerief]

7. It's only the richest nation for the richest people. For everyone else, it's just another slum. nt