Wal-Mart Chief Says Customers Need Increase in Minimum Wage

[Lochloosa]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/25/AR2005102501724.html


Wal-Mart Stores Inc. chief executive H. Lee Scott Jr. called on Congress to raise the country's minimum wage from $5.15 an hour, saying the company's customers are "struggling to get by."

Scott, head of the world's largest retailer, which has been criticized for paying low wages, providing few health care benefits and causing the demise of small businesses across the country, ticked off a list of changes he said the company plans to make and called for a higher minimum wage in a speech to directors and executives Monday.



Chief executive H. Lee Scott Jr. promises changes for Wal-Mart. (Beth Hall - Bloomberg News)
"We have seen an increase in spending on the 1st and 15th of each month and less spending at the end of the month, letting us know that our customers simply don't have the money to buy basic necessities between paychecks," Scott said in his speech, a transcript of which was released yesterday. Scott also said the company wants to reduce energy use by its stores by 30 percent.

(snip)

"It's obviously time to raise the minimum wage. I'm a big advocate of it. I'm always looking for allies. I'm mindful that eventually even the Gingrich Congress got behind the last minimum wage," said Jared Bernstein, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute. "That said, there is some pretty serious posturing going on here. . . . One can't help but think if they want people to have more money, how about paying your workers more?"

Bernstein noted that Wal-Mart workers on average are paid slightly above minimum wage. But, he said, there are "certainly lots of workers" at the company that remain "in dead-end, minimum-wage jobs."

Words escape me....On Edit: No they don't, hey Walmart, You first!

[Zhade]

1. Um, woah?

Did he finally realize that an economy needs well-paid worker-consumers to drive demand in order to work, or is this a stunt?

[wakeme2008]

2. Min. Wage people are Wallymarts main customers

the more they have to spend,,, the more they will spend at Wallmart...

[MessiahRp]

8. Considering the memo they put out

on how to cut costs on employee benefits I think this is mostly a ploy to get heat off of them. Wal-Mart pays slightly above minimum wage anyways so they wouldn't have to change their wage scale significantly anyways. Basically they figure they cater to those who do make minimum wage so if they make more they'll spend more at their one-stop shopping outlet.

I don't see them increasing their own pay a dime. And with them changing health benefits in ways that would make someone who earns $17,500 a year pay $2,500 out of pocket to keep it, it's obvious that they don't care about increasing the quality of life for their employees. (the same memo mentioned discouraging unhealthy workers from working at Wal-Mart)

Henry Ford used to say that if he paid his employees well enough that they could buy their own Ford cars someday. Wal-Mart's philosophy is similar but backwards. If they pay their employees low enough, they'll have nowhere else they can afford to shop other than Wal-Mart.

Former Wal-Mart Employee,
Rp

[Solon]

11. Hey another former employee...

Remember the cheer they did at the meetings? I won't torture you with that cult thing here. It was fucking disturbing, especially the feeling of conformity that the Company fostered there. So, what department? I was in L+G for awhile, moved to Sporting Goods towards the end. Covered all the departments around me on weekends and evenings all the damn time too, always short handed, my store.

[MessiahRp]

12. The cheer was awful.

I'd always piss the manager off when I refused to participate.

I started off as a Cashier, but within a month I was trained on Courtesy Desk and became a Customer Service Manager.

I helped do other departments from time to time, but namely I was in charge of the front end.

I wasn't the most popular CSM with the first shifters (all older people) because I worked second shift and was cool with all my employees. Plus I was younger so they assumed I was incompetent even though I was doing all the work they didn't complete plus having our shift's work done by 11pm every night. That and I broke protocol by constantly having parties with all the employees from second shift. :)

The second shifters seemed to love me. Wonder why? Work is not a slave chamber.

Rp

[Solon]

14. Ha! I remember us L+G guys always threw the best parties...

All of us were around the same age, and we always rubbed the CSM the wrong way, especially when we called her back to the register in our department for all sorts of shit, especially since she was cute. ;) Most of the time I worked 2nd shift, and us L+G guys would run the joint. We really rubbed managment the wrong way in all sorts of ways, but we got the job done. I remember asking management when I was going to be trained on the forklift, because I was sick and tired of dragging in the damned potting soil with a freaking pallet jack, I'm talking literally a ton or so of shit I would drag across a parking lot. So one day, after a month of pestering, I just jumped in the damned thing and off I went, it took them about a year to figure out I was never trained on it. Took them until I already transferred to Sporting Goods to train me properly on it. Talk about stupidity. Not to mention the turnover in managment, I don't know, somewhere around 3-4 store managers, 2 co-managers and who knows how many Associate Managers in about 2 years. Though I have to tell you a funny story about our shortest lived store manager, I'll name him John for this story.

OK, John is the new store manager, a really get up and go type, a jock basically, with a jock mentality as well. Anyways, it was about his 3rd day at the store, and its was springtime, so we in L+G had the double doors leading to plants open. It was around 3 pm, because I just started my shift, I hated working till midnight. Anyways, so I'm behind the cash register when the John pops up from sporting goods and asked if I saw a bird fly by that apparently flew in through our doors, I said no, while I was staring at the air rifle in his hand. He takes off like a shot down the Aisle leading to the front registers, me, I just thought he was nuts. Anyways, he didn't come back to L+G after that. So the next day, I come in, and low and behold, he's gone, apparently he fired that air rifle IN THE STORE to try to get the bird. For his stupidity, he was sent back to Bentonville for "Retraining" whatever the hell that means. I doubt they fired him for it, though they should have, it was the dumbest thing I have ever heard of anyone doing in retail.

[MessiahRp]

16. LOL!

Yeah I never had anything like that, although I did work 13 hours in a row, two years consecutively during Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving) starting at 6am and we had people fighting over blitz endcaps repeatedly. One year there was this fight over these dumb Razor scooters in toys. To the point where some guy was so determined he was going to get the last one left for his kid that he started a tug of war with someone and then punched them in the face breaking their nose. I just remember having to call the cops with lines going from the registers all the way back to the end of L&G and people all ready freaking out, having to deal with that.

Crazy shit. And all for the whopping $6.25/hr. I was making. :)

Rp

[Solon]

18. Ah yes, I hated that day...

I remember the hours, with no fond memories. It was during the time of the Elmo and Furby crazes. I remember pulling one woman off another in the front enterance one year. They had a code for it, code 500 I think, all male associates to the front to break up fights. They were pulling their hair furiously, freaked me out, and left me with a bloody nose. All for about the same wage as you. OK, less $6.15/hr, it sucked.

[sabbat hunter]

29. if i was at a job

paying $6.15 per hour and they wanted me to break up fights i would have told them to fuck off and call the cops.

[Zhade]

31. "Retraining"...

[Javaman]

20. I totally agree, now they can go on record as saying they supported a hike

in the minimum wage. And as we have all seen this past week, our lovely congress voted a raise down.

So china-mart get's the best of both worlds. On record as wanting one and not having to pay for it. Nice, huh?

[Zhade]

30. Former VERY short-term WM worker myself.

Your analysis makes sense.

[chat_noir]

3. Act of Contrition?

Does Scott have a fatal illness?

[Starbucks Anarchist]

4. "You first" is right.

Many Wal-Mart employees couldn't even afford their stuff in the first place.

[Kralizec]

22. What is the minimum wage of Wal-Mart? Do they just use the Federal

standards? If so, stop talking and give your own employees a raise. I'd imagine that's a large chunk of America's workforce, anyhow... ugh.

Peace.

[Solon]

27. True, as Wal*mart workers, we bought stuff at Goodwill or Salvation...

Army. No way could we afford the crap at Wal*Mart, especially big items, like furniture.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

5. Uh huh.

Bernstein noted that Wal-Mart workers on average are paid slightly above minimum wage.

Maybe Wal-Mart should clean up its own act first.

[Spinzonner]

6. Let's see, they're asking to be forced to raise their wage rates ?

Wal-mart, promoting government intervention in their business ? Where will it end ...

[kymar57]

34. walmart exemption

Walmart simply tells their bought and paid for congresscritters that.as the country's largest employer they should be exempt. Case closed

[Fridays Child]

7. Bernie Ward went off on Wal-Mart, last night, referring to this article...

Wal-Mart Memo Suggests Ways to Cut Employee Benefit Costs

[truthisfreedom]

9. must have run the numbers through a computer and modeled up a new reality

that says if the consumers have more money to spend, he can make a bundle off the difference between their wages and those he pays his employees.

think about it. he's got 10 customers for every employee.

[cornermouse]

10. In other words, people are getting too poor to shop at Wal-Mart

and the government simply must do something about it. :nopity: (world's tiniest violin)

[liberal N proud]

13. Meanwhile they are planning on hiring more part time workers

and encourage obese people not to work for Wal-Mart.
All this in an effort to reduce the cost of benefits to employees.

Didn't Henry Ford believe that his employees needed to be able to afford the product they were selling?

[hedgehog]

17. That's a famous myth.

Henry had to start paying his workers more because working the assembly lines was such a tough job physically and mentally people were walking off the the job in the middle of the day. He had to pay them more or get out of the the car building business.

[area51]

15. spinning

My head is still spinning over the irony of Mal-Wart calling for an increased minimum wage.

[depakid]

19. It just gets stranger and stranger

Kafka was born 100 years too early....

[primavera]

21. Pot, may I introduce you to kettle?

This coming from a company which treats its workers little better than slaves? Of course, MalWart has a way around the minimum wage requirement - they simply threaten to fire you if you refuse to work extra hours for which they don't pay you - so it's no skin off their noses if Congress increases the minimum wage.

[strategery blunder]

23. MalWart--that's a new one!

:rofl:

Of course, I use Mao-Mart.;)

[Zynx]

24. I see. He wants it to increase sales.

And what's more, he came right out and said it!

[zann725]

25. Please! Any discussion of raising the Minimum Wage...is absurd.

It lags sooooo far behind the cost of living, any "token" raising of the Minimum of a dollar or two over the next two years or so...does NOTHING to keep up with Cost of Living increases...even IF employees were currently paid a "living wage"...which of course they are not. Not even close.

[ErisFiveFingers]

26. YO, ASSHAT!

YOU RUN WALLMART.

RAISE THE DAMN WAGE FOR YOUR EMPLOYEES FIRST.

This is just absurd.

[Sabriel]

28. You could lower your prices more

That might help, too.

And a living wage doesn't mean "a shopping wage." Just because people get paid more doesn't necessarily mean they'll want to spend it at MallWart.

[Jack_DeLeon]

32. Its a scam...

if Walmart cared about thier workers they could increase how much they pay them.

What they want instead is to force other businesses to raise thier wages so that either one of two things happen.

1. Other businesses are put out of business.

2. Other businesses have to raise the prices of thier goods and thus push more people to shop at walmart.

All the time Walmart keeps its wages just above the new minimum so nothing changes for them.

[hedgehog]

33. Hey Walmart - get a clue - minimum wage people get paid weekly

Salaried people get paid twice a month. What you're seeing is evidence that all of the middle class is in real trouble. Even by stretching dollars shopping at Walmart people aren't making it any more.

[cat_hair]

35. not necessarily

i make about 6.25 an hour. i get paid twice a month (1st and the 15th).

but yeah, i see what you're saying.

[hedgehog]

36. Wow - that's really a low blow

Every time I think I've heard it all, Corporate America finds a new way to amaze me!

[Moosepoop]

37. Check out his quote.

This is from the article linked in the OP:

Scott emphasized that he was calling for the improvement in wages for workers who are his customers and said the company could not change its own wage structure because of tough competition. "Even slight overall adjustments to wages eliminate our thin profit margin," he said. "Because we are so big, people forget that we have to compete."

So...
He's acknowledging that W-M's workers are not considered part of its customer base, and he's also saying that W-M can't afford (because it's so big) to raise the wages -- even slightly -- for its workers, but all other companies should have to in order for W-M to sell more stuff.
:wtf: