Wal-Mart: Anywhere But America

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.changetowin.org/connect/2007/06/walmart_anywhere_but_america.html

Wal-Mart: Anywhere But America

It’s safe to say: Wal-Mart likes to buy from anywhere but America.

The retail behemoth’s “Buy America program” has become a “Buy China” program that makes Wal-Mart and China stronger while weakening America.



Wal-Mart demands forced 14 top suppliers - including Hasbro, Fruit of the Loom, and Proctor & Gamble - to cut approximately 17,000 U.S. manufacturing jobs between 2001 and 2006. Thousands of these jobs were shipped to China. In 2006, Wal-Mart rewarded these same 14 suppliers with its “Supplier of the Year” award.

Last year, Wal-Mart brought $26.7 billion of Chinese goods into the United States and cost American workers more than 300,000 jobs. That’s about 77 jobs for every Wal-Mart store in the United States.

These calculations come from two separate reports released by Change to Win and the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). The findings are published in a new EPI issue brief out this week, The Wal-Mart Effect and a new Change to Win report, Wal-Mart Locks In China, Locks Out American Workers.

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton believed that Wal-Mart could help “restore manufacturing capacity improve our national economy and renew our pride in American craftsmanship.”

But Wal-Mart claims it’s not an American company anymore: “We’re a global company and it is necessary to source globally to ensure that we meet the needs and wants of our customers,” says Wal-Mart spokesman David Tovar.

Today, China is the source for more than 70 percent of Wal-Mart’s U.S. merchandise.

At Wal-Mart stores in China, Canada, Mexico and England the story is very different.

* Wal-Mart buys 99% of the goods sold in its Chinese stores in China.
* Wal-Mart buys 80% of all the goods sold in its Canadian stores in Canada.
* Wal-Mart buys 93% of the merchandise sold in its Mexican stores from suppliers based in Mexico.
* In the U.K., Wal-Mart/Asda recently announced a major, “campaign to boost the beleaguered British clothing industry,” by “stocking an entire range of clothing made exclusively in the U.K."

Want to take action, click here to tell Wal-Mart, “It’s time to buy American again.”

Posted by Chris on June 28, 2007 at 11:37 AM | Permalink

[Yogi]

1. When Wal-Mart first came to town

I really liked them. “American Made” they said. Now I haven’t shopped there in years. From their sending jobs to China to there antiunion stance Wal-Mart is bad for America.

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

2. Too bad Obama is opting for the "job retraining" line and HRC is in bed with them n.t

[QC]

3. K&R! n/t

[OneBlueSky]

4. hard to "buy American" when America doesn't manufacture anything anymore . . .

although part of that is due to Wal-Mart's own purchasing policies . . .

[hootinholler]

5. The original Buy AMerican meant

Buy from the sweatshops in CNMI! Abramoff had the US Atty black fired over an investigation into the conditions.

-Hoot

[pingzing58]

6. Business is business. It's about the bottom line making money! No matter who gets hurt.

:sarcasm: