[CanadianJeff]

He is right though Wal-Mart lives or dies by it's ability to pump out Chinese plastic and fabric at rock bottom prices. The most expensive part of their operation is easily the amount they have to pay their employees in the US and Canada. If they couldn't offer the absolute cheapest price they would fall apart.

I mean think about the kind of service you get at all mart if you go to the pet department or the car department. No one has any clue what anything they are selling is or how it compares to other products. They just know that it's cheaper. I've never found a single person in their stores who has any idea what the products they sell are in comparison to other similar products.

You can't deny that a union demanding livable wages would kill Wal-Mart in an instant. Same with Tim Horton's. It's why I avoid shopping at places that pay employees min wage or near close to like the plague.

[Brenda]

To cut costs, they could fire the Greeters, half of the stupid ass employees that work there, that can't stock shelves anyway, and half of the cashiers and service desk people.

All I see them do here is chat. Why would you need 5 people at the clothing department, talking to eachother?

[BartSimpson]

Brenda Brenda:

To cut costs, they could fire the Greeters, half of the stupid ass employees that work there, that can't stock shelves anyway, and half of the cashiers and service desk people.

All I see them do here is chat. Why would you need 5 people at the clothing department, talking to eachother?

Would you work any harder for what they get paid?

[EyeBrock]

CanadianJeff CanadianJeff:

He is right though Wal-Mart lives or dies by it's ability to pump out Chinese plastic and fabric at rock bottom prices. The most expensive part of their operation is easily the amount they have to pay their employees in the US and Canada. If they couldn't offer the absolute cheapest price they would fall apart.

I mean think about the kind of service you get at all mart if you go to the pet department or the car department. No one has any clue what anything they are selling is or how it compares to other products. They just know that it's cheaper. I've never found a single person in their stores who has any idea what the products they sell are in comparison to other similar products.

You can't deny that a union demanding livable wages would kill Wal-Mart in an instant. Same with Tim Horton's. It's why I avoid shopping at places that pay employees min wage or near close to like the plague.

So why hasn't it been done? Unions in the 21st century are left wing orgs that whine about management, want over-inflated hourly wages and usually run business's to the ground.
Check out what they did to the North American auto industry. People sticking bolts on with grade 11 earning more than paramedics.

Crap cars. Bad business model.

[Brenda]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Brenda Brenda:

To cut costs, they could fire the Greeters, half of the stupid ass employees that work there, that can't stock shelves anyway, and half of the cashiers and service desk people.

All I see them do here is chat. Why would you need 5 people at the clothing department, talking to eachother?

Would you work any harder for what they get paid?

Nope. Although a $10/hr job is pretty common in my neck of the woods.

[EyeBrock]

Time to move Brenda. My kid earns more than that.

[Brenda]

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

Time to move Brenda. My kid earns more than that.

I know. I can't wait to get out of this hellhole.

A secretary earns $16/hr Legal assistant: $13/hr...

[CanadianJeff]

Why hasn't what been done? It's not clear what part your responding to.

I agree about the union bit though. Personally I'm not a huge fan of my union and reading any of their newsletters makes me really sick.

For example Bush recently came to Saskatoon to put on a speech. The union newsletter (despite the topic having no relevance to work) put out a hate article claiming that 100,000 dollars profit was made but 500,000 was spent on security and such so Bush's sponsors should pay the remainder out of pocket.

Now I'm not a Bush fan but this article made me want to demand they present the source for their numbers for one and for two to make clear if they respected the ideas of free speech or not. It got me pretty upset they thought they had the right to put this kind of garbage in a letter that should be focusing on our jobs and wages.

Yeah I'd say their a little left wing. But I'd also say that politics has no place in a union. They should be focusing on our work and not trying to preach to us.

[Brenda]

Politics shouldn't have a place in a union. BUT, and that is the scary part, as far as I am concerned, a lot of union leaders become politicians. Or even Prime Ministers... At least, in The Netherlands, they do...

[ASLplease]

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

So why hasn't it been done? Unions in the 21st century are left wing orgs that whine about management, want over-inflated hourly wages and usually run business's to the ground.
Check out what they did to the North American auto industry. People sticking bolts on with grade 11 earning more than paramedics.

Crap cars. Bad business model.

regardless what you think unions are or aren't, they exist in J. quebec. They exist in Walmarts competition.

When opening a Walmart in China, Walmart recognizes the need to have a fish market.

When in J. Quebec, the employees expressed their need to have a union...Walmart put their tail between their legs and ran away.

[ASLplease]

Brenda Brenda:

Politics shouldn't have a place in a union. BUT, and that is the scary part, as far as I am concerned, a lot of union leaders become politicians. Or even Prime Ministers... At least, in The Netherlands, they do...

I'm not convinced. Unions in their purest form, represent the people. Politicians in their purest form, represent the people. I think the flaws in both lies elsewhere.

[PublicAnimalNo9]

Zipperfish Zipperfish:

Exactly. And it's because of attitudes like that that unions exist. Why should you, as a business owner, be told what to do? Well, maybe you should do a little research and see what life was like during the Industrial revolution before unions. When you could go to jail for trying to quit your job. When they worked kids in the coal mines until they dropped dead.

Sure--it was a banner time to be business owner back then. They really DID have the god given right to do whatever they wanted with their business. And they used every bit of it.

Then the unions came along. At first labour organizers were beaten or killed by government agents or company-hired goons. But still they came, and the government eventually realized they would have to reckon with the unions.

Zip, I really didn't need the lecture on the formation of unions. I know the how and why. But this ain't the industrial revolution. The problem now is, the gov't doesn't reckon with the unions any more. They've left the unions to do whatever THEY want. Now striking workers think THEY have the God given right to assault people, threaten people, impede or halt traffic completely, disrupt lives and jobs of people that have NOTHING to do with their jobs, but I guess that's ok with you. Yet if a business owner tried to pull that shit off, I bet you'd be screaming bloody murder about it.

[ASLplease]

Thats an interesting post, but this thread is about a company that put their tail between their legs and ran away. IMHO, they have that right. But I am still calling it for what it is.

[PublicAnimalNo9]

CanadianJeff CanadianJeff:

If businesses started treating their employees like the factory then by all means I"m there 110% in regards to my wanting to do business with that company. I appreciate and go out of my way to do business with places that follow the same values I do.

Also your business I'm wagering was not doing over 10 billion dollars each year in profit and employing 1.4 million people. When your doing that kind of profit I don't think it's unrealistic for employees to think that they deserve a livable wage.

Frankly I don't see you as the kind of person who would pay people less then they need to live. You'll forgive me when I say that businesses like yours are not the problem at all they are the example of what to do.

It's companies that pay rock bottom wages, use 3rd world labor and deliver second rate quality like Wal-Mart that shouldn't be too amazed when someone sues.

This is part of what I'm talking about. Even in companies that DO treat their employees fairly, the unions still squawk and complain about unfair tactics when they're not let in. This is pretty good proof to me that unions don't give a shit about the workers anymore, they just like the union dues.
As far as this particualr case goes, Wal-mart may be making BIG money but, the retail sector has always been a minimum wage sector. This isn't exactly a state secret.
IF you want a livable wage, don't apply for jobs that you KNOW to be minimum wage jobs.
If you want to buy a brand new Jeep, you don't go to Ford dealership to get one.
If you wanna make $20/hr or more, you don't apply to Wal-Mart, or Zellers or the Bay etc.

[EyeBrock]

ASLplease ASLplease:

EyeBrock EyeBrock:

So why hasn't it been done? Unions in the 21st century are left wing orgs that whine about management, want over-inflated hourly wages and usually run business's to the ground.
Check out what they did to the North American auto industry. People sticking bolts on with grade 11 earning more than paramedics.

Crap cars. Bad business model.

regardless what you think unions are or aren't, they exist in J. quebec. They exist in Walmarts competition.

When opening a Walmart in China, Walmart recognizes the need to have a fish market.

When in J. Quebec, the employees expressed their need to have a union...Walmart put their tail between their legs and ran away.

So the union guys misjudged the situation, nothing new there. We have union leaders in Ontario who think they are the unelected opposition. My old man was a big union guy and I'm well briefed on what unions do.
I agree there is a need for them but they killed the auto-industry.

Look at Toronto’s recent garbage strike and the excessive wages paid to unskilled labour that is funded by tax-payers.

Wal-Mart did the right thing. Being blackmailed by organised labour is so 1960's.