# In case you weren't already mad at Wal-Mart
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [November 24, 2002, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483 "2002-11-24T15:01:19Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/1 "2002-11-24T15:01:19Z")
[Always in court, Always Wal-Mart](http://www.now.org/press/11-02/11-18.html)
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### Author:  [@David\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_B)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/2 "2002-11-24T15:15:52Z")
From the article:
> [@](#):
>
> There are over 3,200 Wal-Marts in the United States. Behind those walls, there are over 900,000 employees. Nationwide, two-thirds of the low-paid “sales associates” are women, while two-thirds of the management employees are men, and not surprisingly, 90% of the store managers are men as well.
And how many of those women have college degrees (or, hell, high school diplomas)? And how many of those men do? I find it odd that this isn’t mentioned…
I also find it odd that a subject that’s likely to provoke debate was posted in MPSIMS rather than GD…
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### Author:  [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/3 "2002-11-24T16:17:42Z")
Well, as soon as **Zyada** tells us _what_ she wants to debate, I’ll be the first to shoot it your way, **David**. 😉
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### Author:  [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/4 "2002-11-24T16:23:59Z")
Not if I beat you to it, **Coldie**.
[sub]Now I just gotta figure out a way…[/sub]
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### Author:  [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/5 "2002-11-24T16:29:30Z")
This does raise some interesting gender-equity issues, such as equitable opportunity for both genders given similar educational levels, as well as equal pay for equal work and providing affordable benefits for employees.
Just my $.02.
Robin
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### Author:  [@lee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lee)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/6 "2002-11-24T16:50:05Z")
The reports that I saw on television said that in comparison with similar retail chains, i.e. target and K-Mart, Wal-Mart’s record for promoting and hiring women as upper management is much poorer. It is not often the EEOC takes a strong stand in an individual case as they have done in the major one currently going on. I’ll look for the case.
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### Author:  [@Bob55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob55)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/7 "2002-11-24T17:13:59Z")
It is an emotional article, but anything coming from NOW is hard to believe. They are a very biased organization who have, in my opinion, set women back, not advanced their cause. Especially when they have to bring abortion into everything to get their way (as they did with this article).
If there are discrepancies in pay/promotions based on education at Walmart (as David B said, college degrees weren’t mentioned) then Walmart should be held accountable, but I just can’t see NOW as an unbiased, reliable source.
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### Author:  [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/8 "2002-11-24T17:26:42Z")
How much should insurance cost for people on the edge of a decent wage? The provision of additional benefits costs a lot of money. As an independent contractor ( R.E. agent) it costs me 3,200 a year for myself, a 44 year old male with two kids 15 and 12 all healthy, \*with a 2,500 deductible\*.
The primary Walmart worker bee economic cohort of lower middle class people (and primary female) is absolutely loaded with health problems. **How** are you going to make insurance and co-pays affordable for people making $ 6.10 an hour as adults? Pay them more? Increase benefits? Take a charge against earnings? What is your proposed plan of action?
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### Author:  [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/9 "2002-11-24T17:31:05Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by astro \*
> _with a $ 2,500 deductible_ per person.
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### Author:  [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/10 "2002-11-24T18:03:36Z")
What’s the matter, David? Getting boring in GD and you want more work?
My intent was to share an article I found of interest. I don’t expect or feel the need for people to agree with the article - hell, I can argue with the title and some of the points myself. I would hope that people can keep from getting too argumentative so that some of the people who would be interested in this but don’t go to GD can still see it.
As for your point - well, I could see that, I wouldn’t even be surprised. But I would still question their hiring practices, since I can’t believe there is that much of a difference in the general population between the number of men and women getting degrees. It still sounds like they are hiring (degreed) men to be managers and (undegreed) women to be grunts.
But that’s just my opinion.
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### Author:  [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/11 "2002-11-24T18:24:56Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Zyada \*
> \*\* But I would still question their hiring practices, since I can’t believe there is that much of a difference in the general population between the number of men and women getting degrees. It still sounds like they are hiring (degreed) men to be managers and (undegreed) women to be grunts.
>
> But that’s just my opinion. \*\*
Who applies for the jobs?
I almost always see women filling out the applications.
Got tow women in my family that work at W_W. Yepper, W_W sucks rocks, but they went and applied, were not recruited.
It is a lot worse in W\*W that this article even begins to imply.
We, the consumer allow it because we can’t / won’t refuse to buy there.
A union start requires a lot of people to get together and refuse to work and keep others form working while they strike and not break a lot of laws while doing so and it really is best if the society is in agreement or at least sympathetic and I don’t see all these things coming together. YMMV
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### Author:  [@cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cherry)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/12 "2002-11-24T18:26:53Z")
I remember when a union was formed at a grocery store where I worked under UFCW. It was all hush hush, you signed some card and then well I’m not sure what else happened but we had a union after that. Is it hard to organize one in Walmart stores in general?
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### Author:  [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/13 "2002-11-24T18:33:12Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by astro \*
> \*_How much should insurance cost for people on the edge of a decent wage? The provision of additional benefits costs a lot of money. As an independent contractor ( R.E. agent) it costs me 3,200 a year for myself, a 44 year old male with two kids 15 and 12 all healthy, \*with a 2,500 deductible_.
>
> The primary Walmart worker bee economic cohort of lower middle class people (and primary female) is absolutely loaded with health problems. **How** are you going to make insurance and co-pays affordable for people making $ 6.10 an hour as adults? Pay them more? Increase benefits? Take a charge against earnings? What is your proposed plan of action? \*\*
The difference here is that you’re three people, not tens of thousands that Wal-Mart employs. With that kind of volume, it shouldn’t be that hard to make insurance more affordable.
Robin
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### Author:  [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/14 "2002-11-24T18:35:44Z")
Walmart has a rep as a union buster.
**Bob55** , there was not a thing said about abortion. They were talking about BIRTH CONTROL, and mentioned the morning after pill-in case of rape?
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### Author:  [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/15 "2002-11-24T18:58:35Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by MsRobyn \*
> \*\*The difference here is that you’re three people, not tens of thousands that Wal-Mart employs. With that kind of volume, it shouldn’t be that hard to make insurance more affordable.
>
> Robin \*\*
Actually Walmart employs _hundreds_ of thousands of people (many being paid near minimum wage) so if this is a power in numbers issue Walmart should have no problem providing affordable insurance.
I think the problem is that the typical in store worker bee at Walmart is not likely to be a young, heart healthy aerobicizer, educated about proper eating and exercise habits, but rather a medium young to middle ageish, lower middle class female with a relatively unhealthy lifestyle and a potential host of incipient health issues. I would see “power in numbers” aspect for the types of employees Walmart hires as proles is likely to be a negative power and not a benefical one. But I’m just guessing.
From an actuarial perspective how do you provide affordable health insurance to a not particularily desirable risk group?
From
[Site for Social Action](http://pweb.jps.net/~dcasner/SFSAWalMartPage.html)
> [@](#):
>
> WalMart employs approximately 720,000 people. Of that number, A MAJORITY of them QUALIFY FOR FOOD STAMPS. Yes folks, you, me, all of us, are providing welfare to a majority of WalMart employees, and in essence to WalMart itself. That means that WalMart is responsible for providing poverty level wages to at least 360,000 workers, and their families…but the number is much larger. And the figure includes not just part-time employees, but all full-time employees, as well.
>
> WalMart also provides NO affordable Health-Care
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### Author:  [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)
#### Post date: [November 24, 2002, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/16 "2002-11-24T19:26:34Z")
I already boycott WalMart, just because I can’t stand their stupid ads. I’m doing my part!
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### Author:  [@Bob55](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob55)
#### Post date: [November 25, 2002, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/17 "2002-11-25T03:38:26Z")
Guinastasia, in some people’s opinion the morning after pill is abortion, and they seemed to just play the “rape” card for effect. Personally I’m pro-choice, but I was just pointing out a flaw in their argument. At least something that in my mind weakens their case - their main point was to emphasize how Walmart is biased against women.
Not providing the morning after pill is their choice as a coorporation, and even if they did provide it they’d be biased against people who are pro-life…is this what NOW wants? Selective bias, so long as it’s not against them? I could also make the case that not offering the morning after pill affects men as well as women.
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### Author:  [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)
#### Post date: [November 25, 2002, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/18 "2002-11-25T03:59:56Z")
After reading [this book](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0805063897/ref=nosim/portraitartis-20) which chronicles some of the adventures of working at WalMart, I can believe almost any evil thing about them.
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### Author:  [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)
#### Post date: [November 25, 2002, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/19 "2002-11-25T04:25:29Z")
> [@](#):
>
> to let consumers know what Wal-Mart, the most-sued company in America,
I’d really like to see a cite for this statement. Sure, it is one of the most profitable businesses as well as frequently visited, so are the lawsuits from customers filing slip and fall accident claims and trying to cash in on the big name-big buck legal jackpot or from malicious corporate megalamanical policy?
> [@](#):
>
> . We are targeting them for being a model of corporate greed.
Ahhhhh, must be Sweeps Week.
I don’t really like Walmart. I think their product line is crap (Kids clothes aren’t half bad) and they personally have made an issue of putting perky greeters at their doors that I am forced to smile and say hi too like they are my Great Aunt Edna.
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### Author:  [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)
#### Post date: [November 25, 2002, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-case-you-werent-already-mad-at-wal-mart/138483/20 "2002-11-25T04:28:13Z")
\*\*Zyada \*\* I think I will start a boycott of Walmart.
I’ve brought Kmart to it’s financial knees. I’ve been working on taking out Starbucks for years. One more boycott will be no problem, now that I know most of the evil that lurks behind the corporate doors.
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