In his push for clean energy Obama used a Walmart store as the site for a speech because the retailer supports solar energy … bad move. He riled up the narrow-minded, intolerant, uncompromising left wingers (and they are not even Republicans) who once again focus not on the problem of low-skilled workers, but on the symptom of that state.
“Wal-Mart is one of the nation’s largest and worst employers – low wages, unreliable hours, few benefits, discrimination against women, and anti-union,” said former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich in a Facebook posting.
In a post entitled “Department of Ill-Advised Photo Opportunities,” Reich asked: “What numbskull in the White House arranged this?”
Reich can’t even spell Walmart correctly.
Even some current employees who apparently hate their employer came out of the woodwork to criticize the President.
Let’s see, crummy benefits, low pay, discrimination against women, lousy hours … why does anyone work at Walmart? Why don’t they just take their skills and market themselves to a new employer for more money and better benefits? Could it be many of these people are low skilled with not much to offer a new employer?
Why would a worker stay at such a horrible place year after year? Oh I know, it’s hard to find a new job these days. Well, Walmart opened its first store in 1962 so there have been a lot of years for people to stop seeking employment there. And there have been a lot of years for people who hate Walmart to stop shopping there. Although I suspect the most ardent foes have rarely, if ever shopped in a Walmart. Have you ever met a person who didn’t complain about their employer, their pay and their benefits? I managed a very good benefits program for over forty-years and I regularly had employees complain about their lousy benefits and I never met an employee who didn’t think he was underpaid, me included at times.
The fact is Walmart sells stuff a lot cheaper than other stores, it badgers suppliers for low prices, it tightly manages its workforce expenses and that results in low prices and yes, profits. Those low prices are not only attractive, but quite important to a lot of Americans. So, if you want Walmart to pay a minimum $15.00 an hour, to have all full-time workers and to improve its benefits package, tell its customers what all that means for their weekly grocery bill.
You expect a health care analogy? Here it is, if you want low premiums expect high deductibles, high co-pays and higher total out-of-pocket costs and a limited choice of health care providers. 💰
If you don’t like Walmart, don’t shop there and don’t work there, it’s quite simple. I dare say everything Walmart sells can be purchased somewhere else. Given I have never purchased anything in a Walmart, that must be true.
P.S. Walmart’s profit margin in the most recent period was 3.36% decidedly at the lower end of the Fortune 500 and considerably lower than your local utility. Its profit dollars come from volume and its volume is high BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE SHOP AT WALMART AND BUY A LOT OF STUFF
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
Dick, Thanks again. I shop at two very successful national retailers who have outlets not more than a few miles from one another here in the western side of the Puget Sound, Walmart and Costco. They have very different business models, but both are successful at competing against one another.
Costco has “in store brands”, very limited selection of each product and number of different products and most often sells “jumbo sized” quantities. Walmart has few “in store brands”, has a very wide selection of each product and number of different products, and sells normal sized packages.
Both are non-union. Costco pays workers considerably more. Costco workers tend to be much younger, appear healthier and move faster. Costco in other words has more productive employees per unit of sales. Walmart hires employees who work just as hard, but in general have fewer skills.
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