Wal-mart Defends Controversial Food Drive For Employees

[CrossCuT]

We all know Wal Mart is kind of a stingy place. Yes it sells us essentials at super low prices, but its not new that they have been under scrutiny for low worker pay. Thats why their food drive for their employees struck such a chord with people recently.

I believe its definitely well intentioned, but it didnt seem come off to the public in the way they wanted it to.

 

 

 

 

"As Wal-Mart workers, we do come together and support each other, but we shouldn't have to collect food from or for each other when our employer is making $17 billion in profits. Wal-Mart should publicly commit to pay us $25,000 a year," said OUR Walmart's Tiffany Beroid. "We don't want handouts, we want an employer that pays us enough to cover Thanksgiving dinner for our families.”

 

http://www.today.com/news/wal-mart-defends-controversial-food-drive-employees-2D11618754

[blazeingstar]

Seriously?  Did you read the real story behind this?  This is for employees by employees to help out each other when some are hit hard.  Even if you make 100,000 a year caring for a sick kid, having you house burn down, loosing a parent is something that requires a caring hand. 

 

While you won't make it rich working at walmart, my brother, and several friends, have proven that if you work hard, and are somewhat intelligent you can make a living wage.  Unfortunately, Walmart often attracts undereducated, low common sense employees who are not capable of advancement and they are fine with that and paying them a low wage.

 

 

Edited November 19, 2013 by blazeingstar

[CrossCuT]

Seriously?  Did you read the real story behind this?  This is for employees by employees to help out each other when some are hit hard.  Even if you make 100,000 a year caring for a sick kid, having you house burn down, loosing a parent is something that requires a caring hand. 

 

I did read it haha, the reason its in the news is because its still ironic!

 

 

 

While you won't make it rich working at walmart, my brother, and several friends, have proven that if you work hard, and are somewhat intelligent you can make a living wage.  Unfortunately, Walmart often attracts undereducated, low common sense employees who are not capable of advancement and they are fine with that and paying them a low wage.

I think thats an extremely poor stereotype. Shame on you.

And even if it is true that doesnt justify paying workers a wage they cant even live on. People deserve dignity even if they are "undereducated" and "low common sense" as you put it. How sick

Edited November 19, 2013 by CrossCuT

[blazeingstar]

I did read it haha, the reason its in the news is because its still ironic!

 

I think thats an extremely poor stereotype. Shame on you.

And even if it is true that doesnt justify paying workers a wage they cant even live on. People deserve dignity even if they are "undereducated" and "low common sense" as you put it. How sick

 

They have this at MANY workplaces...its called EAP or employee assistance programs.  Many times they ask employees to give where the company cannot.  We all have heard the stories where employees donate vacation days so a pregnant woman can care for her mother who's dying of cancer and husband who returned from Iraq.  It happens ALL THE TIME.

 

What this really is is a skewing the whole "I deserve more than minimum wage" when in fact, they don't.  You want more money, you find a way to make more money.  If you are not intelligent enough to be a manager, then work 2 jobs.  That's the way things should work.  

[CrossCuT]

What this really is is a skewing the whole "I deserve more than minimum wage" when in fact, they don't.  You want more money, you find a way to make more money.  If you are not intelligent enough to be a manager, then work 2 jobs.  That's the way things should work.  

 

I dont like this mentality. Some people have disabilities and arent able to work at the same capacity as you or I. I dont believe they should be punished or lumped into a category of lazy in that they simply dont work hard enough for their living, the simple fact is that they arent paid enough. Why is it even right that a job would pay someone so low? Its not! I believe its immoral and against the dignity of the person. 

 

Even if they couldnt afford to go to college and get a fancy-shmancy degree, they should still be able to work a job and afford a roof over their head and clothes on their back. 

 

Why cant the world be filled with people who help eachother instead of just say "Work harder or too bad for you!!!"

Wheres the loving, caring christian attitude?

[blazeingstar]

I dont like this mentality. Some people have disabilities and arent able to work at the same capacity as you or I. I dont believe they should be punished or lumped into a category of lazy in that they simply dont work hard enough for their living, the simple fact is that they arent paid enough. Why is it even right that a job would pay someone so low? Its not! I believe its immoral and against the dignity of the person. 

 

Even if they couldnt afford to go to college and get a fancy-shmancy degree, they should still be able to work a job and afford a roof over their head and clothes on their back. 

 

Why cant the world be filled with people who help eachother instead of just say "Work harder or too bad for you!!!"

Wheres the loving, caring christian attitude?

 

 

Some people do have disabilities.  But should a doctor earn the same as a garbage collector?  Should someone running a cash register earn the same as someone offering financial advice?

 

Nope.

 

There are enough existing social supports for those with documented disabilities.  For those who aren't disabled but aren't capable of going to college they shouldn't just be paid more.  They want more money then they can work more.

 

I don't believe that it's against the dignity of a person to have the kind of wages we do in America.  You can't raise a family on minimum wage but you can live as a single person comfortably in most places in the US.  Minimum wage was never meant to support a family.  If two minimum wage earners marry and want children then they will have to figure out how to make that work for them.  

[CrossCuT]

 

Some people do have disabilities.  But should a doctor earn the same as a garbage collector?  Should someone running a cash register earn the same as someone offering financial advice?

 

Nope.

 

There are enough existing social supports for those with documented disabilities.  For those who aren't disabled but aren't capable of going to college they shouldn't just be paid more.  They want more money then they can work more.

 

I don't believe that it's against the dignity of a person to have the kind of wages we do in America.  You can't raise a family on minimum wage but you can live as a single person comfortably in most places in the US.  Minimum wage was never meant to support a family.  If two minimum wage earners marry and want children then they will have to figure out how to make that work for them.  

 

The problem is not that they deserve more than "the minimum" the problem is that the "minimum" is actually inhumane.

 

Nobody is arguing that the lowest level wal mart employee should make as much as a manager; what Im saying is that they should be earn a wage that is humane

 

the issue is not with who earns more than who, the issues is that the least amount of money you can possibly earn should always be enough to actually live

Edited November 19, 2013 by CrossCuT

[blazeingstar]

Also, the problem is not that they deserve more than "the minimum" the problem is that the "minimum" is actually inhumane.

 

Nobody is arguing that the lowest level wal mart employee should make as much as a manager; what Im saying is that they should be earn a wage that is humane

 

Seriously?  I don't think minimum wage is "inhumane"  it's not fair, its not a lot, but with either hard work or some know how it's typically not permanent, either.  What is inhumane is people who insist that it be raised and raised to the point that those who actually work hard are earning the same.

[CrossCuT]

Seriously?  I don't think minimum wage is "inhumane"  it's not fair, its not a lot, but with either hard work or some know how it's typically not permanent, either.  What is inhumane is people who insist that it be raised and raised to the point that those who actually work hard are earning the same.

 

So youre assuming that people who work in low skill jobs dont work hard? Because if they did work hard, they wouldn't be at a low skilled job?

 

And if the wage isnt inhumane why would they have to worker harder than you with two or three jobs to make a living wage?

Edited November 19, 2013 by CrossCuT

[KnightofChrist]

One will never become rich or well off working at Walmart, it's a poor man's job. They have low wage jobs because they have low-skill and education requirements for the jobs they offer, so most anyone can do any job there. Med to high wage jobs go to workers with med to high levels of education and who have med to high level of skills. The lesson from cold hard reality of this is if you go into a job field that requires little to no prior skills, little to no education and that most anyone can do, and many people apply for (many who would also likely ask for less than you would) it will reslut in low wage jobs. They are going to need help during hard times, and we should as a people help them rather than pass the buck.

 

Anyway I think it's a little sad that people are asking for help and instead of there being a movement of "how can I help?" there is on of "Why ask me, Walmart should pay you more."

[CrossCuT]

One will never become rich or well off working at Walmart, it's a poor man's job. They have low wage jobs because they have low-skill and education requirements for the jobs they offer, so most anyone can do any job there. Med to high wage jobs go to workers with med to high levels of education and who have med to high level of skills. The lesson from cold hard reality of this is if you go into a job field that requires little to no prior skills, little to no education and that most anyone can do, and many people apply for (many who would also likely ask for less than you would) it will reslut in low wage jobs. They are going to need help during hard times, and we should as a people help them rather than pass the buck.

 

Anyway I think it's a little sad that people are asking for help and instead of there being a movement of "how can I help?" there is on of "Why ask me, Walmart should pay you more."

 

Im not suggested they get paid 100k a year to be rich of a wal mart cashier job. Im suggested they get paid enough to get by without having to go on good stamps or other government aid. 

If you have to work a million jobs to afford a house/rent, car, clothes, food etc...the BASICS...then its not a fair pay.

 

And you know why people dont help? Because everyone in this world is selfish. Wal mart should not rely on the charity of the public to take care of their own workers.

Edited November 19, 2013 by CrossCuT

[Gabriela]

CrossCut: I absolutely agree with you here. And I'm not trying to open an old argument, but I do just want to point out that the argument you are making here about wages for the (financially) disadvantaged is the same argument I was making in the HPV thread for the (educationally) disadvantaged. Again, I don't bring that up to re-ignite that debate, but only to point out that, essentially, I think we were on the same side all along.

 

To the others: I second CrossCut's point that, regardless of the purpose of this food drive, it is well known that Wal-Mart does not pay a living wage to most workers. To assume that people working for Wal-Mart don't work hard is to misplace the blame for fundamental economic inequalities (not of the legitimate kind, like doctors vs. garbage collectors, but of the illegitimate kind, like unjustifiably ginormous income gaps between classes) on those who have no power to correct or fight them. If you are still laboring under the illusion that working hard can help you climb the ladder to wealth in the US, you are living in a dead American myth. Yes, there are sometimes exceptions even today. But "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps" today is a very different beast than it was just half a century ago. We have passed from a Fordist economy in which that was almost always possible to a post-Fordist economy in which it is almost never possible. Nowadays, one requires money to make money. In order for the (HARD working!) poor to rise above their poverty these days, they will require the cooperation of the better-off. If we won't fight for them, they're gonna' be stuck. And morally speaking, I think it can be said that we are to blame for that.

[blazeingstar]

Im not suggested they get paid 100k a year to be rich of a wal mart cashier job. Im suggested they get paid enough to get by without having to go on good stamps or other government aid. 

If you have to work a million jobs to afford a house/rent, car, clothes, food etc...the BASICS...then its not a fair pay.

 

And you know why people dont help? Because everyone in this world is selfish. Wal mart should not rely on the charity of the public to take care of their own workers.

 

Or, if they want kids they can find a job that pays more.  Or they can work more.  You don't need to work "a million jobs" but you may have to work 50-60 hours.  Considering that many retail jobs managers are salaray and earn $15 an hour on paper but work 60-70 hours, I don't see why the hourly workers who are only there limited hours deserve to essentially earn more than them.

 

Walmart is not "relying on the public".  It hires handicapped greeters who probably are on public assistance which is fine, but the onus for fully capable employees to make more is on the employees, not walmart.

 

As far as the donation bins...companies do this ALL THE TIME. Big companies, little companies.  People take up collections around the office when someone's house burns down or to help a new mom.  This is not something new.

[blazeingstar]

CrossCut: I absolutely agree with you here. And I'm not trying to open an old argument, but I do just want to point out that the argument you are making here about wages for the (financially) disadvantaged is the same argument I was making in the HPV thread for the (educationally) disadvantaged. Again, I don't bring that up to re-ignite that debate, but only to point out that, essentially, I think we were on the same side all along.

 

To the others: I second CrossCut's point that, regardless of the purpose of this food drive, it is well known that Wal-Mart does not pay a living wage to most workers. To assume that people working for Wal-Mart don't work hard is to misplace the blame for fundamental economic inequalities (not of the legitimate kind, like doctors vs. garbage collectors, but of the illegitimate kind, like unjustifiably ginormous income gaps between classes) on those who have no power to correct or fight them. If you are still laboring under the illusion that working hard can help you climb the ladder to wealth in the US, you are living in a dead American myth. Yes, there are sometimes exceptions even today. But "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps" today is a very different beast than it was just half a century ago. We have passed from a Fordist economy in which that was almost always possible to a post-Fordist economy in which it is almost never possible. Nowadays, one requires money to make money. In order for the (HARD working!) poor to rise above their poverty these days, they will require the cooperation of the better-off. If we won't fight for them, they're gonna' be stuck. And morally speaking, I think it can be said that we are to blame for that.

 

 

So myself, my friends and many "first gen" college students which I was and I help are all anomalies?  

Sorry, not buying it.  With the free aid and low interest loans to students who go to College....much of it grants (which used wisely can get you through atleast an associates) there is no excuse for not making yourself better.

 

Is working hard different?  Yes.  But it's still hard work.  People now adays just aren't as willing to do it.

[arfink]

I think the point many people miss is that as Catholics we are expected under pain of sin to have a fundamental option for the poor. We do not have a right to unlimited profit just because we can find undereducated people who will work for a wage that nobody can live on. That people will allow themselves to be treated this badly (as Blazingstar implies by saying that these people are unwilling to better themselves) does not mean that we should take advantage of that.

 

Walmart has profits into the billions. They have no excuse for this kind of behavior, no matter what their employees are actually like.