Unions and Walmart...
This is why I dislike unions: because they hire temps to picket Walmart.
Check this out:
They're not union members; they're temp workers employed through Allied Forces/Labor Express by the union—United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW). They're making $6 an hour, with no benefits; it's 104 F, and they're protesting the working conditions inside the new Wal-Mart grocery store.
Also:
But standing with a union-supplied sign on his shoulder that reads, Don't Shop WalMart: Below Area Standards, picketer and former Wal-Mart employee Sal Rivera says about the notorious working conditions of his former big-box employer: "I can't complain. It wasn't bad. They started paying me at $6.75, and after three months I was already getting $7, then I got Employee of the Month, and by the time I left (in less than one year), I was making $8.63 an hour." Rivera worked in maintenance and quit four years ago for personal reasons, he says. He would consider reapplying.
Okay, let's see. Working at Walmart? $8.63/hr. Working for a union as a temp? $6/hr.
And Walmart's evil? MMkay. At least they offer insurance to their employees:
For the least comprehensive medical coverage, Wal-Mart workers pay from $17.50 for individual coverage and $70.50 for family coverage biweekly, according to the company website.
Comments:
I'm not a union fan either, but Wal-Mart's way more evil. Some notes to consider:
- The temp would have to be picketing for a year for your $8.63:$6/hr comparison to be accurate. Wal-Mart would start the temp at $6.75. 75-cents is still more, but not much.
- If the union hired the temp they'd be paid $11/hr, jumping over the $8.63 the Wal-Mart guy made after a year.
- The "average rate of pay" quoted in the article is misleading and is typical Wal-Mart fact sheet spin. Store managers make very decent coin; the average employee makes squat. Median income data would be much more telling.
- Wal-Mart's employees are actually heavily subsidized by taxpayers:
"...a two-hundred-employee Wal-Mart store costs federal taxpayers $420,000 a year, or about $2,103 per Wal-Mart employee"
- While not exclusive to Wal-Mart, they certainly aren't helping to add domestic jobs, check this out for added exposure of Wal-Mart evilness.
Posted by Josh on September 15, 2005 — 9:26 AM
It worth noting, Josh, that as the client of the temp agency, the union has a level of control over what the temps are being paid. It's perfectly reasonable for them to stipulate that they want the temps to be paid at least X per hour or they'll take their business elsewhere. As long as they're willing to pay the bill rate that goes with it, they'll get what they want.
But they apparently don't care enough about the temps to ensure that, or that there are adequate facilities to get out of the sun or take a bathroom break.
Speaking of which, who the hell is this temp agency that placed these people? Where is their legal department? Must be one of the little mom-and-pop locals that doesn't have anyone to advise them on liability issues...
Posted by Tiffany on September 17, 2005 — 11:18 AM