Re: Say NO NO NO to Wal-Mart!!!

On Sun, 30 Nov 2003 21:58:22 -0800, jps <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

>In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, 
>[EMAIL PROTECTED] says...
>> On Fri, 28 Nov 2003 10:29:42 -0500, Harry Krause <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> wrote:
>> 
>> >Their employees are almost free...
>> 
>> They're totally free. Free to take the job, or turn it down.
>> 
>> Bob
>
>
>That's part of the problem.  They're offering so little the only ones 
>willing to step up are either the painfully impoverished or illegal 
>immigrants whose pay in dollars eclipses what they can earn at home.
>
>Walmart won't pay a living wage.  That's not letting market forces 
>determine the price paid for labor.  It's skirting the labor market at 
>the same time they play very aggressively in driving manufacturer's 
>prices down.
>
>It's not fair to use market forces on the purchasing side of the 
>equation while screwing labor on the other.
>
>jps


This is silly.  If Walmart were paying too little, people wouldn't
work there.  Sure, they may be hiring illegals (but look at what
happened when they tried to "clean house"--the ACLU started crying
"discrimination.").  But a lot of the people that work there are
highschoolers, have a source for second income ("retired" or have a
spouse that is the real wage-earner), have second jobs, etc.

Damn, we can't as a society start forcing companies to pay higher
wages.  You're only picking at Wal Mart (possibly because their size
makes a great target).  But the drivers at San Diego's Park and Ride
shuttle company make MINIMUM WAGE--and some of them have been working
there for 10 years(!)  Should we force Park and Ride to pay more too?
How about Baskin Robbins?  McDonalds?  

You see, there's nothing wrong with having a minimum minimum wage.  If
it's not enough, get a second job.  If that's not good enough, well,
then get an education in a trade that people are willing to pay more
than minimum wage for.