Anti-dismal has a post about how Wal-Mart is actually a pretty decent place to work, albeit with low pay.
The job was as dull as I expected, but I was stunned to discover how
benign the workplace turned out to be. My supervisor was friendly,
decent, and treated me as an equal. Wal-Mart allowed a liberal dress
code. The company explained precisely what it expected from its
employees, and adhered to this policy in every detail. I was
unfailingly reminded to take paid rest breaks, and was also encouraged
to take fully paid time, whenever I felt like it, to study topics...
etc. etc.
What is interesting is that he then talks disparagingly about the mom-and-pop stores that everyone is supposed to love. Good to get some balance on this issue. Having had a few arguments about refunds in these shops (but never a one at Wal-Mart) I have to agree.
In fact my favourite story about Wal-Mart is when we went to buy a lawn mower there. There were two old guys pushing 90 running the section and the till. They have a young thing 1/4 their age who was 10x faster on the till but knew nothing about lawn mowers. These two knew everything, and between them all they made a great (if hillarious) team. But anyway...a customer came in wheeling a lawnmower that he had bought some weeks prior and mowed his lawn with a few times. He decided he didn't want it anymore. They sent him to the refund desk, trailing grass all the way. As we left he was cheerfully getting a full refund. They would refund ANYTHING. In fact I'm sure most of it just went in the landfill out the back.
Liberals (in the US sense) love to look down on people who work at Wal-Mart and McDonalds. The use these workers for their minimum wage battles. They bash the companies as part of their war on the faceless multinational. They would never shop there themselves.
But this is the problem. By not shopping there, working there, owning shares, etc, by not being part of the Wal-Mart 'community' (I yes I hate that word too) they have no right to pass any information or comment on it. Nor do they have any sensible insights. And that's why they get it wrong.
Luckily for them, their readers agree with them, and don't work or shop there either. So everyone is happy, and no one gets found out. Until people like that above come along...
Instructions on how to say Wal-Mart for those who need them: Waaaarrrrrlllll-Marrrrrrt
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