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Walmart; Closing Union Store in Canada?
Topic Started: Feb 14 2005, 12:02 AM (839 Views)
brewster
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Winemaker Extraordinaire
There's really very little to discuss - I agree completely that Wal-Mart is free to do with their own stores as they see fit. If they want to claim that a marginal store has become a liability due to Union action, that's their perogative, what the heck, it's a free country.

Maybe they're not even lying, especially in their own eyes.

But it will not change the attitudes of the public, as expressed in the cartoons.

And the 200 minimum wage earners will find other minimum wage jobs fairly easily.
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DanHouck
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Land of Enchantment NM
Well, I hope the people do find jobs, but it sounds like that might be difficult. What is the minimum wage up there anyway?

Given the decidedly socialistic bent up there it doesn't surprise me in the least that this kind of one-sided simplistic lambasting of WalMart is going on. I'll just point out that they have been trying to come to terms with this union since September of last year. The union apparently feels that they should expect to be paid what they want, despite the fact it would make the store uneconomic.

In that event, there's no reason to keep it open, is there. WalMart is not in the business of operating losing stores because some union choses to disregard the economics of the business.

I think the union just showed WalMart why their position about unions makes a lot of sense. :)

Dan
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BuddyIAm
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It has been proven over the past few decades. Wage and union membership, are not the cause of most business failure..

It is either poor management Or cut throat competition..

When corporations become as large as WaMart. They begin to transform from their original purpose into a real-estate firm..

Taxes, maintenance (most cases these are handled by outside contractors) and overhead are the major costs. Labor has very little to do with it..

Management attempts to realign by adjusting employee benefits. Which of course causes dissent. Which leads to Corporate failure..

Companies DO NOT PROVIDE JOBS..

Employees provide the labor, for companies to survive..

AND EVERY EMPLOYEE, IS A PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYER/BUSINESS OWNER...
"The truth lies in a man's dreams... perhaps in this unhappy world of ours whose madness is better than a foolish sanity."
"Facts are stupid things." - Ronald Regan
"Ideas are more dangerous than guns. We don't let our people have guns. Why should we let them have ideas?" --Josef Stalin
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brewster
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Winemaker Extraordinaire
Being Pro-union or anti-Wal-Mart hardly means you have a "Socialistic Bent" - anyone living in a country willing to spend 3 times what we do on a Health Care System, plus everything your federal gov't is spending on social programs of various types, should be just a little careful with that term..

I don't think the AFL-CIO or Teamsters in Texas consider themselves socialist....

On Edit: Do you see Corky's new thread on Illegals?? Such a thing wouldn't be even CONSIDERED in Canada...
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TexasShadow
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Jane
I was raised in a republican house and married a democrat who worked about 35 years as a member of the IAM Union working for TWA and now AA(not IAM).

I can see there are good things about unions and bad things.
The good thing about a union is:
protection of the worker from whimsical managers who think they don't have to follow company policies or contracts.
that's a big one, because every corporation has a few managers and supervisors like this...petty little tyrants and rule breakers. that lesson is being made very clear to us with American Airlines, whose union is a company union.

a bad thing about unions is that they demand so much that eventually, they run the prices up, and the company can't compete so it closes its doors.

walmart has the right to fight against unionization, and might succeed at it because most of the workers are not skilled labor and there is a humongous pool of such labor just waiting for the chance to go to work there.
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jackd
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I have been following the Walmart saga in Quebec as it is almost in my backyard.
Store loosing money?: Bull...... The chief accountant of that particular store (he is non-unionized) quit his job the day after Walmart announced the closure. He said that store was in the average of other stores in Quebec in terms of sales and profitability and the reasons Walmart gave for the closure are totally unfounded. The only reason they closed the store is to defeat the union.
Walmart has been asked to supply the Quebec Labor Relation Board with their financial statements for this particular store. If they don't do it within the next 30 days, they are liable for a very steep fine, in addition a court order to supply the requested documents. Failure to follow the court order, they could see their Quebec operation be placed on guardianship by the court. (Can you imagine 24 walmart stores being operated by the government? :( )
During the last 5 days, employees of 12 other Walmart stores in Quebec have started organizing their union, 3 have already officially presented their "request for accreditation" to the labor board and 2 mores are already accredited.
Walmart is in very hot water in Quebec. They are being attacked from all angles by the government, the unions, the press, employees at most other stores have started their fights against walmart and more importantly, consumers are boycotting Walmart everywhere. A journalist counted a total 17 customers entering a Walmart store in Quebec City from 9:00AM to 6:00PM last Friday....
Walmart is poised to take a direct hit in Quebec. Walmart will learn not to mess with people from Quebec. :P
On edit: Local businesses in Jonquiere where the store is located are meeting tonight to see how they can incorporate the 172 laid-off employees within their businesses. The store may very close before the scheduled date (May 1st) as there will be no employee left.

Walmart in the news
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Walk behind me, I lead you
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TexasShadow
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Jane
jack d......
re walmart poised to take a big hit from quebec
yes, I think so, too, but we're talking about a mega billion dollar company here...so they can probably afford to take the hit.
question is: just how much can they afford to lose if the trend toward unionizing keeps going, not only in canada but elsewhere, too.
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DanHouck
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Land of Enchantment NM
Or more likely, WalMart will decide they don't need Quebec, a sentiment that is shared (from what I have seen on this and other boards) by more than a few other Canadians. :)

Dan
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jackd
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Texas: I'm sure Walmart will survive
Quote:
 
just how much can they afford to lose if the trend toward unionizing keeps going, not only in canada but elsewhere, too

A large number of corporations ( GM, Ford, Chrysler, Boeing, to name a few) manage to survive. walmart is certainly as smart and resourceful as any other company where union exist peacefully.

DanHouck: Walmart (and others thinking they don't need Quebec) have 2 choices.
1) adapt
or
2) run
Any of those 2 solutions are just fine.
Walk in front of me, you lead me,
Walk behind me, I lead you
Walk beside me, you are a friend.
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brewster
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Dan;

Canada without Quebec would not be Canada. We DO have our differences, but...

Put Massachusetts in the middle of Texas and you'd have years of entertainment... :box: :box: :box:

And they speak the same language! :floorrollin: :floorrollin:
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sylley2000
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Sylvia, Grand Bend ON
Walmart has a pretty lousy record for being fair to their workers.

Sylvia

Couldn't agree more Brew ... the French from Quebec need our support for this issue!!! They are pioneering something very important for our country. If the choice is between them and Walmart ... Bye Walmart ... you had no idea what you were doing in that province -- adapt or leave! And don't let the door hit you in the ass!!!
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brewster
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Sylley;
Quote:
 
Walmart has a pretty lousy record for being fair to their workers.

That's like saying the Asian Tsunami inconvenienced a few people...
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DanHouck
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Land of Enchantment NM
Quote:
 
Put Massachusetts in the middle of Texas and you'd have years of entertainment...


For sure!

Quote:
 
And they speak the same language!


Only marginally!

:)

Dan
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cmoehle
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Chris - San Antonio TX
"Put Massachusetts in the middle of Texas and you'd have years of entertainment..."

Connecticut close enough? Like New Haven. And, uh, Crawford?
Politics is the art of achieving the maximum amount of freedom for individuals that is consistent with the maintenance of social order.
--Barry Goldwater
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ImaHeadaU
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Vancouver, B.C., Canada
I'd join the boycott of Wall-Mart but I have been avoiding spending my money there for years already.
ImaHeadaU
Vancouver, B.C., Canada
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