Wal-Mart says no to living wage, leaving Washington D.C. - (Metro News)

Susan L Ruth

WASHINGTON, July 11, 2013 ?The country?s largest private employer dared WashingtonD.C. lawmakers to call their bluff. Just 24 hours before a key vote , executives and lobbyists? from Wal-Mart issued the following threat to D.C. council members ?try to force us to pay our employees a living wage, and we will not build stores in the District.?

The council was voting to pass a living wage bill, which would require retailers such as Wal-Mart, Lowes, Costco and Home Depot to pay higher wages to their employees. Wal-Mart?s plan was to pack up and leave, promising to cancel plans for at least three of the six Wal-Mart stores if the proposal becomes law. One lawmaker said it felt like Wal-Mart was ?sticking guns to council member?s heads?.

Still D.C. council members held their ground and voted 8-5 this afternoon to require retailers with corporate sales of $one billion or more and operating space of 75,000 sq ft or larger to pay their employees no less than $12.50 an hour.

That would equate to a $26,000 annual salary in a town listed as number 9 on a list of most expensive places to live in the country.

But the 8 votes still leaves the council one vote shy of being able to over ride a potential veto from D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, who has pushed Wal-Mart to plan stores in the city in underserved neighborhoods.

In a statement gray said ?I strongly urge the council to consider whether this legislation will actually promote strong economic development in The District and expand job opportunities for District residents.?

The Mayor is concerned that the bill will drive businesses such as Wal-Mart out of D.C.

This is not the first time Wal-Mart has gone up against a city government.

Almost seven years ago in Chicago, the city government passed a similar living wage bill and Wal-Mart threatened to cancel plans to open several new stores throughout the city. Mayor Richard Dailey stepped in and vetoed the bill.

Today, moments after the D.C. Council voted to pass the living wage bill, Wal-Mart announced the cancellation of plans to build the three new stores in the District of Columbia.

Wal-Mart in Chicago and now D.C. is trying hard to not set precedence in urban areas for higher living wages than they pay in rural areas despite the difference in living expenses in each area.

Wal-Mart has already saturated the rural market and they now need to move into urban areas if they want to continue to expand so although the slight difference in required pay in these few stores would not harm Wal-Mart?s bottom line in any way, if it become the expected level of pay in cities, it could cut into the profit in the long run.

There are currently no Wal-Mart stores in WashingtonD.C. and the planned stores would be a welcome addition in underserved neighborhoods. Two of the Wal-Mart?s planned stores are east of the AnacostiaRiver, an area which has long been short on retail as well as job opportunities.

But the giant retailers has a long history of complains from many groups including, labor unions, religious groups, community and environmental organizations.

Wal-Mart usually pays its employees a low enough wage that the average sales clerk earned an amount below the federal poverty line. It also regularly hires employees at 34 hours a week as to avoid paying out full time employee benefits. Because Wal-Mart employs part-time and relatively low paid workers, some workers may partially qualify for state welfare programs. This has led critics to claim that Wal-Mart increases the burden on taxpayer-funded services.

Wal-Mart has also faced accusations involving poor working conditions of its employees. For example, a 2005 class action lawsuit in Missouri asserted approximately 160,000 to 200,000 people who were forced to work off-the-clock, were denied overtime pay, or were not allowed to take rest and lunch breaks.

Some believe that Wal-Mart?s biggest crime is being successful. They feel Wal-Mart is an example of capitalism in a very pure form, and pure capitalism seems to chafe some Americans.

There are numerous other companies that could afford to pay their workers more and who do not but seem to avoid the same criticism.

People may complain about Wal-Mart, but they still shop there. When push comes to shove, many Americans put their high-minded morality to the side and simply go with the cheapest merchandise they can find.

Wal-Mart stores started an aggressive plan for moving into urban markets starting three years ago, but it continues to be a difficult road.

It has run up against the living wage bills in WashingtonD.C. and Chicago and New York mayoral candidate Christine Quinn said earlier this year that as long as the store?s behavior remains the same, they are not welcome in New York City.

When Wal-Mart decided to open stores in D.C. the retailer said it was committed to understanding the communities where it hopes to do business. The company has previously said it has participated in more than 200 community meetings and documented its commitment to ?help stimulate economic development, expand access to affordable groceries and create quality jobs in the city.

For now the future of Wal-Mart stores in WashingtonD.C. is in the hands of Mayor Vincent Gray.

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Source: http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/metro-news/2013/jul/13/wal-mart-says-no-living-wage-leaving-washington-dc/

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