Oh I need help. Does anyone have anything on Wal Mart employee's needing Gov assistance?

[LaydeeBug]

seriously.

[Brainstormy]

1. from one report

At Wal-Mart Stores Inc. wages are so low they force many of its employees onto the public doles, creating a drag on taxpayers and the economy, according to a new report from the staff of congressional Democrats.
The report analyzes data from Wisconsin's Medicaid program, estimating that a single 300-person Wal-Mart Supercenter in that state likely costs taxpayers at least $904,542 per year and could cost up to $1,744,590 per year, or roughly $5,815 per employee.

From <http://articles.latimes.com/2013/jun/07/business/la-fi-wal-mart-wages-20130607>

[JayhawkSD]

2. And what does it cost the state to have those people remain unemployed?

[LaydeeBug]

5. so this means we should subsidize corporatists? nt

[JayhawkSD]

9. No, I'm talking about dollars and cents.

Which is better?
The government pays out $350/week in unemployment to people with no jobs at all?
or the government pays out $150/week in food stamps to people with low paying jobs?

Forget liberal, conservative, corporatists, subsidizing... All that crap. All those buzz words and labels.
I'm talking about the burden that falls on the taxpayer.
Is the taxpayer better off paying out $350 per week or $150 per week?

[LaydeeBug]

11. Your arm chair econ theory ONLY takes dollars into account

and that's where it's flawed

This is silly.

[JayhawkSD]

14. So what is your point?

We should pay higher taxes purely in the name if liberalism?
People should go jobless and we should pay higher taxes to punish Walmart?
What is the principle you are espousing?

I am not inclined to have my taxes go up merely so that you can feel good calling yourself a liberal.

I am not willing to have my taxes go up because some crusaders drove Walmart out of town and in the process eliminated a bunch of jobs that could have reduced the unemployment situation. Even if that reduction was not perfect it was a reduction, but because it did not meet your "liberal" labels of perfection you rejected it.

If you are freezing to death and could not afford the $300 down filled kapok jacket that kept you perfectly warm, would you reject a barrel with a fire in it that would at least take the edge off, or would you reject that fire and stand out in the cold?

Sure, I'd rather have Walmart pay $45 per hour to their workers, but they aren't going to do that. Lacking what I want to have happen, I think we should accept what does happen and take the reduction that they do provide in the burden on our social safety net.

So, even though for all you know I agree with you on every other point in the political arena, call me a right wing liar because I do not agree with you on one single point. That is real liberal thinking.

[Justice]

15. And you know why Walmart doesn't pay the difference? Because they use government to do it for them

Why shouldn't Walmart pay the difference? Why the heck should government subsidize Walmart?

Why shouldn't Walmart be assessed some sort of penalty for not paying people a living wage?

Walmart has plenty of $$$$ to do so.

This is "reallocation" - instead of Walmart paying its workers, it pays its shareholders.

[JayhawkSD]

16. If you are interested in any actual facts...

Walmart operated at a 3.4% profit margin in the first half of 2013.
That is poor for retail, which usually runs 5% to 7% margin.

They paid a dividend of $1.88 per share, valued at $16.50, which represents an 11% return on investment.
That return is decent but not great. If they reduce it shares will drop in value.

[LaydeeBug]

17. So?

nt

[JayhawkSD]

20. I was responding to...

"Walmart has plenty of $$$$ to do so."
A 3.5% profit margin is "plenty of $$$$" is it?

and

"This is "reallocation" - instead of Walmart paying its workers, it pays its shareholders."
A return of 11% on equity is a decent return, but very far from lavish.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

31. Care to say how much money that translates to? Pretty sure it's a

massive amount. They can afford to pay their workers more. They are too greedy to. They should pay enough that the government doesn't need to subsidize their employees.

[Sheepshank]

22. The usual profit margin is modeled at 6%...they are having a bad couple of quarters

Cosco business model is actually based on a 2% profit margin.

Your presumtion that WalMart deserves on going public subidies to provide healthcare to it's employees is absured.

[modrepub]

26. Profit margins

for mature corporations are on the order of 2-3% from what my friend told me (VP in big construction company). It might be an interesting experiment to stop workers from receiving government subsidies, but with all the guns out there coupled with angry people in general I would not want to be around if this happens.

Oh, and for the record, I'm not a fan of helping corporations maintain their profitability using tax payer money. If you truly believe in the capitalist system then those (mature) businesses that can't turn a profit need to exit the market and be replaced with businesses that can.

[Sheepshank]

28. many are....but Walmart and Target attempt 5-6% business model

I imagine that retailers are on a different business model than other businesses? I don't know how else to account for your friend's statement.

As I had mentioned, these Target and WalMart retailers are falling short because of reduced consumer spending and the quarterly numbers reflect that. But it doesn't mean their business model isn't still trying to increase that margin. Here are some actual 2012 numbers. http://buildinvestgrow.com/2013/03/16/big-box-retailers-membership-fees-and-profitability-costco-wal-mart-target/

2012 Annual Net Profit Margin
Costco 1.90%
Target 4.09%
Wal Mart 3.50%

2012 Gross Margin
Costco 9.49%
Target 30.37%
Wal Mart 25%

[modrepub]

29. Interesting

We are only talking percentages here and not real money figures. But Costco falls within my friend's range (and his company was dealing with moneys in the $Bs range. I have to wonder if Target and Wal Mart payed living wages similar to what I've heard Costco does if their net profit margins would be in line with the 2-3% range my friend told me.

Of course with numbers like this, the market will reward companies like Wal Mart and Target with higher stock prices and punish companies like Costco that appear to pay living wages. Another reason why I'm generally wary of "free market" supporters.

[Orsino]

19. Fox framing.

Best is to require that some of the free money shipped back to the Bentonville heirs instead be diverted back to the wages of local workers. It's how economies are built.

Wal-Mart is the aberration, undercutting local businesses and taking more money out of communities even than most chains do, and using the extracted wealth to slow or undo workers' legal protections.

[kydo]

27. Oh Oh I know I know

JayhawkSD wrote:

Forget liberal, conservative, corporatists, subsidizing... All that crap. All those buzz words and labels.
I'm talking about the burden that falls on the taxpayer.
Is the taxpayer better off paying out $350 per week or $150 per week?

I know the answer ... neither how about if wallcash just pay a living wage and give people more then 20 hour work weeks. Then 1. they would not be unemployed and 2. they wouldn't need food stamps.

Maybe wallcash should be more like Disney, promote the part timers to full time which gives one lots more then just a raise it gets them off gov assistance.

Just saying

[SomethingFishy]

8. Seriously? Are you some kind of hippie liberal?

You hate capitalism or something? In a capitalist society business should stand or fall on their own merits. Why should a company with billions in profits benefit from welfare? Aren't we supposed to be the country of "pull yourself up by your bootstraps"? The country of "stand on your own two feet"? The country of privatization? Aren't we wanting the government out of everything?

You right wingers can't have it both ways. Either the government is too big or it's not. You can't claim that Corporate Welfare is saving unemployment money while complaining that the minimum wage is too high, Americans are too lazy, and the government is creating a welfare state.

[JayhawkSD]

10. That's sort of incoherent.

First you accuse me of hating capitalism, then you call me a right winger.
I seriously doubt a right winger would have voted for Obama twice.

See my response above.

[madokie]

12. I doubt you voted for Obama twice from the sounds of it

what do you think about them apples???

We taxpayers should not have to pay walmarts wages.
Unemployment is a tax

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Unemployment_Tax_Act

[JayhawkSD]

13. Is that the policy here?

To call someone a liar?

[madokie]

18. If the shoe fits

[JayhawkSD]

21. On what basis do you call me a liar?

And isn't there something in the rules about that kind of rhetoric?

How about you are an uncivilized jackass? I will probably be banned for that even though you are not banned for calling me a liar.

[HangOnKids]

24. Where did he call you a liar?

Please post that link here. Not inference or interpretation, where did he call you a liar.

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

30. Twice? Ain't no way Jay voted for a Democrat ever.

[mercuryblues]

3. a start

http://www.ilsr.org/new-study-finds-walmarts-miserly-wages-cost-taxpayers/

http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/04/news/companies/walmart-medicaid/index.html

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/dec/06/alan-grayson/alan-grayson-says-more-walmart-employees-medicaid-/

http://www.walmartsubsidywatch.org/

[LaydeeBug]

6. Thank you so much

[leftyohiolib]

4. goto ask.com type in walmart employees needing government assistance

http://www.politifact.com/ohio/statements/2011/jan/12/robert-hagan/rep-robert-hagan-slams-wal-mart-over-workers-needi/

http://moneymorning.com/2013/06/13/how-the-wal-mart-syndrome-pushes-millions-more-onto-food-stamps/

[LaydeeBug]

7. I actually had these two already, but really appreciate your going to bat for me

every little bit helps when you are dealing with these people.

[pinboy3niner]

23. There's LOTS of info available

But I'll take this opportunity to post one of my pics from the Wal-Mart Black Friday strike last year... (for more, click on the link below the pic):


http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021875581http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021875581