Our Money and Your Life

I have said when I started this blog that I am absolutely amazed at what Walmart is able to get away with. I spoke to a very nice lady who is a people greeter. Her Husband is retired and as I have said in the past, she works to keep insurance for them. Seems simple enough, doesn't it? But when she had to go on a Leave of Absence to correct some leg problems that she has, Walmart in a fit of generosity told her that if she was unable to return after the leave of absence was over, then she was out of a job. Never mind that she was a loyal employee and had stopped merchandise from walking out the door on at least 7 different occasions, she was fired for not coming back in time. That is one big hearted company, isn't it? Another associate who asked to just be called Breezy, had a similar story. It seems that Breezy had been an associate for the company that cares for ten years. She hurt her knee in a riding accident and had to be on leave for twelve weeks. At the end of the twelve weeks, her knee had not recovered from the surgery to her doctor's satisfaction, and he would not release her. That was not a problem for Walmart, though. You guessed it- after 520 weeks of never missing a day of work, she was terminated for not coming back from leave in the prescribed amount of time. How can they look them selves in the face when they are brushing their teeth? A few years ago, a memo circulated around different sites that claimed to be from a company bigwig. The memo spelled out how much Walmart would save if it began a practice of shedding its associates that had been with the company for more than five years. The company quickly poo-poohed the idea, and said that it was just an ugly rumor. Riiiiight. Well, here it is a few years later, and would you look at that? So many long time associates are out the door and are not being replaced. That is some lucky break for Walmart. Especially when you consider that the average 8 year associate is making at least fifteen dollars an hour, and they are replaced with a $7.50 new hire. That works out well for the benefits department, also. Some of these new associates aren't going to qualify for insurance or any of the expensive benefits for quite a while. How much does that save the company that cares? Think about it when you are getting ready to start Christmas shopping. That cheap set of aftershave might have a higher price than you think. You'll thank me later.