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The US welfare state is being used to subsidizes the workforces of large corporations like Walmart and increases corporate profits. I think this is some that the left and right may be able to find some agreement in.

Posted on 06/12/2022 7:11:13 AM PDT by Costco1

No one would work minimum wage jobs if they were not subsidized by government. The profits of Walmart and other corporations come largely from the fact there workforce is subsidized by the welfare state. Companies should be paying their own workforces not pocketing profits that only exist from the fact their employees are being supported by the taxpayers.

Who actually benefits from this? This is something I think the left and right should agree on. The left hates billionaire corporations and the right hates the welfare state and wasteful spending. Subsidizing Walmart workers costs the US taxpayers about 8 billion dollars a year, while the Walmart profit is 13 billion.

I’m not sure the exact solution but it is ridiculous that taxpayers are subsidizing the workforce of a large corporation while the government is running massive deficits and there are homeless disabled vets on the streets. Those jobs and workers only can exist due to government subsidies.

This is corporate socialism in action.


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KEYWORDS: corporationbashing
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To: Gaffer

And allowing the Colleges to provide worthless degree’s like drama and theatre, that afterward only pays #30-35K and leaves them with 200K in student loan debt. Or Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies another worthless degree.


61 posted on 06/12/2022 8:46:06 AM PDT by Engedi
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To: Valpal1

I never said it was, I just used Walmart as the example because it is easy to verify the numbers.

You don’t think corporate America lobbied hard for this, they benefit the most? 🤣

We have artificially low wages by design, thanks to our welfare state. There is no free market benefit for corporations that pay higher wages because welfare. Is already inflating the wages.

If company 1 is paying 10$ an hour and company 2 is paying 15$ an hour but employees of company 1 get the equivalent of 6$ an hour in taxpayer funded welfare benefits who is benefiting in this situation? Company 2 should be getting better workers in a free market but because of the welfare state the higher wages are meaningless. There is no longer any wage competition because welfare suppresses it. Who is going to switch jobs for a pay raise that will cost you your welfare benefits.


62 posted on 06/12/2022 8:51:11 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: Reno89519

I think the left could agree to something like this.

Right now we have artificially low wages thanks to crony capitalism and corporate socialism. There is no benefit for low wage employees to look for a job that pays better or companies to bother to offer higher wages to attract better workers since welfare has filled that gap.


63 posted on 06/12/2022 8:55:36 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: GOPJ

“We don’t want to work with scum of the earth democrats...”

Ditto. I want to pull my hair out everytime a Republican talks about reaching across the isle.


64 posted on 06/12/2022 9:02:59 AM PDT by willk
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To: Engedi

IMO, the REAL criminals here are the colleges and institutions who provide those worthless educations. It is College Board of Trustees, Administration officials and everyone connected with the mindset of “college is god.” There are so, so many of them with BILLION DOLLAR PLUS endowments who STILL charge outrageous tuitions, even to the point where they provide undue preference for FOREIGN students who want that H1B, Green Card and later citizenship and are willing to pay even more outrageous out-of-state tuitions.

IMO, colleges and universities are one big scam and I say that as someone who went through it - graduated from NATS after three hard years continuously on the GI-Bill (68-76), worked for them nearly 30 years. I liken them all to California city government and municipal employees with outrageous half-million dollar salaries and retirement packages (or more.)


65 posted on 06/12/2022 9:03:13 AM PDT by Gaffer
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To: desertfreedom765

That will never happen until the American people MAKE it happen. The government ‘for the people’ is no longer for the people.


66 posted on 06/12/2022 9:32:21 AM PDT by skeeter
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To: skeeter

I agree.

Unfortunately, right now the Oligarchy is winning. Which is why the future is bleak for so many people.


67 posted on 06/12/2022 9:46:04 AM PDT by desertfreedom765
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To: Costco1

Perhaps it is the government at fault for providing benefits to people who are obviously capable of work? The person working is actually supplementing their welfare benefits by working at Walmart (or any other job) and not the reverse that you claim.

Blaming companies for taking advantage of situations created by government is lopsided thinking. It is much like saying Trump paid zero taxes because he followed existing tax law.

In other words, Walmart didn’t make the laws, so place the blame where it belongs and that is on the liberal governments ever increasing give aways.


68 posted on 06/12/2022 10:10:33 AM PDT by pnut22
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To: srmanuel
It could be because one is unionized and the other is not, who knows.

Wages are higher in auto plants because cars are much more profitable than groceries and cheap clothes. Unions have little to do with it. Southern auto plants pay very well but are not unionized.

I can't believe I'm seeing this thread on FR. The claim that Walmart is subsidized by the government is an old trope on the left. Is the right going to start parroting leftist talking points now?

And has economic ignorance so deeply permeated the right that crap like this is even entertained?

69 posted on 06/12/2022 10:51:02 AM PDT by BfloGuy ( Even the opponents of Socialism are dominated by socialist ideas)
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To: Dilbert San Diego

The welfare benefits and supplementary income Walmart employees receive from the government amounts to 9 billion dollars. This creates an environment that suppresses wages and removes any incentive for low wage workers to improve their skills or find better jobs since it will cost their benefits.

This is a very complicated problem that rhetoric can’t fix.


70 posted on 06/12/2022 10:56:55 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: Costco1

Workforce is subsidized by the welfare state.

That should end inflation huh Moe.


71 posted on 06/12/2022 10:57:46 AM PDT by Vaduz ( )
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To: Reeses

It isn’t just democrats benefiting from this. You are blind if you don’t see how much the welfare state benefits corporate America. Having your workforce subsidized by the welfare state is great for profits


72 posted on 06/12/2022 11:04:35 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: willk

You sound like a far left wokie, so what are you going to do cry and whine while calling everyone who doesn’t agree with your views names? Ugh


73 posted on 06/12/2022 11:10:50 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: BfloGuy

Southern Auto Plants are not unionized because they are right to work states. Plus, higher wages generally come with jobs that require more skilled labor, stocking shelves or greeting people at the door takes less skill than assembling cars in an assembly line.

As to their profitability versus places like Walmart, 2 Walmart Heirs now own NFL teams, the latest being the Denver Broncos which sold for 4.65 billion.

Places like Walmart are less cyclical than Auto Companies, people have to eat they don’t have to purchase new cars as often.

Walmart in the past most definitely was being subsidized by the taxpayers, a large number of full-time workers needed welfare to live because they could not live on the wages Walmart was paying.

To the extent that Walmart is paying more now has more to do with them pricing competition out of business than a desire to pay more, if you notice places like Walmart are all for increases to the minimum wage rate, something they can afford versus some smaller company.


74 posted on 06/12/2022 11:12:51 AM PDT by srmanuel
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To: willk

You sound like a far left wokie, so what are you going to do cry and whine while calling everyone who doesn’t agree with your views names? Ugh


75 posted on 06/12/2022 11:20:21 AM PDT by Costco1
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To: Engedi

Corrected for inflation ... $2.30 in 1976 is $11.49 now. Also, $7.40 in 2011 is $9.72 now.

A link for your amusal and perusal:

https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm


76 posted on 06/12/2022 12:05:57 PM PDT by Cloverfarm (Pray for the peace of Jerusalem ...)
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To: Valpal1

“A seven year old article?”

Yes. You have not been keeping up.

The fleece has been going on since the 1990’s.

I was involved in some early discussions with their management as a young investment portfolio manager.

It was a part of all big box and franchises business model “sustainable” advantage.

As the youngster supply dried up they needed new pools.

They pointed to permanent transistional labor and retirees as solution.

All those laid off, retired, and single parent poor folk.

All recipients of government transfer payments.

Many working two and even three jobs.


77 posted on 06/12/2022 2:40:51 PM PDT by Lowell1775
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To: Valpal1

“A seven year old article?”

Yes. You have not been keeping up.

The fleece has been going on since the 1990’s.

I was involved in some early discussions with their management as a young investment portfolio manager.

It was a part of all big box and franchises business model “sustainable” advantage.

As the youngster supply dried up they needed new pools.

They pointed to permanent transistional labor and retirees as solution.

All those laid off, retired, and single parent poor folk.

All recipients of government transfer payments.

Many working two and even three jobs.


78 posted on 06/12/2022 2:41:16 PM PDT by Lowell1775
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To: Costco1

“I don’t care about anecdotal stories, why is it that Walmart workers cost taxpayers close to 9 billions each year and what should be done about it?”

I don’t care about you’re stupid premise. You sound like the typical liberal. Walmart is a private company, paying market wages for the work done. If people don’t want to work there, they don’t have to. They can go get better paying jobs with better benefits elsewhere. Walmart is not “costing” the taxpayer anything. It’s truly unfortunate that you can’t see how stupid your argument is.


79 posted on 06/12/2022 2:42:24 PM PDT by suthener ( )
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To: Costco1
Democrats only show interest in "reaching out" to us when they're losing power or when they want to play our people against each other for their benefit.. They hunt out a 'maverick' within our team...

Ever noticed there's no such thing as a democrat 'maverick'? The press doesn't seek out democrats willing to trash fellow democrats. Ever wonder about that Costco1?

There's no equivalent on the other side. A democrat who speaks out against other democrats is shunned.

Tell me the name of one 'praised maverick' from the left... one lefty who the press loves for his willingness to trash fellow democrats. It'll never happen. Anyone who works with democrats should be primaried.

80 posted on 06/12/2022 4:10:52 PM PDT by GOPJ (WLE's hunt for white supremacists allows spying on their hot sister in law & hoity-toity minister.)
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