When I got my MBA in 2007 I did my final paper on Wal-Mart because they publish all of their data. In 15 states they are the single largest employer. The average start age at the time was 40 and Wal-Mart was typically the first job that person got. Wal-Mart taught them how to work, how to act at work, to show up on time. On average the employees stayed slightly less than two years. By which time they had a resume, some skills and could get a better, higher paying job. The turnover at Wal-Mart, at the time, was half a million workers a year. That made Wal-Mart the jobs growth engine of the entire nation. If that turnover slows down then the job growth engine slows down too. There won’t be any entry level jobs. So, paying a higher wage and more benefits will damage the biggest job engine the country still has.
The problem is with people who want to turn entry level crap jobs into a career.