Posted on 05/17/2014 8:54:15 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
When I woke up to see the news, I could hardly believe it: President Obama is planning a visit to the Mountain View Wal-Mart where I work.
But the excitement quickly passed when I found out the store would be shutting down hours in advance of his visit. I wouldn’t be able to tell the president what it’s like to work at Wal-Mart and what it’s like to struggle on low wages, without the hours I need. I am living at the center of the income inequality that he speaks about so often, and I wanted to talk to him about how to change this problem.
My situation is not unlike that of many of the 825,000 Wal-Mart associates – and many other Americans – who are working hard, but just can’t keep up. Most of us aren’t even paid $25,000 a year even though we work at the largest employer in the country and one that makes $16 billion in profits.
I wanted to tell the president what it’s like working – and living – like this.
Things have always been tight. After four years working at Wal-Mart in Mountain View, I am bringing home about $400 every two weeks (I’d like to get more hours, but I’m lucky if I work 32 hours a week). That’s not enough to pay for bills, gas and food. All I can afford to eat for lunch is a cup of coffee and a bag of potato chips. I’ve always done everything possible to stretch paychecks and scrape by. Sometimes it means not getting enough to eat.
But then I got some bad news that made stretching my budget impossible.
Two months ago, I started feeling ill. My doctor told me I needed to take a week off to have a series of medical tests. Every day for a week I went to the hospital and had to pay $30, $60 or $100 in co-pays for each appointment, test and X-ray.
With these additional expenses and without a paycheck for the week I was out, it pushed me over the edge. I didn’t have enough money to pay the rent.
Right now, I don’t have a place to call home.
I sleep on the floor of my son’s living room because I can’t afford my own place. All of my belongings are in my car. I don’t know where to send my mail.
I used to think, “At least I have my health and my family.” But my doctor thinks I may have colon cancer, and with all of the money I still owe the hospital, I’m not sure how to finish the tests and get treatment. Even though I do have insurance through Wal-Mart, the co-pays are more than I can afford with only $400 every two weeks.
I wanted to tell the president I am scared. I am scared for my health. I am scared for the future for my grandkids. And I am scared and sad about the direction that companies like Wal-Mart are taking our country.
I don’t wish the struggle I’m facing onto anyone. But sadly, my situation isn’t unique. I know that I am one of many living in the Wal-Mart economy who has no financial stability. We expect to work until our deaths because we don’t have any retirement savings and are concerned about the future in front of our children and grandchildren.
There are so many of us who have it so hard – trying to live paycheck to paycheck. While the president is here visiting my store, I want him to look inside at what is really happening at Wal-Mart.
I want the president to help us and tell Wal-Mart to pay us enough to cover the bills and take care of our families. That doesn’t seem like too much to ask from such a profitable company, a company that sets the standard for jobs in this country. And I hope it’s not too much to ask from a president who believes that income inequality is the defining challenge of our time.
In Obama’s economy, you believe people can get better jobs?
yes. it happens everyday. Not as much as it use to though.
I think BS also. I do support the local fast food joints for lunch every once in a while but I mostly eat at home. Coffee and chips is a weird combination.
When the store manager of an “average” store makes almost $140K, imagine what district managers, regional managers and above make.
very few craftsman tools are made in the USA now.
The biggest business in the country is going to give it a shot.
Big government to her rescue.
but there's that key....marriage...husband/wife....working together....just so old fashioned...
Sending your wife to work for money is hardly what I'd call "old-fashioned".
Just sayin...
No, this was someone who was still working as a cashier.
I was just pointing out that the current CEO of Walmart started out as a part-timer in the warehouse.
Something that seems lost on some of the whining floor associates who claim they’re stuck there, like the woman in this article
Let's make it $25 million a year, then they'd never have to worry about money again.
My only question is who did this person vote for in the last two elections?
Limbaugh Theorem, by extension
I see it in play with all of my liberal “friends”
Okay, a few facts... Walmart employes about 1.3 MILLION, not 825,000... and that 16 Billion in “profit” is on $466 BILLION in sales.
That means that that for every $1 of revenue that walmart takes in on sales, it keeps as profit a whopping 3 cents!
That’s right my friend, 97 cents out of every dollar taken in at walmart goes right out the door, to pay things like, your wages, insurance, taxes, benefits, stock for the shelves, advertising, etc etc etc.
That’s right buddy, Walmart is making a whopping 3 cents on the dollar. That’s after paying you and another 1.3 million their wages, taxes and benefits.
You want to make more, make yourself worth more!
The guys got the wrong numbers, Walmart employees 1.3 Million americans.. if you assume the 16 Billion is JUST for the US profits, its not $20k an employee... in fact I just ran its total revenues over profits and it earns 3 cents per dollar.
If those 16 Billion represent world wide profits, the total number of employees is 2.1 Million... so the profit per employee is close to 1/3 of what you calculated.. about 6-7k a year.
IN the bay area, I have no problem believing this... this is a part of the country where a 1 bedroom partment is $1500 or more a month... no doubt if you are only making 2k a month gross, you are going to have a hard time affording a place to live.
The bay area in particular, and California in general are grossly expensive places to live. If you have no skills, and no education, you are going to either live 20 people to a house, or in your car.
Excellent! I was using the article’s numbers, but you made my point even better. $6-7k more per employee per year is even less after taxes. I’m not saying that’s an insignificant increase in pay. It might mean a lot to employees who are barely scraping by, but it would also likely make Walmart less competitive. That often leads to lower profits and fewer jobs.
Thanks again!
EBH: “...as we watch the apathy of the worker being encouraged by the political, we have entered the post collapse phase of lowered expectations and the unwinding is very well underway.”
That seems to sum up the current malaise, but it’s not hopeless. The Carter era was similar, and then came Reagan.
Funny...I do not see a Reagan on the horizon. I see lots of potential supporters of someone who would DARE to even say things that Reagan said, but I just do not see a motivator in the ranks.
This person, whoever he/she may be, will have to be able to withstand not just the democrat party onslaught, but also the Republican Party. The comparison between Carter/Reagan to 0bama/???? is no comparison.
I do not like gloom and doom as much as the next person, but the reality is the collapse and unwinding is well underway and we’re past the turning point. They are all working very hard on lowering American’s expectations.
The Walmart employee wants $25,000 a year, little does she realize...in the New Economy, that still isn’t enough even now...let alone for tomorrow.
I don’t see anyone with Reagan’s charisma, but I think there are some out there with his character. I also agree that we are in much worse shape now then when Reagan revitalized the country’s spirit. However, I don’t agree it’s hopeless so long as there are people alive who still remember what America was once like. We really had a great thing going. Now we’re becoming just like every other nation in the world.
Yes, that’s the one factor omitted from my comment. Governments, state and federal, should come down hard on employers, especially large ones, who hire illegals, until the labor market for illegals is gone or very small. Then that market-distorting factor would be eliminated.
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