yizuman

Wal-Mart's policy of punishing workers for taking sick leave risks spreading swine flu.

So concludes a new report from the National Labor Committee that finds that employees of the Arkansas-based retail giant -- even its food handlers -- feel they have no choice but to work when they're sick. That's because the company gives workers demerits and deducts pay for staying home when they're sick or caring for sick children.

Said a worker at one Wal-Mart supercenter:

Plenty of girls are coughing their brains out. But they cannot go home because of points. Everyone comes in sick. You can't stay home and God forbid if you leave early.

The report found that the only time the company is removing sick workers from the food section is when they are coughing too loudly or violently -- and then the person is merely transferred to another department rather than being sent home.

Wal-Mart's sick-leave policy conflicts with recommendations for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which calls on employers to advise workers to be alert for symptoms of flu-like illness and to stay home if they are ill. The CDC also asks employers to allow workers to stay home to care for sick family members.

According to the NLC report, a senior vice president for Wal-Mart sent out a memo nationwide to all employees on preparing for the flu season. It told employees to "cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze," "wash your hands regularly" and "avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth":

Not a single word was said about the critical CDC recommendation that workers with "any signs of fever and other signs of influenza-like illness...stay home if they are ill."

The memo goes on to tell employees to familiarize themselves with the company's sick leave policy. But as the NLC notes, that policy is the problem.

Wal-Mart has a demerit system that punishes workers who cannot come to work due to illness. Employees who miss a day due to sickness receive a one-point demerit and lose eight hours of wages.

Employees with more than three absences a six-month period face discipline, and a fifth absence -- even for a sick day -- will result in what the company calls "active coaching" by management.

A sixth absence leads to what Wal-Mart calls "Decision Day," when a worker can be either terminated or put on a year-long trial period during which time he or she can be fired for any infraction and cannot be promoted.

The situation is particularly difficult for Wal-Mart workers who are single parents. The NLC reports on an instance in which an employee got a call from her four-year-old's preschool telling her to pick up the child, who had a fever of 103 degrees F. Despite the fact that the employee had already worked for four hours that day, she got a demerit point for leaving and lost her wages for the rest of the day. The report says:

Parents have no choice but to load their children up with Motrin and Dimetap to mask their symptoms so they can go to school.

The NLC is calling on Wal-Mart to immediately end its demerit and wage docking policies.

ISS - Wal-Mart's stingy sick-leave policy may contribute to swine flu's spread

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Mr. Averythest

lol nice going.

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dogmom

another reason why I don't shop at Wal Mart...beyond my own concern, their labor practices for the employees.

yizuman

Yep, they suck big time.

For those that live is the Midwest America, Meijer has the same policy. They have a demerit system for Cashiers who don't scan enough items per minute and if they gain too much demerits, they will get fired. So cashiers don't talk to the customers because they're sweating bullets trying to scan as many items as fast as they can. If a customer gets pissed off that they're not talking to them and complain to Management, that's another demerit point to the cashiers. So it's damn if they do and damn if they don't.

Same goes for stockers, if they don't get the items out on the sales floor in a timely fashion, they'll get demerited as well and if too much, face termination of employment.

Another thing that ticks me off is the "Customer is always right" policy. I disagree with that policy because a customer is not ALWAYS right. What if a customer comes to the counter and demands a discount or wants it for free because they quote that policy? Pretty stupid if you asked me. It also costs alot of employees their jobs because of that policy, no matter how well they do their work.

Companies like Walmart and Meijer always put the dollar above the employees and they love firing employees which means a savings of labor and benefits. It's cheaper to hire at the bottom rate, but when it comes to raises and benefits, they rather look for excuses to fire them rather than give them a raise and benefits.

Yiz

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Buffalo

What goes around, comes back!

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Buffalo

Ditto!

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rockin'robin

We were at Walmart a few days ago, and the checkout Lady was coughing and blowing....We sort of "locked eyes" and it was not pleasent! I would have said something, but know it wouldn't do any good and there were other customers behind me.

Soon as we got outside, I took out the bottle of hand sanitizer. And I'm not feeling too well today, either!....

I realize Walmart's pays their employees very little, but benefits are good. Some of these employees need to work, cannot afford to be out. Still, infecting customers is wrong! Maybe everyone will start wearing masks and rubber gloves!

And yeah, I believe I've got the flu!

yizuman

Good? It sucks!

First off, there's no 40 hr week there. Cap is 30 hrs a week and they call it full time. If anyone in the higher upper makes more money, they're on a controlled salary, so on salary, they can make you work as many hrs they want you to and you never get overtime.

For hourly employees, health insurance is too expensive, many opt out on it. Say I get 7.00 an hr for 30 hrs a week, that's $210.00 before taxes. After taxes is like $140 a week or so, depending on your state. Insurance premiums is like $65.00 a week. So when they take that out of your paycheck, that's
$75.00 a week take home pay. That's a rough estimation.

Nobody can live on that kind of money. So you have to get either another part time or full time job to make ends meet. So that leaves very little for family time, for most, they never see their kids because they're out working their asses off to get a paycheck so they can pay the bills and put food on the table, if anyone has time to cook that is.

Walmart is full of crap. You need to research the company. Here's one for you for starters....

Wake-Up Wal-Mart: Wal-Mart Memo Suggests Ways to Cut Employee Benefit Costs

This was on the NY Times.

People need to wake up and start realizing how crappy Walfart treat their employees. Of course, many people are self centered that they don't give a crap what Walfart does to their employees as long they get their crap cheap.

It's a sad reality and it's not going away anytime soon.

Yiz

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deafaussie

Walfart, yeah right! I know many deaf people who works for Walcrap and were told of their fustrations with labor policies and others. These are designed for Walevil to make money beyond their means and to screw employees over and over until they quit.

No matter how cheap products they sell, I never shop with Walpiss, not even once in my entire life

Foxrac

Wal fart benefits SUCKS!!!!

Just like yizuman said.

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Foxrac

Yup, that's one of biggest problem and I believe that government should take action, I had notice that some employees got flu and they kept working, that pisses me off and I'm consider about quit the job with all wal fart crap on labor practice, also I don't care if I get fired in anytime.

All wal fart employees has work on Black Friday and they don't care if you are against to work or shopping on Black Friday like I did, also they don't respect to employee's families that need be serve during thanksgivings week.

Fuck to wal fart, that all I care about it.

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Foxrac

Yup, that what I heard when I lived in Chicago, Meijer is just shitty business like wal fart did.

I don't know about kmart or Target.

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yizuman

Not much from them, except to say I've used their electronic applications and they have some pretty intrusive questions, for example, they asked if I have a checking and savings account. Then they asked how much I have in them.

I think that's a invasion of privacy and quite frankly, none of their business.

Some of the questions is physiological in nature as well as security. I realize that employee theft is a problem just as much as customers shoplifting from their stores. But I think they're sticking their noses in a bit too deep, IMO.

Really, Target is more of a upper class store. Sort of in line with JCPenny and Sears. So they want employees that is up to standards than a average Walmart employee. At least, from my impression.

Yiz

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