Wal-Mart's attendance policy criticized (Tardiness penalized!)

Yahoo ^ | 11/1/06

[CWOJackson]

Can anyone PLEASE give me the location of a Walmart here in the United States of America that doesn't sell pretty much the exact same merchandise that all the major chains sell and our military exchanges?

Can anyone PLEASE give me the location of a Walmart that sells 90% merchandise made in China?

Anyone?

[P-Marlowe]

I've never been able to figure out what fuels this downright hatred of Walmart?

It is the same thing that fuels international hatred of America. America is big and successful. Wal Mart is big and successful. People don't like that.

[muawiyah]

Little do you know about government policies. They simply do not encourage punctuality.

In any case, in your larger Wal-Mart stores, folks work shifts of different durations that start and stop at varying times.

The "service" problem is one of having sufficient people there at appropriate times to move stock into place, or man cashregisters.

Although the workers seem to be able to handle the schedule, supervisors have a tendency to want to buck the schedules and knock folks into what they view as "punctuality" by means of incremental changes of worker schedule that tend to be invisible to higher levels of management.

Wal-Mart will end up with the same problems the post office (in this or any other country) has always had.

[jude24]

During the Ross fiasco here in Connecticut

This probably should mean something to me.

[CWOJackson]

You could almost get the impression Walmart is run by President Bush. They're both responsible for the downfall of Rome, global warming, cellulite and the pollen count.

[P-Marlowe]

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/01/27/national/main669912.shtml

[beezdotcom]

He said that under the old policy, managers would approve excuses on a case-by-case basis, but the 800 number eliminates such "human interaction."

Hmmm...see, what this tells me is that managers weren't being supported when they WOULD try to discipline someone for being late. Typical retail problem: a manager tries to run a tighter ship, and then someone from a "protected" class threatens to file a grievance. Higher-level manager doesn't want the hassle, so they tell the lower manager to back down. Slack employees are thus emboldened to keep doing it, and the problem snowballs. Not unique to WalMart.

[P-Marlowe]

I wondered where that cellulite came from. I must have picked it up when I bought those discount Twinkies from Wal Mart.

[blue-duncan]

Michael Ross was the Cornell grad serial killer who murdered five or six girls, some in Connecticut. His case was covered by 60 Minutes. It was the first execution in Connecticut since 1960.

[CWOJackson]

LOL! I'm sure there will be a thread on that soon enough. There's a new one every day on Walmart and they're starting to run out of BS excuses.

[Hawk1976]

Poking around, I'll say I'm wrong. The best information I can find indicates 70% of Wal-mart products are either made in China or have components made in China. Looking around the store doesn't seem that way, but like I said, I tend to avoid them.

I've never bothered to look for that information before. This is not critical to my reasons for staying out of Wal-Mart.

[CWOJackson]

Okay, so let's try an easy question. Where is this mythical Walmart of yours that sells 70% merchandise made in China.

It's not really a difficult question...even a Walmart shopper could answer it quickly.

[ThomasThomas]

Cool we can go after Wal-Mart, Judges and unions all the on the same thread. This union of enfolds IMHO is a good example of Wal-Mart type marketing.

If Wal-Mart dosen't sell it, you don't need it!

[P-Marlowe]

To be honest, the reason I don't like shopping at Wal Mart is because they are just too darned crowded. I prefer the nearby Target since the aisles are wider, the store is cleaner and the checkout lines are quick. I also have enough money that I don't need to save 50 cents on every single item I purchase. But if I were on a strict budget, I'd be spending half my shopping time at Wal Mart and the other half at Dollar Tree.

[Hawk1976]

Really? I merely don't like being called a thief after I've dropped a considerable (for me at the time) amount of money in your store. Especially after you damage the product I just bought from you in the process.

I asked for a simple apology, from the manager. His response was, "Well you might have been a thief."

My disdain for them has little to do with where they get their product from. Even if I think they could make more of an effort to sell goods produced in America.

[CWOJackson]

"If Wal-Mart dosen't sell it, you don't need it!"

Oh no! That used to be the unwritten motto of Fred Meyers...another major chain. In Juneau they used to advertise, "If we don't have it, you don't need it." We loved Freddys.

That bastard Walmart has stolen from Freddy now! Is there no end to this!

[FFIGHTER]

Success.

[CWOJackson]

I've had mixed results with Walmarts. Where we lived up until two months ago we were within 15 minutes of three of them. One we never went to, it was always crowded and dirty. The other two we usually busy but they both tended to run sufficient registers to keep things moving.

The Target was very nice but they only would have a few registers open out of 26-28.

We preferred the military exchanges (two choices) but they were 45-50 minutes away. We'd normally hit them once a month but usually just groceries.

At our new place we have a choice of Target, Meijers and Walmart. We've found all three have strengths and weaknesses and shop at each at about the same rate.

[jude24]

I have the same impression. I prefer Target because the merchandise is of a slightly higher quality, the prices aren't too much greater than Wal-mart, and Target knows what the words "Customer Service" mean.

That, and Target paid for a significant part of my first semester of college (small scholarship).

[CWOJackson]

You have a pleasant evening. Since I guess I'm not going to discover the location to one of these special Chinese Walmarts I'll unpack and turn in.

But I'm not giving up hope...one day I'll get to visit one.