From The New Britain Herald

Michael Edwards says he stands up for what he believes.

Edwards could lose his job at the Farmington Avenue Wal-Mart because on Monday he held a sign that read, "You can roll back your prices, but not our rights," as he joined the Connecticut Working Families protest there with about 50 other people.

The protest was sparked by the July 9 sacking of Edwards' best friend and co-worker at Wal-Mart and allegations of ongoing racism at the store.

Edwin Lopez, 47, a city resident, was fired after seven years on the job for charges he claims were fake. He said his firing had more to do with race and that other current and former Wal-Mart employees have also been unfairly disciplined or fired because of race.

His manager, whom he declined to name, used obscene language toward him and laughed in his face, Lopez said. He also said his wife, who still works at the store, is the subject of ridicule by management.
"It's not just Hispanics," Lopez said. "This guy also disrespects Polish-speaking people who work there."

According to Lopez, his former manager, a New York City native, walks around the store muttering: "I hate the f---ing people in New Britain." Lopez said he told his boss "to watch his mouth," and called a district manager to complain as well.

He left a voice mail in which he used the word "freaking," he admitted.

"That's as far as I went," he said. "I would never use the other 'F' word."

In the days that followed, Lopez said, he was the subject of verbal abuse and finally fired. He said he was told his dismissal was because he swore at someone in the home office, but Lopez insists his firing had more to do with his heritage and because Wal-Mart "doesn't like Spanish-speaking people."

"They need to clean up management and begin with this store," Lopez said. "Workers need to stop being scared."

Edwards, who worked with Lopez in the lawn and garden department, said he has been protective of his friend's wife. On Tuesday, Edwards stood with Lopez at the rally against Wal-Mart although he risks losing his own job.

The corporate folks in Bentonville, Ark., view the situation differently.

"While it is our policy not to comment on personnel matters, I can tell you that the facts surrounding Mr. Lopez's termination are very different than what he suggests," said David Tovar, director of media relations, from Wal-Mart headquarters. "Mr. Lopez's termination had nothing to do with speaking Spanish or ethnicity; it was for disciplinary reasons."

Tovar would not elaborate, saying only that Wal-Mart policy "allows associates to communicate in any language they know. In fact, the policy requires associates to communicate in a language common to the customer if you are able to do so in order to better serve our customers."

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal isn't convinced. He told protesters he will investigate allegations of systematic discrimination against Spanish-speaking employees by Wal-Mart.
"Racism has no place anywhere," he said.

Phil Sherwood, Democratic candidate for alderman in New Britain's 4th Ward, said when he worked for Wal-Mart he saw harassment and intimidation of racial minorities.

"Wal-Mart is currently the target of the largest class-action lawsuit in U.S. history," Sherwood said. "The issue is [sexual] discrimination."

Dukes vs. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. alleges female employees of Wal-Mart are denied advancement and training opportunities, paid less than men for the same or comparable work, steered to lower-wage departments, subjected to a sexually hostile work environment and retaliated against when they attempt to address sex discrimination.

Sherwood believes "the lack of Spanish-speaking manager" could be a problem. "It breeds an atmosphere of insensitivity."

Connecticut Working Families is a coalition of community organizations, labor unions and neighborhood activists "united to fight for a fair economy."

From jacksonvillepatriot.com

According to witnesses, at about 2 p.m. a robber was attempting to take the purse of a woman who appeared to be in her fifties, and began beating her when she refused to give it up. At some point, Dean Worden of Jacksonville was shot in the neck from close range by the assailant, who then fled. Worden died where he fell; the shooter ran away and got into the passenger side of a late-model silver Chrysler 300, which fled the scene.

The original target of the purse-snatching, Linda Garner, told Fox16 News that during her struggle with the assailant, she saw Worden and his family passing by just before Worden was shot; police have not been able to confirm whether or not Worden had been trying to assist Garner at the time of the shooting, as early reports indicated.

The original target of the purse-snatching, Linda Garner, told Fox16 News that during her struggle with the assailant, she saw Worden and his family passing by just before Worden was shot; police have not been able to confirm whether or not Worden had been trying to assist Garner at the time of the shooting, as early reports indicated.

Late Sunday night, North Little Rock Police arrested 17-year-old Joshua Leallen Loften after he voluntarily went to the North Little Rock police station at 200 W. Pershing Blvd. where an arrest warrant was filled out charging him with capital murder in the shooting.
Garner told Fox16 News that the incident started when she went to the store to get some things for her husband. That's when a man came up to her asking for her purse.

"He charged me when I looked up, I don't know how he had, but he was just bringing that gun down on my face when I couldn't get the purse off,” said Garner. “He just started beating the back of my head. It's just really sore and I could remember him saying, ‘Let go, just let go of the purse.’”

When Garner looked up, she noticed a family walking near by.
"I heard them and they were laughing and having a great Sunday afternoon.”

Garner said what happened next felt like watching a movie.
"He [the assailant] had gotten down to prop himself to shoot, and he just ‘bang-bang’ into the man [Worden],” whose family was nearby Garner said. “There was all this screaming and hollering, trying to help their dad.

“I don't have anger towards the [the assailant] hurting [me],” Garner said. “I have anger he killed somebody's daddy.”

At the time of the shooting, there were a number of witnesses in the parking lot, and they gave similar descriptions of what happened that sunny, cool afternoon.

Trisha Furr of North Little Rock said she was walking into Wal-Mart when she heard gunshots. Furr said she saw a man running away with a gun, heard screaming and saw the victim on the ground.

“How do you know it’s safe to come here?” she asked.

Furr also said the woman being robbed had been getting into her car when she was attacked, and Worden had gotten out of his truck and run to help her.

Steve Doty of North Little Rock said that he was pumping gas at the filling station on the parking lot when he heard two shots and ran over to see if he could help. He said the robbery victim, whom he described as a red-haired, heavy-set lady about 5-foot-10 and in her fifties, had been punched a few times in the attack.

Paul Walden of Little Rock also was near when the shooting happened.
“I heard ‘Bang! Bang!’ and a scream,” he said. “All I could see was a lady bending over the body. I went to see if I could help but he had [died]. There was nothing we could do.”

Other witnesses said the robber was beating the woman on the head with a gun when Worden came to her defense. They said the woman’s glasses were broken and she had cuts on her head.

Worden’s body remained where it fell for about two-and-a-half hours as police investigators scoured the scene for evidence. During that time, Wal-Mart shoppers walked past the scene and many even brought young children by.

On Monday, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Sharon Weber said the company’s “deepest sympathies go to the family of Mr. Worden and we continue to keep them in our thoughts.” In a voice mail message left for a reporter, she said representatives from the retailer met with North Little Rock Mayor Pat Hays on Monday and “the mayor committed to a more visible and prominent law enforcement presence in the parking lot of our store.” Weber also added, “Unfortunately, criminal acts sometimes take place, and these acts are impossible to predict and prevent. A continued commitment to “partnering with local law enforcement” to ensure customer and employee safety was the goal of the company, she said.

Also on Monday, the Worden family issued a press release thanking the “fine work of the North Little Rock Police Department,” the “many witnesses who came forward to assist the police” and the “outpouring of sympathy” the family has received from the public, while asking for “respect for our need for privacy at this time.”

Worden’s church in Sherwood, Cornerstone Bible Fellowship, has established an account named the Dean Worden Family Fund
Sgt. Terry Kuykendall, the North Little Rock Police spokesman, said Worden’s death is the 10th homicide in the city this year, two of which had been ruled “justifiable” by the Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. There were 13 homicides recorded in 2006.

Staff Writer D.J. Smith also contributed to this article. More coverage from Fox16 News, a Stephens Media news partner, can be seen at www.fox16.com.

From Reuters:

TOKYO, July 27 (Reuters) - The Japanese unit of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Seiyu Ltd., will post an operating loss for the first half of the year as weak sales sidelined its forecast return to profit, the Nikkei business daily said on Friday.

Shares of Seiyu fell 3.1 percent in late afternoon trade, compared with a 1.6 percent drop in the Tokyo index of retail stocks.

Seiyu, 53 percent owned by the world's largest retailer, likely suffered an operating loss of 2 to 3 billion yen ($17 million to $25 million) in the six months to June, falling well short of its forecast 2.8 billion yen profit, the newspaper said.

Wal-Mart has struggled since its 2002 arrival in the world's second-largest retail market, leading some analysts to suggest the retailer should pull out of Japan -- as it did from South Korea and Germany last year.

Seiyu has posted five straight years of losses since Wal-Mart first took a small stake in the company, although it has forecast a return to profit this year.

The U.S. company has invested more than $1 billion in the 390-store Japanese supermarket chain, remodelling 70 locations last year, but has yet to see anything more than temporary upswings in sales.

Seiyu's first-half same-store sales fell 1 percent year-on-year, dragged down by weak sales of clothing and electric appliances, as well as poor weather, the Nikkei said.

A spokesman for Seiyu, which is scheduled to announce its results on Aug. 14, said the report was speculation.

The U.S. retailer's strategy of selling discounted products in bulk may not be conducive to shopping habits in Japan, where consumers tend to buy groceries more often and in smaller amounts.

While Seiyu has benefited from Wal-Mart's knowledge of cost-efficient distribution and information systems, its store layouts and product development have failed to impress Japanese shoppers, the Nikkei said.

From CW 2 in Denver, CO.

AURORA (KWGN) — Two Denver-area Wal-Mart stores have been found to be selling a baby swing that's the subject of Consumer Product Safety Commission recall, despite one woman's effort to alert store management to the problem.

"I am so angry that they would jeopardize the life of a child in any way or shape," said Joann Terry.

Within the last week, she has been to two Wal-Mart stores that still had the Fisher-Price Portable Rainforest Open Top Take-Along Swing---Model number K7203--for sale. She first noticed the problem after she picked up the swing at the store at Parker and Chambers in Aurora.

"I walked down the display aisle for the baby department and found a recall notice for it," said Terry. "I immediately put it back on the store shelf."

Terry said she notified the store's manager, who, she said, told her he would immediately take the swings off the shelf. Since Terry needed a swing that night, she went to another Wal-Mart, and found no recall notice there, but the same item on sale.

Today, at the Wal-Mart at Southland's Shopping Center in Aurora, News2 found the swing on the shelf.

"I notified management twice again," said Terry. "They're still selling the product."

The CPSC warning, issued May 30, says infants can shift to one side of the swing and get trapped between the frame and the seat. It can cause cuts, red marks, bumps and bruises. (See the recall notice here.) So far, Fisher-Price has received 60 reports of infants getting trapped.

"Today I came out, bought the product," she said. She wanted proof the item was still being sold.

"It's not fair to any baby," Terry said. "You know, Wal-Mart touts that they care about the consumer. This [her baby] is a consumer. She may not be buying it, but she'll be using the products they sell."

Today, the manager on duty again told Terry the item would be removed from store shelves. Wal-Mart's corporate office tells us they are looking into the matter, but had no other comment today.

From The Gaston Gazette:

Wal-Mart officials today will respond to charges that the company ignored an environmental regulation in building its Cherryville store.

Gaston County’s Natural Resources Department has fined Wal-Mart $15,000 for two erosion control violations. Staff members say the company failed to install a required basin for handling sediment runoff.

The measures were required before mass grading began at the site where the Cherryville store is under construction. It is slated to open in early 2008.

Wal-Mart has appealed the finding and will explain its position today before the Gaston County Environmental Review Board. Wal-Mart officials did not return a message left Tuesday seeking comment.

Jason Cathey, a conservationist with the natural resources department, issued the violations in May. He inspected the site after an adjoining landowner, Bud Black, complained about sediment runoff into ponds and a stream on his property.

“I did some measurements to calculate how much sediment was off-site, and that’s where we came up with our penalties,” Cathey said.

Sediment runoff is regulated because too much can be aesthetically and environmentally damaging, Cathey said. Biological life and drinking water stand to suffer, he said.

Wal-Mart had installed a small berm to block its sediment runoff — but not the basin included in its erosion control plan, Cathey said.

That was insufficient to handle the runoff from the 13.6-acre site, he said.

The second violation came after Wal-Mart failed to address the issue before a second inspection, Cathey said.

“They had plenty of time to get the work done and they just kind of looked past it,” he said.

The review board will decide whether to enforce, reduce or increase the proposed fines. It also may direct Wal-Mart to do restoration work on the affected land, Cathey said.

From The Virginian-Pilot

For 10 years, Wendy Thomas and Wal-Mart were inseparable.

As one of the supercenter's affable greeters, Thomas welcomed countless customers, a job that earned her handmade scarves at Christmas and an Outstanding Service Award from the chain last year.

Thomas was so recognizable that shoppers at the Nimmo Parkway store often fondly referred to her as "Wal-Mart Wendy."

But for the past few months, many have been asking: "Where's Wendy?"

Thomas, 33, said she was quietly fired in May after she said a store manager told her Wal-Mart no longer wanted employees who could work only five hours daily. Thomas said she worked full time until about two years ago, when her schedule was cut back.

Additionally, she said she was told she was being dismissed because she could not handle her security duties.

But Thomas, who sustained brain damage from a car wreck 26 years ago, think s she was fired because she is disabled. In June, she filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She said Wal-Mart violated her rights under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

"I feel Wal-Mart pushed me aside," said Thomas, of Knotts Island, N.C.

Federal law ensures that qualified people with disabilities have the same access to jobs as anyone else. Employers must accommodate workers' disabilities, provided they don't pose a financial or administrative burden.

A manager at the Nimmo Parkway store would not comment on the complaint, which the commission is still reviewing, and referred all questions to the company's headquarters in Bentonville, Ark.

John Simley, a corporate spokesman, said the company does not comment on "personnel matters out of respect for an associate's privacy."

He added, however, that Wal-Mart may be the country's "largest employer of people with disabilities."

Thomas got her start as a greeter at the Wal-Mart supercenter off Lynnhaven Parkway. The job gave her a chance to meet lots of people.

"The older people, especially, they were real sweet to me," she said.

About four years ago, she moved to the Nimmo Parkway store, where customers also quickly took a liking to her.

"She was always real cheery," said Kay Morris, a family friend. "She was always trying to help other people. She's a real dear, sweet little girl."

Woody and Diana Thomas used to drive their daughter to and from work daily, a 100-mile round trip from their two-story brick home just over the North Carolina line.

The commute cost more than their daughter's hourly salary, said Woody Thomas. But the job was never about the money, he said.

"When Wendy got in her accident, my goal for her was just for her to have a purpose like we all do," he said. "I think they kind of yanked that away from her."

The June 1981 wreck left Wendy Thomas blind in her left eye and with permanent brain damage. At the time, doctors didn't think the 7-year-old's chances of survival were good. But within months, Thomas was walking and speaking. Today, she has limited use of the right side of her body and walks with a limp.

Diana Thomas said h er daughter's disability did not prevent her from doing her job well. During bad weather, Wendy was often the only greeter who showed up for work, she said.

In March, Diana Thomas said a store manager expressed concern about her daughter's problems with the security alarm system. He said she was having trouble keeping a log of items that set off the store's exit alarms.

Company greeters generally are responsible for watching for problems in a store's parking lot, assisting customers and keeping an eye out for shoplifters, Simley said.

Until she could receive training, Wendy Thomas said she was told to take a temporary leave of absence. She later learned she'd been fired.

"They pushed out a good person who worked hard all the time," she said.

Now, rarely a day passes without friends or customers stopping the family out on the street or calling to ask where Wendy Thomas has been. Most days, she's hanging out at home with her mother or watching TV.

Diana Thomas said her daughter isn't asking for special privileges. She simply wants to work as long as she can.

"All I've ever wanted for her is what she deserved," she said. "I don't want her to just sit aside. I want her to keep growing."

Wendy Thomas said she's eager to find more work, though she still misses Wal-Mart and chatting with customers.

"I just want another full-time job where I'm getting a paycheck," she said. "Anything would be good."

From The Kansas City Star

“They can’t put cookie-cutter stores out there anymore.”
Sandra J. Skrovan, senior vice president at TNS Retail Forward

After years of decline brought on by fighting Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on price, the nation’s grocery chains are on the mend.

The supermarkets are winning back shoppers by sharpening their differences with Wal-Mart’s supercenters, stressing less-hectic stores with exotic or difficult-to-match products, and greater convenience.

Last year, sales at supermarkets open at least a year rose 4 percent, the biggest increase in five years, according to retail consultants TNS Retail Forward. While the gains are modest, the supermarkets got more good news recently when Wal-Mart announced it would cut back on new supercenter openings for the next several years.

Earlier this decade, the hidebound supermarket business was expected to fall before Wal-Mart’s supercenter rollout and the rise of membership clubs like Costco Wholesale Corp. and high-end specialty chains like Whole Foods Market. Many chains did collapse — 26 filed for bankruptcy this decade — and a wave of consolidation swept the business. But the survivors rallied by redesigning stores, introducing a more relaxed shopping experience, and marrying low-priced staples with higher-margin breads, meats and wine. Now, the stronger chains like TheKroger Co. and SuperValu Inc. are taking market share from weaker, often regional, grocers.

Supermarkets have begun to attract new investment. Hedge fund Cerberus Capital Management LP recently joined two retailers in acquiring Albertsons, and Britain’s Tesco PLC is expected to begin rolling out 100 U.S. stores in the Southwest this year. TheGreat Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., once a symbol of the big chains’ decline, recently acquired rival Pathmark Stores Inc. for $700 million.

Many of the chains are still learning to sidestep Wal-Mart. They are cutting back on drugs and health and beauty products, which are Wal-Mart strengths, to stress fresh produce, higher-quality meat and easy-to-prepare foods. Subdued lighting and high-end selections buttress the nonsupercenter experience.

Instead of aisles with common brands, the supermarkets are adding tables providing ingredients for planned meals, luring the customer who shops for dinner instead of stocking up on groceries weekly, said Paul Weitzel, managing partner at grocery consultants Willard Bishop LLC.

Safeway Inc. has converted about half of its 1,755 stores into “Lifestyle” markets with wood floors, on-site bakeries and high-end private-label brands. The third-largest food retailer after Wal-Mart and Kroger, it expects to convert all its stores by 2009.

Safeway has also invested in precise temperature controls for its produce and other perishable foods as they move from suppliers to stores. And it strives to find food its competitors don’t offer, said Steven A. Burd, Safeway’s chairman. For instance, it worked with growers to get individual-sized watermelons two years before others. It also works with a single meat supplier to offer its own brand of tenderness-tested beef.

Kroger has an outlet for every consumer: urban no-frills stores that stock a limited set of groceries at ultra-low prices, conventional supermarkets and larger stores with housewares, and stores aimed at upper-crust shoppers that offer more produce and prepared foods. David B. Dillon, Kroger’s chief executive officer, estimated the chain gained share last year in 26 of the 32 areas where it competed against supercenters.

Claire Watts has resigned from her position as Wal-Mart's VP of apparel merchandising. Watts was one of the chief architects behind Wal-Mart's failed attempt to lure trendy customers with "designer" clothing lines. Ms. Watts' departure comes six months after she was ousted from her post as director of Wal-Mart's home goods division.

From the Wall Street Journal:

DALLAS -- Claire Watts, executive vice president of apparel merchandising at Wal-Mart Stores Inc., has resigned, leaving the troubled division at least temporarily in the hands of chief merchandising officer John Fleming and a newly promoted executive.

Ms. Watts, who joined Wal-Mart in 1997, will leave the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer next week to "pursue other career interests," Wal-Mart spokeswoman Sarah Clark said Friday. Ms. Watts is out of the office today and not available for comment, according to Ms. Clark.

Ms. Watts is credited with, among other things, pushing Wal-Mart to establish a more substantial office in Manhattan to spot apparel trends. However, her division has struggled in the past year and hampered Wal-Mart's overall sales momentum.

Under Ms. Watts, Wal-Mart had launched several lines of trendy apparel, including its Metro 7 line and George ME line by designer Mark Eisen, as a cornerstone of its bid to lure more affluent, trendy shoppers. But the offerings failed to entice as many customers as Wal-Mart had hoped, and the retailer subsequently pared distribution of both in recent months, pulling them out of hundreds of stores.

Wal-Mart's upscale push also faltered in its home-goods division, which Ms. Watts also managed until Wal-Mart removed it from her oversight in a January shake-up of its merchandising and marketing staffs. The division encompasses Wal-Mart's offerings in home décor, bedding and furniture, among other things. Wal-Mart recently hired former Kraft Foods Inc. executive Linda Hefner to oversee its home-goods unit as executive vice president.

At Wal-Mart's annual shareholders meeting on June 1, Chief Executive Officer Lee Scott described the retailer's struggles in apparel as moving too far, too fast. Wal-Mart customers weren't ready to spend $39 for a sweater, he said. "We have to earn our right," Mr. Scott told analysts after the meeting. "And we just got up one morning and decided that we could move that customer there, (that) because they trusted us at $13.88, they were going to trust us at $39. And I think John (Fleming) understands clearly ... it is a slower transition."

JP Morgan Securities analyst Charles Grom, who describes the changes in Wal-Mart's apparel division in a research note to his firm's clients today, applauded the changes. "The changes, which were long overdue, in our view are steps in the right direction, although it remains to be seen what changes in the company's merchandise cadence we will see under the new regime," Mr. Grom wrote in the note.

Wal-Mart has not yet decided if it will recruit someone to replace Ms. Watts as executive vice president of apparel. It has, however, named Dottie Mattison, formerly chief merchant at its walmart.com unit, as senior vice president and general merchandising manager of women's apparel.

Ms. Mattison, who joined Wal-Mart in March 2006 after 12 years at Gap Inc., will handle Wal-Mart's merchandising, design and product strategy for women's apparel from its offices in New York City. She also will oversee women's jewelry, shoes and accessories and product development.

Wal-Mart doesn't disclose its exact sales of apparel and home décor. For its latest fiscal year, Wal-Mart reported that softgoods and domestics, which include apparel and home items, accounted for 15% of sales at its supercenters and discount stores. Shoes and jewelry each accounted for 1%. Sales at Wal-Mart's U.S. stores division, which include supercenters, discount stores and more than 100 Neighborhood Market grocery stores, were $226.3 billion last year.

From KVUE.com

Wal-Mart opponents got together Wednesday night, preparing for a legal battle with the City of Austin.

They have sued the city and Lincoln Properties for letting Wal-Mart build at Northcross Mall.

The group “Responsible Growth For Northcross” is challenging the Northcross development. It alleges city staff, during the approval process, ignored environmental issues, increased traffic congestion on nearby roads, and the city’s own tree ordinance, which forces development to protect the maximum amount of trees.

“What the City of Austin has authorized is the destruction of 29 trees on the site, included some very large live oaks,” said Brad Rockwell, an attorney for Responsible Growth For Northcross.

Ken Moyer, a supporter of Wal-Mart moving into the Northcross Mall, is far more concerned with another number: the cost to taxpayers to defend against the lawsuit.

Documents obtained by KVUE News show that from December 2006 to February of this year, attorneys billed the city nearly $137,000, several months before any lawsuit was ever filed.

“I think it's a real concern that taxpayers have to foot the bill for all of this because I consider any lawsuit this anti-Wal-Mart group brings about is a frivolous lawsuit,” said Moyer.

Hope Morrison of Responsible Growth For Northcross says it tried to avoid going to court but says it was necessary.

“There were some very specific laws not followed in this case because the city seems to absolutely hell bent on approving every development that comes along,” she said.

Wal-Mart declined to comment on the lawsuit. KVUE News also tried to reach an attorney for the city and Lincoln Properties, but were not successful.

From The Orlando Sentinel

Developers of Plaza Collina are hitting back in what could become an explosive legal fight over their plans to build a Wal-Mart Supercenter in south Lake County.

Last week, county commissioners agreed to ask the state Department of Community Affairs whether plans for the $140 million shopping center are substantially different from what the county approved in January 2006. They also suspended preliminary land grading around the northern part of the 142-acre site on State Road 50 near the Orange County line.

The development originally was proposed as a high-end shopping magnet with a mix of commercial, office and residential development.
Development attorney Cecelia Bonifay, who represents Plaza Collina, argued that the county's decision was illegal. In a letter submitted to Lake officials on Friday, she threatened a lawsuit and urged the county to reverse what she calls "rash and irresponsible actions."

"We demand that Lake County retract its unlawful action and in the future honor Plaza Collina's due process rights and provide notice and opportunity to be heard prior to taking any actions that will affect Plaza Collina's property rights," Bonifay wrote.

She asked for a meeting with county staff and commission Chairman Welton Cadwell. That meeting had not been scheduled as of Monday afternoon.

Bonifay's firm, Akerman Senterfitt, also sent letters to Clermont and Montverde in south Lake as well as Oakland in west Orange County requesting public records pertaining to Plaza Collina.

Clermont is petitioning residents to find out how many people want state planners to take another look at Plaza Collina. City officials also are expected to send a letter to the county within a couple of days objecting to the most recent plans.

"We feel like the development is not what it was proposed to be," City Manager Wayne Saunders said. "We think further review needs to take place."

The Oakland Town Commission agreed last week to resubmit its previous objections about Plaza Collina to Lake and state officials. The town has argued that Lake County did not consider impacts of a Wal-Mart when it originally approved Plaza Collina last year.

Montverde Mayor Dale Heathman said he is happy to comply with Bonifay's records request. Clermont and Oakland said they also will comply.

Bonifay could not be reached for comment Monday. Her staff said she was on vacation.

Partners Phoenicia Development and the Goodman Co. propose Plaza Collina to have about 988,000 square feet of buildings on 142 acres. Opponents argue the plans have changed considerably with primarily commercial development. The largest anchor could be a 207,000-square-foot Wal-Mart Supercenter.

Plaza Collina also could have about 17 outparcels along S.R. 50. Past plans submitted to the county have shown a nearly 12,000-square-foot ABC Fine Wine and Spirits store and a 37,000-square-foot Rooms to Go outlet.

So far, the developers have not confirmed any tenants. But news about the Wal-Mart has raised the ire of residents and public officials who say the retailer does not fit the pledge to build upscale shopping at Plaza Collina.

From WZZM13 NEWS:

By Linda Paige

Created: 7/16/2007 6:12:22 PM
Updated: 7/16/2007 6:40:07 PM

Fremont - A gas station in a small West Michigan town faces a big bill to repair cars damaged by their product.

This, after drivers who thought they were gassing up with regular, were actually getting diesel.

It happened in Fremont at the Wal-Mart gas station.

Wal-Mart customer, Vern Nyson, had problems starting his car last weekend, "Saturday we just got back from Muskegon and I was low on gas and I stopped into Walmart, Murphy oil and filled it up, came home and washed the car and went to move it and it had problems. It would start up and quit startup and quit several times."

Words echoed by many whose cars suddenly stopped running.

Some customers who only put in a few gallons may not know they have diesel flowing through their fuel lines.

Nyson says, "I called this morning and made arrangements to have my car brought in to Dur Speet where I bought it one month ago."

"Were going to have a busy day," says Don Clark, one of the Service Managers.

Tom Schuiteman, Part Owner Deur Speet says, "At this point we have approximately 12 to 13 vehicles."

Murphy Oil sent a letter to the dealerships and repair shops authorizing them to fix the cars and bill the company.

"So far they've been very good about making sure the customers are taken care of and giving us the ability to fix them," says Schuiteman.

Don Clark, Assistant Service Manager says, "We're draining the fuel tanks, flushing the fuel lines, replacing the fuel lines where necessary, and getting them full with fresh fuel."

Schuiteman says, "The customers we've talked to some are frustrated with the experience, obviously. Some enjoy driving a nice rental car. We're trying to expedite the process."

An attendant at the gas station tells WZZM 13 that the affected cars were fueled on Saturday between 3PM and 5PM.

From The Guardian

Just before Christmas, War on Want exposed the appalling conditions in Bangladeshi garment factories producing clothes for discount retailers Asda, Primark and Tesco. The companies threw up their hands and pledged to address the issue with all the urgency it deserves.

Now, six months on, Guardian reporter Karen Mc Veigh? has gone back to see whether all the hand-wringing made any difference to the reality of life for workers on the ground in Bangladesh. Sadly, if all too predictably, her story in today's paper makes clear that the horrific conditions still persist.

In response, Asda has committed to re-auditing all of its Bangladeshi factories. Primark speaks of its "considerable concern" at the problem. Tesco - supposedly the market leader - is stonewalling again, refusing to act because of the confidentiality under which the interviews were conducted to protect already vulnerable workers.

Our big high street retailers pay lip service to the importance of decent working conditions for their developing country suppliers. But their mantra of calling for more and more audits so as to "catch out" the miscreants is no more than an attempt to pass the buck. Blaming their suppliers in developing countries is a smokescreen intended to hide the unacceptable truth that the buying practices of the supermarkets themselves are the root cause of the problem.

Powerful retailers such as Tesco, Primark and Asda (itself part of the massive Wal-Mart family) place immense pressure on factory owners in developing countries to produce garments quickly and at ever-decreasing costs so that clothes can be sold at lower and lower prices in the British high street. These demands translate directly into pressure on the workforce and into poor working conditions. And as a price war rages between the big supermarkets, the pressure on suppliers is intensified still further.

The appalling treatment of sweatshop workers was brought to the world's attention over a decade ago. Numerous voluntary initiatives were spawned in an effort to combat the problem, yet little has changed. Voluntary codes often rely on audits of factory conditions to expose problems and recommend remedial action. But in addition to the fact that the audits themselves can be deeply flawed, the systemic demands and pressures from retailers mean that carrying out more audits cannot provide a solution.

The supermarkets have failed to put their own house in order, and they have had long enough to do so. It is now up to government to introduce binding regulation to ensure retailers do more than pay lip service to the ethical treatment of workers in countries across the developing world.

Gordon Brown has often stressed his commitment to the world's poor, yet permits the gross exploitation of people working gruelling 80-hour weeks just to keep their families fed, housed and clothed.

Introducing legislation to protect such vulnerable workers would show that he is serious about making poverty history, and would draw a line under Blair's stubborn refusal to promote anything but voluntary codes. An independent regulator to enforce compliance with the Supermarket Code of Practice would be a good first step in the right direction. How about it, prime minister?

From Couriermail.com

LOW-cost British clothing retailer Asda, owned by US giant Wal-Mart, has launched an investigation into allegations that its production facilities in Bangladesh were abusing the rights of their workers, The Guardian reported today.

The newspaper, which interviewed workers from seven different factories in the country, said that the factories, which also supplied retailers Tesco and Primark, forced workers to work up to 84-hours a week for low wages under difficult conditions.

The three factories make up about 43 per cent of Britain's value-clothing market.

Workers from the factories reportedly said they were refused access to trade unions and claimed that four workers had been fired within the past month for trying to organise a union.

The Guardian said that workers at the factories had wages so low that, despite working up to 84 hours a week, they were struggling to provide enough for their families.

A spokesman for Asda said that the retailer would re-audit all of its facilities in Bangladesh, telling the paper: "We find abuse of any kind unacceptable."

"It appears that one of our approved factories, which are audited up to three times a year, has subcontracted this work to another factory without our knowledge and against our wishes."

Primark said that it had already audited all of its Bangladeshi suppliers within the previous six months and had "agreed a programme of remediation" with those falling short of its code of conduct.
Tesco, meanwhile, said that it could not act on the allegations made in The Guardian because the newspaper did not specify in which factories the abuses occurred. A spokesman added that the retailer had recently conducted unannounced audits of all its Bangladeshi production facilities.

The Guardian quoted a factory owner in Bangladesh, who supplies only the United States and Germany, as saying that buyers left him with no choice but to keep wages low: "Buyers who come to Bangladesh tell us, 'We are businessmen, we want to make money. If we see cheaper prices in China, we will go there'."

From KXMB News

Wal-Mart struggling with rising loss from shoplifting and employee theft

Wal-Mart may pride itself on low prices, but some shoppers and employees appear to be helping themselves to things they haven't paid for.

Recent public disclosures suggest that Wal-Mart is experiencing an increase in inventory losses at its U-S stores.

One retail consultant says the hit is likely to swell to more than three (b) billion dollars this year for Wal-Mart, which generated sales of more than 348 (b) billion dollars last year.

Analysts say the increase in theft may be tied to Wal-Mart's highly publicized decision last year to no longer prosecute minor cases of shoplifting.

Wal-Mart has declined to offer any explanations for the rise in losses, but denies it has cut security staff.

From Forbes

United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger used the solidarity between labor and civil rights groups to urge NAACP delegates Wednesday to fight against labor practices at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and for universal health care.

Gettelfinger said the union and the civil rights organization should use their long history of pursuing common interests to help workers, who are bearing an increasing share of their employer-provided health care benefits.

He singled out Wal-Mart in particular, saying the retail giant pays low wages and denies affordable health care benefits to many hourly workers, forcing a high percentage of its employees onto government health care assistance programs.

That's causing taxpayers to pick up the tab for employees of a company that posted a record $11.2 billion profit last fiscal year, he said.

"When we look at some of labor's major concerns -- the loss of manufacturing jobs, the health care mess, unfair trade agreements and the deterioration of workers' rights -- it's a straightforward conclusion that what's wrong with America is also what's wrong with Wal-Mart," Gettelfinger said.

Dan Fogleman, a spokesman for Bentonville, Ark., retailer, cited the company's work seeking ways to increase affordable health care as a founding member of a business-labor coalition and its in-store clinics and $4 generic medicines for employees. He said full-time hourly workers average $10.51 an hour and often participate in company benefit plans.

"Clearly, the facts don't bear out the allegations," Fogleman said.
Gettelfinger's remarks came less than two weeks before the UAW enters into contract negotiations with the Detroit Three automakers. The cost of health care benefits, which domestic automaker say hurts their ability to compete against their Japanese competitors, is expected to be a key issue.

Gettelfinger did not discuss the upcoming negotiations in his remarks, and he told reporters after his speech that he would not negotiate in the media. Negotiations start July 20 with Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group and July 23 with General Motors Corp.
"We're not going into this negotiation in a concessionary mode, I'll say that," he said.

In 2005, the UAW granted health care concessions to Ford and GM, but it refused to grant the same deal to Chrysler because of its stronger financial condition at the time. But Gettelfinger has said a reversal of fortunes at Chrysler, which lost $618 million in 2006, means the union needs to find ways to help the automaker.

He said Wednesday that the union has had ongoing discussions with Chrysler, but the two sides were not close to a deal.

Gettelfinger also called the nation's health care system "too expensive and too exclusive," citing rising costs and the growing numbers of uninsured. The UAW, which supports a single-payer health care system, also supports making interim fixes including expanding state children's health care systems and lowering the Medicare eligibility to age 55, he said.

From the New Mexican:

Loophole allows multistate corporations to avoid state income taxes

Twenty state legislators Tuesday sent a letter to Gov. Bill Richardson asking him to investigate Wal-Mart’s tax records in New Mexico to make sure the corporate giant is paying its fair share of state taxes.

The letter cited a Wall Street Journal article that detailed how Wal-Mart nationally has saved millions of dollars in taxes by having a subsidiary pay rent to a real-estate investment trust — or REIT — owned by another subsidiary, which receives tax-free dividends from the REIT.

“If Wal-Mart has used the captive REIT structure to avoid state income taxes, the state has the power and duty to make Wal-Mart return this money and pay what it owes,” legislators said in their letter.

Lawmakers signing the letter included several legislative leaders, such as Senate President Pro Tem Ben Altamirano, D- Silver City, and House Speaker Ben Luján, D-Nambé. Other local legislators who signed the letter included Reps. Luciano “Lucky” Varela and Peter Wirth, both Santa Fe Democrats.

The letter comes after three failed attempts by Wirth to shepherd a bill through the Legislature to close what he says is an “$80 million loophole” that allows multistate corporations like Wal-Mart to avoid paying New Mexico corporate-income taxes. Wirth’s proposal would have required such corporations to file a combined tax return with their subsidiaries to reflect the total income of the entire corporation.

Wirth on Tuesday said his proposal and the REIT issue address similar types of loopholes used by corporations. “I think it’s a fundamental fairness issue,” he said. “When you have loopholes that are being used by out-of-state businesses, it is New Mexico businesses that are being hurt.”

Although Wirth’s bill repeatedly ran into opposition from several business groups during this year’s 60-day legislative session, he said the proposal is starting to pick up steam. “There’s kind of a sense of outrage that the system is not fair to New Mexico businesses,” he said.

Wirth said he plans to take a closer look at tax issues surrounding multistate corporations such as Wal-Mart before deciding whether to resurrect his proposal next year.

His bill that died at the end of the 2007 session would have generated an additional $80 million a year in corporate-income tax revenue for the state, according to a fiscal impact report on the bill. However, the measure also would have included an estimated $60 million in tax cuts for corporations, making the state’s net revenue gain $20 million a year.

From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Plans to build a Wal-Mart Supercenter are stirring controversy in Duluth

Nearly 1,200 people have signed an online petition opposing the retail giant's plans to build a store on 27.5 acres on Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, between Chattahoochee Drive and Sugarloaf Parkway. Worried residents from surrounding neighborhoods are calling and sending e-mails to Duluth City Hall and each other.

They will get a chance to voice concerns to Wal-Mart at a public meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Red Clay Theater on Duluth's Main Street.

Glen Wilkins, senior manager of public affairs for Wal-Mart, said he looks forward to answering questions and setting the record straight about his employer's history and plans. He said he's heard from a number of residents who support the proposal for a third Wal-Mart in the area.

There are two within five miles of the proposed site --- one on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth and another in Suwanee.

"We're trying to relieve pressure on the other stores," said Wilkins. "We're following the rooftops and we're following the customers. Growth has been created, and we're responding to that growth."

Homeowner Len Boyer has lived in Canterbury Woods --- just across Peachtree Industrial from the proposed site --- for nine years. The operations manager for a general contractor, Boyer said he's obviously not opposed to development.

It's the scale of the proposed store, he said, that concerns him. The store would have 176,305 square feet.

As chairman of his subdivision's "Stop Wal-Mart" committee, he created a Web site --- www.smartgrowthgwinnett.com --- to chronicle the opposition and inform neighbors.

"I would love to see something go in there that fits" the area, he said. "As a homeowner and someone who works in development, I don't see how big box retail fits the letter of Duluth's zoning ordinances."

The proposed site is zoned for such businesses, but the retailer has asked the city of Duluth for exceptions to its zoning code, such as permission to have landscaping closer to the store and to construct a roof that's flat, rather than pitched.

Wal-Mart had planned to make its case June 27 at a meeting of the Duluth Zoning Board of Appeals. Due to the protests, the retailer asked for its requests to be deferred for a month. It will make its presentation to the board on July 25.

In a memo posted on the city's Web site on July 6, the mayor and City Council sought to make sure that everyone understood the legal realities surrounding the proposed development --- namely, that the Peachtree Industrial land is already zoned for commercial development.

That means "a Wal-Mart store or any other similar retail development is allowed . . . " and that "Georgia law does not allow the city to prohibit the use as long as the project is developed in accordance with City of Duluth standards.

"As such," the memo concluded, "this matter will not come before the Mayor and Council."

Even so, resident Marline Santiago-Cook expressed her concerns at a council meeting Monday. She lives in the Castlemaine subdivision, across Peachtree Industrial from the proposed site. A few of her neighbors from nearby subdivisions were in the audience as well.

She told the mayor and council she knew they wouldn't have the ultimate say in the matter but said she just wanted to go on the record as someone who loved the city and the area.

"We're not anti-growth and development," she said. "We just think it's too big for that location, and that something like the Forum in Norcross would be a better fit."

Wal-Mart's security procedures are under scrutiny after a California woman lost $1,400 in a check-cashing scheme, according to San Francisco's KGO-TV.

Alice McConlogue was reviewing her bank statement when she found more than $1,400 in unauthorized checks written to Wal-Mart. She alerted her bank, which issued a fraud alert and credited the money back into her account.

But that wasn't the end of her troubles, KGO Consumer Reporter Michael Finney said.

"Wal Mart is now out this money and they want us to pay them back," McConlogue said. Wal-Mart sent a collection agency after her, trying to get its money back, though the retail giant called off its hounds when KGO began investigating.

McConlogue says this might not have happened if Wal-Mart required ID when buying something with a check.

KGO decided to investigate further.

It gave an employee a blank check and asked him to make a purchase at Wal-Mart. He successfully bought an answering machine using someone else's check. The cashier never asked to see his ID.

"I felt that there should have been some sort of security in place. I felt that anybody's identity was vulnerable," said KGO's Derek Fujihara. Apparently, Wal Mart only asks for ID the first time you use a check. Once you're entered into the system, no ID is required on most purchases, Fujihara said.

Wal Mart says its check cashing policy is in line with merchant guidelines.

From Rocky Mountain News

Steve Long and 11 other attorneys expect to log 24,000 hours over the next year preparing for a courtroom showdown with the most formidable adversary they've ever met.

The Denver lawyer has appeared in front of dozens of juries throughout his career and has seen all kinds of opponents. This time, he's set to confront Wal-Mart, which sits atop the Fortune 500 with $351 billion in annual revenue and can afford to hire the most expensive law firms in the nation.

Long represents workers in Missouri who claim Wal-Mart forced them to work off the clock and deprived them of meal and rest breaks. They also contend that Wal-Mart, under pressure to curb labor costs, manipulated records to erase workers' hours.

The attorneys scored a victory last month when a Missouri appeals court upheld a decision granting the case class-action status, allowing the plaintiffs to sue as a group of about 225,000 workers. They say Wal-Mart owes hundreds of millions of dollars.

"It's a systemic problem," Long said. "It's not just a story about Joe and Susan and Tom."

The case is headed for a trial, possibly toward the end of 2008, but Wal-Mart is aggressively defending itself and has asked the state Supreme Court to hear the case. The two sides also could settle the case out of court.

The chapter is the latest in a story that dates to the late 1990s. Two other Colorado lawyers, Gerald Bader and Frank Azar, sued Wal-Mart in 1998 on behalf of workers in southern Colorado and tapped Long for help. Wal-Mart settled for a reported $50 million. The attorneys declined to confirm the figure.

Wal-Mart continues to fight with the same fervor.

"They will leave no rock unturned in a effort to win," said Long, 55, who started the Denver office of Shughart Thomson & Kilroy in 1998. "They will do anything to win because there's a lot at stake. They will fight tooth and nail."

After the Colorado case, which began in Las Animas County, dozens of similar lawsuits have been filed around the country, and cases in several states, including Kentucky, Minnesota and Washington, have gained class-action certification.

Now New Mexico, where Bader and Azar are representing workers, has joined the list.

In Pennsylvania, Wal-Mart workers last year won a $78.5 million verdict. That followed a case in California, in which a court awarded $172 million to employees. Wal-Mart has appealed both.

The Minnesota case is set for a trial in September.

In most instances, however, Wal-Mart has been successful. In fact, on the same day as the Missouri and New Mexico decisions, a New York court refused to give the plaintiffs class-action status, ruling that each case must move ahead individually.

Wal-Mart believes the news out of New York reinforced what it has said all along.

"It certainly indicates these cases are not well-suited for class treatment on the basis of the fact that everyone's circumstances are unique," said John Simley, a Wal-Mart spokesman.

He added: "It's our policy to pay everyone for every hour they've worked."

The plaintiffs' lawyer, Long, acknowledged that most of the rulings had gone Wal-Mart's way. Shughart Thomson has failed in other states, including Arizona.

"It appeared as if these cases were in deep trouble," he said.

But the tide started to turn, he said, even though Wal-Mart prevailed in New York and also in another recent case in Maryland.

A Missouri judge in 2002 ordered Wal-Mart to disclose computer records that Long said "would show some of the wrongs we were complaining of."

Then, in mid-June, the Western Missouri Court of Appeals unanimously gave the class-action case a green light.

"If we can't certify a case like this, then what is a class action?" Long asked. "The whole purpose is to give a group of people a day in court who would otherwise not have one."

Bader and Azar, who have been involved in cases in more than 20 states, received more favorable news when the New Mexico appeals court ruled in their favor.

"This was designed to give the little guy a shot at fighting the big guy," Bader said.

The Missouri ruling is more significant because the class is broader and allows the employees' side to use evidence that hasn't played a role in previous lawsuits, the lawyers said.

The plaintiffs argue that electronic records show the company deleted time worked by employees beyond their shifts, a practice Long called "time shaving." Other data prove employees continued to work at cash registers after clocking out, he said.

Addressing those allegations, Wal-Mart spokesman Simley said, "We're not even at a point where that has been argued. The only issue so far is whether or not these cases should be treated as class action."

On that matter, he noted, Wal-Mart's lawyers have established a strong track record.

Simley said anyone who violates the policy to pay workers for all the time they work "is subject to discipline, up to and including termination."

He couldn't cite any specific actions against Wal-Mart managers in the past.

Over the past 25 years, Long has been involved in a wide array of cases, representing both plaintiffs and defendants. In one notable dispute he cited, he battled TCI Cablevision on behalf of his client, Central Telecommunications Inc., and won a $43 million verdict in a case he has referred to before as an "underdog conflict."

If the Missouri Wal-Mart claims head to a jury - it's still unclear whether the state Supreme Court will review it - the case could rise to the top of his biggest trials.

Wal-Mart is a feisty foe and has been quick to try to expose flaws in the employees' cases. In a November news release, the company noted that a Massachusetts judge had issued an order striking the testimony of a key expert that the plaintiffs used in the case "on the basis that it is unreliable and based on faulty methodology."

The expert, Emory University professor Martin Shapiro, was retained in the Missouri case, too.

Long said the ruling "has no impact on the Missouri case."

The lawyer, Azar, said he "had no idea what he was getting into" squaring off against Wal-Mart. "Litigating with this company is unlike litigating with anyone else in this entire country," he said.

Long said there's a lot riding on the remaining lawsuits, especially the one in Missouri.

"I would describe this as one of the toughest challenges yet," he said. "Wal-Mart's size is what has led to its behavior. And it has gotten to where it is today, in part, on the backs of its employees. It's important we win."

From Salon

The Communist government of Kerala is threatening to ban "retail giants" from setting up shop in the Indian state. The measure, which appears to be backed by all the major political parties in Kerala, is chiefly aimed at India's version of Wal-Mart, Reliance Industries. The concern is that a proliferation of large retail outlets would drive tens of thousands of mom-and-pop shop operators out of business.

Kerala made headlines not so long ago for attempting to ban Coca-Cola; the state has a long history of pursuing its own unique path to development. Naturally, the more gung-ho-for-capitalism elements of Indian society aren't mincing their deprecating words: An editorial in the Indian Express made no attempt to restrain its sarcasm:

Coke poisons people. Highway tolls exploit them. Fiscal discipline starves projects that can better their lives. So, of course, big retail chains, as Kerala's Left explained to this newspaper on Monday, are anti-people ... Food minister ... C. Divakaran is ever so bold in proposing to ban a business activity permitted almost everywhere bar places like North Korea.

Indian Express trots out the standard defense of mega-retailers everywhere. How can low prices be considered "anti-people"?

Let's switch venues. The safety of Chinese-made products is in the news again today, as China's government announced that a whopping one-fifth of the products on the shelves of Chinese stores were found to be substandard or tainted. The immediate, and understandable impulse, is to blame the health hazards of Chinese products on the lack of regulatory enforcement in China, a state of affairs exacerbated by state corruption, a weak judiciary, and a general absence of effective checks and balances in Chinese society. But that's only one-half of the picture. The other half is the imperative, in the biggest markets for Chinese exports, that demands ever-lower prices for everything.

In "The Wal-Mart Effect," Charles Fishman makes a compelling argument that Wal-Mart's market power inevitably forces its suppliers to cut corners on quality in order to deliver the lower and lower prices that Wal-Mart demands. So those suppliers close their American manufacturing facilities and start sourcing their products in China -- if they don't, they'll lose their place on Wal-Mart's shelves.

So whose fault is it really that so many problems are cropping up with Chinese-made products? Of course, the factory owner in China who authorizes the insertion of toxic chemicals in toothpaste and pet food bears a heavy liability, as does the government official who looks the other way. But shouldn't the Western mega-retailers fighting for market share with their "pro-people" low prices also be held to account?

Maybe tougher safety standards and enforcement of legal liability all the way up and down the supply chain, from China to the retail store, is a better answer, ultimately, than attempting to ban chain stores altogether. On that question How the World Works will remain agnostic. But the symbolism of Kerala's "bold" move, however quixotic, is still potent. Markets left to themselves do not deliver perfect outcomes. Sometimes government has to push back.

From Cattle Network

A Muskogee, Okla., woman is filing a lawsuit against Wal-Mart and Tyson Foods Inc. alleging hamburger meat she purchased made her sick, according to a local media report.

KOTV in Tulsa said Melinda Pierce filed the complaint after she had bought some Tyson hamburger meat at the Muskogee, Okla., Wal-Mart on June 4, ate it and fell.

Last month, Tyson foods voluntarily recalled packages of ground beef made in its Sherman, Texas, plant on June 2nd and sent to Wal-Mart stores in 12 states, including Oklahoma.

Tyson foods spokesman Gary Mickelson told Meatingplace.com the company has not been contacted nor have they seen the lawsuit. "If she contacts us, we certainly will be glad to look into it," he said.

Wal-Mart told KOTV it has not seen the lawsuit, but that food safety is a priority.

From TBO.com:

By ELAINE SILVESTRINI The Tampa Tribune Jul 3, 2007

TAMPA - When Karen Armatrout died in 1997, her employer, Wal-Mart, collected thousands of dollars on a life insurance policy the retail giant had taken out without telling her, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

Armatrout was one of about 350,000 employees Wal-Mart secretly insured nationwide, said Texas attorney Michael D. Myers, who estimated the company collected on 75 to 100 policies involving Florida employees who died.

Myers is seeking to make the Armatrout lawsuit a class-action case on behalf of the estates of all the Florida employees who died while unwittingly insured by Wal-Mart.

"Creepy's a good word for it," Myers said. "If you ask the executives that decided to buy these policies and the insurance companies that sold them, they would say this was designed to create tax benefits for the company, which would use the benefits for benevolent purposes such as buying employee medical benefits.

"If you asked me, I would say they did it to make more money."

Wal-Mart spokesman John Simley said he could not comment because the company has not been served with the lawsuit.

The company settled two lawsuits with employees represented by Myers in Texas and Oklahoma, one for about $10 million and one for about $5 million. He said Karen Armatrout came to his attention when Wal-Mart mistakenly gave her husband's phone number to an Oklahoman who called the retailer inquiring about the settlement.

Myers said he also has filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart in Louisiana.

Payouts Up To $80,000

Richard Armatrout, who is retired, does not want to speak publicly about his case, Myers said. Armatrout did not respond to a message left by the Tribune.

Karen Armatrout was 50 when she died of cancer, said Myers, who said she had worked several years in the pharmacy of the store on West Waters Avenue.

Myers said the policy payouts ranged from $50,000 to $80,000, depending on the person's age and gender. They were taken out on all full-time Wal-Mart employees who, in December 1993, were between ages 18 and 70 and participated in the medical benefits plan.

He said the company stopped taking out the policies in 1995 but continued to receive payouts on employees who died, even those who had left Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart, which said it canceled its policies in early 2000 because it was losing money on the arrangement, says the program was intended to reduce its income taxes to help pay rising employee health care costs. Workers were notified and given the opportunity to opt out, the company said.

The Armatrout lawsuit says the policies were all written in Georgia, where the laws allowed such policies to be obtained.

The lawsuit says Wal-Mart used confidential information it received from employees for use in their employment, such as Social Security numbers and dates of birth, to obtain the life insurance policies.

Myers said this corporate practice is not uncommon. He estimates that up to 25 percent of Fortune 500 companies have taken out such policies on employees. The vast majority of the time, the employees didn't know, Myers said.

The practice evolved over time, Myers said. Corporations started by taking out large life insurance policies on key executives, getting tax breaks when they paid the premiums and collecting the payouts.

IRS Not Pleased, Attorney Says

The amounts of those policies grew to the point that Congress limited how much a company could insure an individual for, Myers said. Insurance companies then suggested buying lots of small policies on companies' work forces, the attorney said. He said the Internal Revenue Service has labeled the practice a sham and has successfully litigated the issue against several corporations.

Myers said his law firm has sued corporations for the practice, including Winn-Dixie and Fina Oil and Chemical. The latest case is its first in Florida.

The practice spread beyond top executives in the 1980s when the industry successfully lobbied states to allow employers to claim an "insurable interest" in the lives of rank-and-file workers.

Many employers seized on the practice because they could borrow against the policies, and the interest paid was tax-deductible. Congress closed that loophole in 1996, but COLI - corporate owned life insurance - remained a popular investment strategy.

The chief appeal was that interest accrues over time on the money in such policies. When a worker dies, the employer collects without paying taxes on the gain.

In 2001, premiums on such policies swelled to $2.8 billion from $1.5 billion the year before, according to a report by CAST Management Consultants of Los Angeles.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Reporter Elaine Silvestrini can be reached at (813) 259-7837 or esilvestrini@tampatrib.com.

From CNSnews.com

Less than a year after Wal-Mart joined forces with a homosexual business coalition, the retail giant announced it is halting support for the group and similar ones - a move hailed by pro-family organizations but criticized as "a step backwards" by the chain's union-backed critics.

"We are not currently planning corporate-level contributions to GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender) groups," Mona Williams, the company's senior vice president of corporate communications, said in an interview with Fortune magazine.

Williams pointed to a company policy adopted last fall saying that Wal-Mart would not make corporate contributions "to support or oppose highly controversial issues" unless they directly relate to the chain's ability to serve its customers.

She said the decision to stop sending funds to the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) "does not signal any less support" for its GLBT employees or for Wal-Mart Pride, a resource for homosexual workers at the company. "We certainly don't feel that it's a retrenchment," she added.

In a statement on its website, the coalition of 24,000 businesses says that it "entered into a one-year membership with Wal-Mart that will not be renewed."

"The NGLCC will continue to hold dialog with Wal-Mart as it seeks to educate its associates and external stakeholders about the importance of GLBT employees, customers and suppliers," the site states. "Additionally, the NGLCC will continue to press Wal-Mart for inclusive policies affecting GLBT employees."

Tony Perkins, president of the conservative Family Research Council, said the retail giant's effort had been a "failed experiment."

"In 2006, the company known for its Christian roots did a radical about-face," joining the NGLCC and "selling homosexual-themed products in its retail stores," Perkins said in a news release. "Wal-Mart's liberal transformation angered many in its customer base and prompted several groups to boycott the chain altogether."

"In the end, the broad backlash forced the company to revoke its political agenda," he said. "Hopefully, this latest decision will signal other companies to rethink their liberal leanings."

For Americans for Truth, which describes itself as "the only national organization devoted exclusively to exposing and countering the homosexual activist agenda," Wal-Mart's "rollback" was only "a partial victory."

Peter LaBarbera, the group's president, told Cybercast News Service Friday that the company "is still selling huge numbers of books that advance homosexuality."

"The problem is that the corporate world is only hearing from one side of the issue, a tiny little minority that is extremely noisy, and not from the vast majority of people who don't want to see Wal-Mart, of all companies, promoting homosexuality," he added.

Nevertheless, the announcement "is a testimony to what happens when people actually voice their values to these corporations," LaBarbera said. "Wal-Mart is at least listening to people. They've scaled back their promotion of the gay agenda. This is a hopeful thing and something we can build upon" when working with other companies in the future.

Reaction to Wal-Mart's decision by homosexual groups has been surprisingly mild. Selisse Berry, executive director of Out & Equal - which received a contribution of $60,000 from the company last year - said in a news release: "Wal-Mart continues to engage on the issue of worker equality, and we will support them in that.

"This is a marathon, not a sprint, and so long as Wal-Mart keeps its doors open, we hope to give them encouragement," Berry added.

Daryl Herrschaft, director of the Workplace Project for the Human Rights Campaign, said that with a company as large as Wal-Mart, attaining equality with heterosexuals "is not going to happen as fast as many of us would like," but he said he would continue to work with the retail chain.

However, union-sponsored critics of the company had much harsher reactions to the development.

Wal-Mart Watch said the company "remains the only national discount chain that does not offer partnership benefits," unlike rival chains Sears and Target. "Wal-Mart also has the dubious distinction of being one of the few companies to ever pull back a GLBT initiative," the group said on its website.

"Every day, Wal-Mart's actions and rhetoric serve to not only further divide America, but expose this company's extreme right-wing colors," said Paul Blank, campaign director for WakeUpWalMart.com, another union-backed critic.

"Wal-Mart should be ashamed that it would define its support for the GLBT community as 'highly controversial,' while it ignores its explicit support for right-wing George Bush-style Republicans whose policies have cost America middle-class jobs, worsened our health-care system, helped poison our environment and blindly support failed strategies in Iraq," Blank said in a statement.

"The time has come for Wal-Mart, if they truly believe in the best of American values, to realize that every one of its workers, regardless of their sexual orientation, race or religion, deserve to be treated fairly," he added.

"Sadly, for Wal-Mart, treating all of its 1.39 million workers with dignity and respect appears to be another 'controversial cause' they do not support," Blank added.

Telephone calls to Wal-Mart's corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., seeking further comment for this article were not returned by press time.