Woeman Fighting Wal-Mart
Wages and Discrimination
Tee Harris
When I started my paper I only was going to concentrate only on the way women are paid less then men know I’m throwing in discrimination. Everyone should be treated fairly whether it is pay or a position in a company. Because I heard so many things about Wal-Mart and how they treat women unfairly that is the biggest reason why I wanted this topic because I have niece and I don’t want her to go through these types of thing in her life.
One story I found was about Stephanie Odle who started working at Sam’s Club even thought she was pushed into working there. However when she work there for some time she said “I wanted to work my way up the ladder and I just knew this was the company I wanted to be with forever” (Featherstone). So she did work hard and she was moved to “the company spirit that she was selected to teach Sam Walton’s principles to her coworkers in optional “Strive for Excellence” classes” (Featherstone). Over time “Odle would end up working in 11 different Sam’s Clubs in three states” (Featherstone). When she moves to a Sam’s Club in Dallas she was happy because she wanted to get out of her small town. While she was working there she “gave up lunch hours, weekends, vacation time and holidays to be there when Sam’s Club needed me. She got on a plane and flow home after work an Christmas Eve, then got on another plane and flew back before dinner on Christmas Day, not just once every year” (Featherstone). In 1996 Odle became an assistant manager at Sam’s Club in Riverside, California. As she was there she found out that another assistant manager “Arenales was making $10,000 a year more than she was. She felt as if she’d been punched in the stomach. Not only did she and Arenales do the same job, it was also his first year with Sam’s Club. Odle had been there for more than five years” (Liza). So she went to the manager and asks way Arenales was making more than her he said “Arenales has a wife and two kids to feed” how ever Odle was going to became a single mother herself (Featherstone). After she talk to the manager “Odle got a raise of $40 per week, which didn’t bring her salary even close to Mario Arenaled” (Featherstone). “Over the next three years, Olde was transferred four times and endured numerous painfully sexist incidents” (Featherstone). Which when she started she wanted to work hard but it would be hard to keep going doing your job as hard as you once did. However, she was moved to Florida’s Sam’s Club and she wanted to get a promotion to cash register technicality and she was denied so a man could get that spot. “Odle’s managers compounded the insult by transferring her back to Lubbock, the small hometown she’d hoped to escape by working for a huge multinational company” (Featherstone). After all this she wants to sue Sam’s Cub but she doesn’t because she could not do it by herself so she waited and she waited for other women and that’s when it became a class action lawsuit. There are all kinds of other stories in Featherstone’s book Selling Women Short about women discrimination.
I was on Wal-Mart web site and I was look for women wages they do not have anything I’m not sure if they are trying to hide something or if they just do not give that information. There has been all kind of stories that say that Wal-Mart was fare to their entire employee’s in fact it says that on Wal-Martfacts.com which is not true. The pay for employee’s “In 2001, the last year for which Wal-Mart has released figures for most occupations, sales associates, the most common job in Wal-Mart, earned on average $8.23 an hour for annual wages of $13,861.The 2001 poverty line for a family of three was $14,630” (Wakeup Wal-Mart). I also once heard that women get paid about 34 cents less then men which is no fair for the women that work at Wal-Mart. For the most part a lot of women like their job until they find out that they are not getting treated fairly which no man or woman should not be treated fair. Another web site stats that “Regional VP $279,772, District Manager $177,149, Store Manager $89,000, Co-Manager $56,317, Asst. Manager $37,322, Mgmt Trainee $22,371"(Wakeup Wal-Mart). Keep in mind these are the average pay for female workers. I figure I would list them because most Wal-Mart employees are female. If you're a male probably, you would make about 5-6% more in an hourly position (not much of a gap) or around 44% more in the upper position whereas regional male makes $440,000 vs. the $279,000 a female makes. One other thing a lot of Wal-Marts hire people in at various rates (the lowest rate possible). In my area the four stores hire in people about the same anywhere from “7.50 to $8.50 an hour for 1st/2nd shift and $8.00 to $9.50 an hour for 3rd shift. However only 90 miles south of us the stores hire people in at $6.00-$6.50 for all three shifts” (you are worth more).
Wal-Mart has so many lawsuits against them like “A small group of current and former female associates is engaging in a lawsuit against Wal-Mart whereby they claim that Wal-Mart discriminates against females. Despite a ruling in June of 2004, whereby the United States District Court for the Northern District of California certified the case as a class action Wal-Mart objects to such a classification” (Wal-Mart facts). There is a project that has “the purpose of the Wal-Mart Litigation Project is to assist lawyers who sue Wal-Mart to force the company to act properly toward its customers and employees. The project's goal is to "level the playing field" so plaintiffs have a better chance of winning suits where Wal-Mart has done wrong by educating plaintiffs' lawyers about cases similar to their own against Wal-Mart, and by facilitating communication between plaintiffs' lawyers on issues of law, discovery and litigation tactics” (Wal-Mart Litigation). “The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that a $6.8 million consent decree with retail giant Wal-Mart Stores was signed today by Federal District Court Judge Garland Burrell in Sacramento, Calif. The decree resolves the EEOC's lawsuit, Case No. S-99-0414-GEB DAD, which alleged that Wal-Mart's pre-employment questionnaire, "Matrix of Essential Job Functions," violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Parties to the decree also have agreed to settle 12 other ADA lawsuits filed against Wal-Mart in 11 states” (EEOC). Woman are not the only people discriminate against it’s a long list of people from women to people with disabilities.
“Wal-Mart can cover the cost of a dollar an hour wage increase by raising prices a half penny per dollar. For instance, a $2.00 pair of socks would then cost $2.01. This minimal increase would annually add up to $1,800 for each employee” (wakeup Wal-Mart). I believe they do not because they want to keep their product low prices and they want to keep their employee’s at low wages. Say that because Wal-Mart wants the minimum wage increased so they have to pay them more but other company’s would also have to boost their wages as well and other companies would not get a leg up if they do it that way.
Women health could be affected by all this that is going on with Wal-Mart because of all the stress that they are put under. However Wal-Mart said “Women's health and well-being is a growing concern for all women, and women not only are responsible for their own health, but also make more than 70% of the health care decisions for their loved ones. For this reason, Wal-Mart is supporting Speaking of Women's Health, a nonprofit organization dedicated to Òeducating women to make informed decisions about their health, well-being and personal safety” (Wal-Mart foundation). They say they are trying to help women health but for some women that work for Wal-Mart their health is getting worst I do not believe that is helping if they want to help they should start treating women fairly.
References
Featherstone, L. (2004). Selling Women Short: The Landmark Battle for Workers’ Rights at Wal-Mart (pp. 13-25). Basic Books, NY, New York.
Wakeup Wal-Mart (2006).Wal-Mart Wages and Worker Rights: A Substantial Number of Wal-Mart Associates earn far below the poverty line. (wakupwalmart.com)
Wal-Mart Facts (2006).Wal-Mart: Supporting Our Communities and Making a Difference in People’s Lives. (walmartfacts.com)
EEOC (2006). COMPREHENSIVE EEOC, WAL-MART SETTLEMENT RESOLVES DISABILITY LAWSUIT. (eeoc.gov)
Wal-Mart Foundation (2006). Speaking of Women health: Take a Pledge for Better Health at Wal-Mart. (walmartfoundation.org)
Wages and Discrimination
Tee Harris
When I started my paper I only was going to concentrate only on the way women are paid less then men know I’m throwing in discrimination. Everyone should be treated fairly whether it is pay or a position in a company. Because I heard so many things about Wal-Mart and how they treat women unfairly that is the biggest reason why I wanted this topic because I have niece and I don’t want her to go through these types of thing in her life.
One story I found was about Stephanie Odle who started working at Sam’s Club even thought she was pushed into working there. However when she work there for some time she said “I wanted to work my way up the ladder and I just knew this was the company I wanted to be with forever” (Featherstone). So she did work hard and she was moved to “the company spirit that she was selected to teach Sam Walton’s principles to her coworkers in optional “Strive for Excellence” classes” (Featherstone). Over time “Odle would end up working in 11 different Sam’s Clubs in three states” (Featherstone). When she moves to a Sam’s Club in Dallas she was happy because she wanted to get out of her small town. While she was working there she “gave up lunch hours, weekends, vacation time and holidays to be there when Sam’s Club needed me. She got on a plane and flow home after work an Christmas Eve, then got on another plane and flew back before dinner on Christmas Day, not just once every year” (Featherstone). In 1996 Odle became an assistant manager at Sam’s Club in Riverside, California. As she was there she found out that another assistant manager “Arenales was making $10,000 a year more than she was. She felt as if she’d been punched in the stomach. Not only did she and Arenales do the same job, it was also his first year with Sam’s Club. Odle had been there for more than five years” (Liza). So she went to the manager and asks way Arenales was making more than her he said “Arenales has a wife and two kids to feed” how ever Odle was going to became a single mother herself (Featherstone). After she talk to the manager “Odle got a raise of $40 per week, which didn’t bring her salary even close to Mario Arenaled” (Featherstone). “Over the next three years, Olde was transferred four times and endured numerous painfully sexist incidents” (Featherstone). Which when she started she wanted to work hard but it would be hard to keep going doing your job as hard as you once did. However, she was moved to Florida’s Sam’s Club and she wanted to get a promotion to cash register technicality and she was denied so a man could get that spot. “Odle’s managers compounded the insult by transferring her back to Lubbock, the small hometown she’d hoped to escape by working for a huge multinational company” (Featherstone). After all this she wants to sue Sam’s Cub but she doesn’t because she could not do it by herself so she waited and she waited for other women and that’s when it became a class action lawsuit. There are all kinds of other stories in Featherstone’s book Selling Women Short about women discrimination.
I was on Wal-Mart web site and I was look for women wages they do not have anything I’m not sure if they are trying to hide something or if they just do not give that information. There has been all kind of stories that say that Wal-Mart was fare to their entire employee’s in fact it says that on Wal-Martfacts.com which is not true. The pay for employee’s “In 2001, the last year for which Wal-Mart has released figures for most occupations, sales associates, the most common job in Wal-Mart, earned on average $8.23 an hour for annual wages of $13,861.The 2001 poverty line for a family of three was $14,630” (Wakeup Wal-Mart). I also once heard that women get paid about 34 cents less then men which is no fair for the women that work at Wal-Mart. For the most part a lot of women like their job until they find out that they are not getting treated fairly which no man or woman should not be treated fair. Another web site stats that “Regional VP $279,772, District Manager $177,149, Store Manager $89,000, Co-Manager $56,317, Asst. Manager $37,322, Mgmt Trainee $22,371"(Wakeup Wal-Mart). Keep in mind these are the average pay for female workers. I figure I would list them because most Wal-Mart employees are female. If you're a male probably, you would make about 5-6% more in an hourly position (not much of a gap) or around 44% more in the upper position whereas regional male makes $440,000 vs. the $279,000 a female makes. One other thing a lot of Wal-Marts hire people in at various rates (the lowest rate possible). In my area the four stores hire in people about the same anywhere from “7.50 to $8.50 an hour for 1st/2nd shift and $8.00 to $9.50 an hour for 3rd shift. However only 90 miles south of us the stores hire people in at $6.00-$6.50 for all three shifts” (you are worth more).
Wal-Mart has so many lawsuits against them like “A small group of current and former female associates is engaging in a lawsuit against Wal-Mart whereby they claim that Wal-Mart discriminates against females. Despite a ruling in June of 2004, whereby the United States District Court for the Northern District of California certified the case as a class action Wal-Mart objects to such a classification” (Wal-Mart facts). There is a project that has “the purpose of the Wal-Mart Litigation Project is to assist lawyers who sue Wal-Mart to force the company to act properly toward its customers and employees. The project's goal is to "level the playing field" so plaintiffs have a better chance of winning suits where Wal-Mart has done wrong by educating plaintiffs' lawyers about cases similar to their own against Wal-Mart, and by facilitating communication between plaintiffs' lawyers on issues of law, discovery and litigation tactics” (Wal-Mart Litigation). “The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that a $6.8 million consent decree with retail giant Wal-Mart Stores was signed today by Federal District Court Judge Garland Burrell in Sacramento, Calif. The decree resolves the EEOC's lawsuit, Case No. S-99-0414-GEB DAD, which alleged that Wal-Mart's pre-employment questionnaire, "Matrix of Essential Job Functions," violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Parties to the decree also have agreed to settle 12 other ADA lawsuits filed against Wal-Mart in 11 states” (EEOC). Woman are not the only people discriminate against it’s a long list of people from women to people with disabilities.
“Wal-Mart can cover the cost of a dollar an hour wage increase by raising prices a half penny per dollar. For instance, a $2.00 pair of socks would then cost $2.01. This minimal increase would annually add up to $1,800 for each employee” (wakeup Wal-Mart). I believe they do not because they want to keep their product low prices and they want to keep their employee’s at low wages. Say that because Wal-Mart wants the minimum wage increased so they have to pay them more but other company’s would also have to boost their wages as well and other companies would not get a leg up if they do it that way.
Women health could be affected by all this that is going on with Wal-Mart because of all the stress that they are put under. However Wal-Mart said “Women's health and well-being is a growing concern for all women, and women not only are responsible for their own health, but also make more than 70% of the health care decisions for their loved ones. For this reason, Wal-Mart is supporting Speaking of Women's Health, a nonprofit organization dedicated to Òeducating women to make informed decisions about their health, well-being and personal safety” (Wal-Mart foundation). They say they are trying to help women health but for some women that work for Wal-Mart their health is getting worst I do not believe that is helping if they want to help they should start treating women fairly.
References
Featherstone, L. (2004). Selling Women Short: The Landmark Battle for Workers’ Rights at Wal-Mart (pp. 13-25). Basic Books, NY, New York.
Wakeup Wal-Mart (2006).Wal-Mart Wages and Worker Rights: A Substantial Number of Wal-Mart Associates earn far below the poverty line. (wakupwalmart.com)
Wal-Mart Facts (2006).Wal-Mart: Supporting Our Communities and Making a Difference in People’s Lives. (walmartfacts.com)
EEOC (2006). COMPREHENSIVE EEOC, WAL-MART SETTLEMENT RESOLVES DISABILITY LAWSUIT. (eeoc.gov)
Wal-Mart Foundation (2006). Speaking of Women health: Take a Pledge for Better Health at Wal-Mart. (walmartfoundation.org)
posted by Louise Mengelkoch at
12:45 PM
