I am surprised to hear about the bad reputation Wal-Mart has over there, as they have more or less taken control of the British Asda supermarket chain.
Though effectively Wal-Mart owns Asda, the supermarkets in question still retain the Asda name and despite being owned by an American firm it still retains many of its traditional values and doesn't seem to have adopted any 'Americanisms'. Asda has a good reputation as an employer over here and they seem to pay well and keep their staff relatively happy. I'm afraid I must disagree with Kilopascal about unions, though. When the last Conservative government was in power, their anti-union legislation meant longer hours and less money, often as low as £3.50 an hour. Having said that, I am unaware if Asda are unionised are not; it would be a good thing if they were. Regards, Steve. [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- Original Message ----- From: "kilopascal" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, March 03, 2003 5:27 AM Subject: [USMA:25011] RE: Pepsi Products -- Off topic -- Delete now if you're not interested > 2003-03-03 > > Oh, I see what you mean. Too bad these Waltons aren't more like the TV > family from the 1970s. I can't speak for the Wal-Mart where Carleton lives, > but the two that are the closest to my home and some others I have been into > have been relatively clean. The K-marts had been filthy with cartons and > other junk cluttering the aisles. But, now they look better. Even with > that they don't look as "clean" as the Wal-Marts as the Wal-Marts are all > relatively new and K-Marts have been here over 25 years. > > Target is also relatively new, about 5-7 years old. I've only been in it a > few times. I'm surprised they are still in business as the store is > virtually void of customers. Unless I was going at the off-peak hours. > Usually a Saturday morning when I am at that shopping centre. But, I didn't > notice their employees as being any different than those at Wal-Mart. I > either saw teenagers or older women. Target just gave me the impression of > being an expensive Wal-Mart. > > I read an article on a plane once about Wal-Mart. They are the only company > that fights law suits against them and doesn't find it cheaper to settle out > of court to avoid costly court settlements. In fact the article said when > they do go to court, they usually win their cases. It seems people stumble > over their own shoe laces and sue Wal-Mart for it. I really wish the courts > would fine and punish lawyers and their clients who waste the courts time > with frivolous lawsuits. But, that is a different topic. > > One thing I do like about Wal-Mart is they don't give me a hard time about > price discrepancies. If I find an item (such as DVDs) marked at an > attractive price on the shelf and find the price much higher at the > register, I bring it to their attention and not only do they correct the > error, they mark the price even lower on my purchase for their mistake. > > I'm no fan of most unions. I've seen it from the side where union workers, > especially those at the top of the seniority ladder, tend to be the real > dregs of society. They don't care if they work or loaf, they know they are > protected. The good workers are at the bottom and end up being the first to > go when bad times hit. Then the company is left with abusers and losers and > that really hurts any chance of a company rebounding to profitability. I > see why some companies got fed up and went to Mexico or other places. There > has to be a better way where the worker is treated fairly and the company > gets a good employee. > > John > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Bill Potts" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sent: Sunday, 2003-03-02 23:39 > Subject: [USMA:25010] RE: Pepsi Products -- Off topic -- Delete now if > you're not interested > > > > I'm very happy with Target. > > > > Where I live (Roseville, CA), there's a huge new Wal-Mart being built > right > > behind a large Target store. I'm at a loss to understand how they got > > planning permission. (I guess it's redundant to say huge. All Wal-Mart > > stores are huge.) > > > > If Target is forced to close their Roseville store, the unionized (and > > reasonably well-paid, well-treated and fairly happy) Target employees may > be > > faced with having to seek employment at Wal-Mart, which fires anyone > > involved in union organizing and is facing a number of lawsuits, > nationwide, > > for forcing employees to work unpaid overtime. They also have crappy > > benefits. The members of the Walton family are poster boys (and girls) for > > corporate greed. > > > > Bill Potts, CMS > > Roseville, CA > > http://metric1.org [SI Navigator] > > > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf > Of > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > Sent: Sunday, March 02, 2003 20:18 > > To: U.S. Metric Association > > Subject: [USMA:25009] RE: Pepsi Products > > > > > > In a message dated 2003-03-02 21:05:51 Eastern Standard Time, > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > > > > > I never heard Wal-Mart is an exploiter of sweat-shop labour. I guess it > > makes sense since their prices are really low. If I go to K-Mart I find > > their products much more expensive. Some of the other stores in town, > like > > Sears and target are so expensive, I can't understand why they are still > in > > business. You almost need to take out a 2-nd mortgage on your home to > > afford their prices. OK! OK! I'm exaggerating, but you see why people > > prefer to shop at Wal-Mart. > > > > > > (off topic a bit) > > > > I've always found Wal-Mart stores somewhat dirty, disorganized and > > disheveled. Maybe it's a conscious effort to look like a bargain store. > > Target is very pleasant and around here not much different in price, > except > > for their obnoxious practice of calling customers "guests". > > > > Carleton > > > > >
