Who Really Cares About Somebody Else's Wage?

Walmart is the talk of the town, and how they pay their workers. Do you really care? Do any of us really care? What is the point? Should we go picket Super King and demand that all employees start at a minimum of $14 dollars per hour? Really, if you make your living, calm down. Care to send a few dollars my way? I doubt it. Maybe you have some odd-jobs and will pay me $10 hour.

The reality of the big-box stores is that there is not pay for the workers. In the song "Rock Bottom" by Eminem, he has two lines stand out "minimum wage, got my adrenaline caged" and "I'm tired of dead-end jobs with lame pay. I'm tired of getting hired and fired the same day." Those lines are the reality of the majority of the country. I have found over the years that there isn't much concern for workers. Large companies make sure that their managers and supervisors are covered, and the workers are disposable. I have said this in other blogs, comments, but Best Buy, Target, Walmart, and all retail operates this way. They cover the salaried people, and to hell with the workers. Maybe you are a retail manager. What's your labor cost? Oh, look, to high? Better cut Tony. Problem averted. Labor cost dropped. The problem with retail is nobody is covered but management. 

I see the talk about Walmart's hourly numbers, and its the same as anywhere else. Employees are part of a large corporation, but their store is "DBA Best Buy 125" Now they are "employees" of a smaller company. Instead of hiring twenty FTE's, they hire 60 PTE's. Now you have 60 people with 15-20 hours a week, who must be available at any time, because they don't offer set schedules. This problem is not limited to retail either. I encountered the same salary and hourly issues in a hospital setting. It exists everywhere. 

I worked at a hospital, two cities west of Altadena. The payroll is $10-$11M bi-weekly. Yes, you read that correctly. I came in at $13 an hour, non-benefitted. I was on-call, and told that I was paid higher. I fought for hours and consistency and never got it, never had insurance. Here I worked at a hospital, had to go on assistance, and have MediCal pay for my son to be born. How do you like that? I worked in the damned place and I was on welfare. 

We are all at different stages in our lives. Maybe the broke twenties are a part of life for all of us. I've noticed my parents generation say we didn't have anything when we first got married. Some have money, some don't etc. When it comes back to this Walmart, its strictly political and biased. All companies could do better, that is a fact. But as people, are we going to give up something so someone else could have a little more? I hope to see some growth. 

So protest on. Protest every retailer. Maybe you have achieved financial stability in your life, and your iPad is at your side, with your nook next to your bed, and you are debating about how to use up your surplus vacation days at your job. Congratulations. It takes work to achieve it. But remember, you may be killing a job for someone that needs it. How selfish of you. You have your salary, and all you can do is protest what someone else is going to pay someone else, at a place where you will never shop or work. 

I'm working towards a position like that, but I'm not there yet. Try being 33, ADHD, 16 jobs in 16 years, but I was in advanced classes, and score high on assessment tests. The future is not so bright. There are many others out there in similar positions who would like more, but get "while we thank you for your application, we have decided to pursue other candidates." There are many of us that might see that store and think "hey, new store, maybe I could get a job there"

In the end, all we can worry about is our own salaries, and if a store opens, it will provide some income for someone.