Citizen dialog for transparent process by the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange
The Hidden Cost of Wal-Mart Jobs in public safety net use by low-paid employees
Interesting study from California whose results probably also apply
to Georgia, showing that Wal-Mart pays about a third less than other
retail companies, so little that Wal-Mart employees tend to use
food stamps and public medical assistance and housing to stay afloat,
which thus “creates a hidden cost to the state’s taxpayers.”
This widely publicized report finds Wal-Mart’s wage and health benefits
packages for its California workers to be below average as compared
to the overall retail sector in California. The authors also find a
greater reliance upon public assistance programs among Wal-Mart workers
as compared to other California retail workers. Finally, the authors
estimate the additional costs to taxpayers of “Wal-Martization”—the
adoption of Wal-Mart’s wage and health benefits standards by retailers
throughout California.
Here is an extract from the study:
We estimate that Wal-Mart workers in
California earn on average 31 percent less than
workers employed in large retail as a whole,
receiving an average wage of $9.70 per hour
compared to the $14.01 average hourly earnings
for employees in large retail (firms with
1,000 or more employees). In addition, 23 percent
fewer Wal-Mart workers are covered by
employer-sponsored health insurance than
large retail workers as a whole. The differences
are even greater when Wal-Mart workers are
compared to unionized grocery workers. In
the San Francisco Bay Area, non-managerial
Wal-Mart employees earn on average $9.40 an
hour, compared to $15.31 for unionized grocery
workers—39 percent less—and are half
as likely to have health benefits.
At these low-wages, many Wal-Mart
workers rely on public safety net programs—
such as food stamps, Medi-Cal, and
subsidized housing—to make ends meet. The
presence of Wal-Mart stores in California thus
creates a hidden cost to the state’s taxpayers.
packages for its California workers to be below average as compared to the overall retail sector in California. The authors also find a greater reliance upon public assistance programs among Wal-Mart workers as compared to other California retail workers. Finally, the authors estimate the additional costs to taxpayers of “Wal-Martization”—the adoption of Wal-Mart’s wage and health benefits standards by retailers throughout California.
California earn on average 31 percent less than workers employed in large retail as a whole, receiving an average wage of $9.70 per hour compared to the $14.01 average hourly earnings for employees in large retail (firms with 1,000 or more employees). In addition, 23 percent fewer Wal-Mart workers are covered by employer-sponsored health insurance than large retail workers as a whole. The differences are even greater when Wal-Mart workers are compared to unionized grocery workers. In the San Francisco Bay Area, non-managerial Wal-Mart employees earn on average $9.40 an hour, compared to $15.31 for unionized grocery workers—39 percent less—and are half as likely to have health benefits.
At these low-wages, many Wal-Mart workers rely on public safety net programs— such as food stamps, Medi-Cal, and subsidized housing—to make ends meet. The presence of Wal-Mart stores in California thus creates a hidden cost to the state’s taxpayers.
This could help explain why Wal-Mart workers
are protesting.