[NPInfo] Wakeupwalmart.com

Fri Oct 5 16:00:24 PDT 2007

I think Wal-Mart only seems to be worse than Target because it gets more media coverage, but Target doesn't look so good, see: http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=13508

Stephanie Walker, FNP

----- Original Message -----
From: Christine Smith 
Date: Thursday, October 4, 2007 6:56 pm
Subject: [NPInfo] Wakeupwalmart.com
To: 'NP Info' 

> My issues with Walmart have nothing to do with being a "big box" 
> retailer.Both Walmart and Target can drive the Ma and Pa places 
> out of business, just
> like Starbucks or Barnes and Noble can. More power to them 
> though I
> certainly do support the "little guys" except of course coffee 
> places since
> Buckies treats my daughter so well.
> 
> However, Wal-Mart has been blasted over and over for many unfair 
> businesspractices, with Health care just being one of the many 
> issues. Target does
> not have such practices. 
> 
> You can check out many, many article on line about Wal-Mart, the most
> powerful being at www.wakeupwalmart.com The group asserts 
> problems in the
> many areas and makes and provides its documentation for its 
> claims. 
> 
> Christine Smith, NP
> Antioch, CA
> 
> 
> Wal-Mart and Health Care
> Download the Wal-Mart and Health Care Flyer - PDF 
> 
> Wal-Mart's Health Care Plan Fails to Cover Over 775,000 
> Employees 
> 
> Wal-Mart reported in January 2006 that its health insurance only 
> covers 43%
> of their employees. Wal-Mart has approximately 1.39 million US 
> employees.[http://www.walmartfacts.com/docs/1625_jan2006healthcarebackgrounders_576890
> 240.pdf] 
> Wal-Mart's Health Insurance Falls Far Short of Other Large 
> Companies 
> 
> On average for 2005, large companies (200 or more workers) cover
> approximately 66% of their employees. If Wal-Mart was to reach 
> the average
> coverage rate, Wal-Mart should be covering an additional 318,000 
> employees[Kaiser Family Foundation, 2005 and
> http://www.walmartfacts.com/docs/1625_jan2006healthcarebackgrounders_5768902
> 40.pdf]. 
> Wal-Mart's Health Care Eligibility is Restrictive 
> 
> Part-timers-anybody below 34 hours a week - must wait 1 year 
> before they can
> enroll. Moreover, spouses of part-time employees are ineligible 
> for family
> health care coverage for 2006. [Wal-Mart Stores, "My Benefits, 
> New Peak Time
> Benefits Making a Difference For You," 2006] 
> Full-time hourly employees must wait 180 days (approximately 6 months)
> before being able to enroll in Wal-Mart's health insurance plan. 
> Managershave no waiting period. [Wal-Mart 2006 Associate Guide] 
> Nationally, the average wait time for new employees to become 
> eligible is
> 1.7 months. For the retail industry it is 3.0 months. [Kaiser Family
> Foundation & Health Research and Educational Trust, 2005] 
> All of Wal-Mart's Health Plans Are Too Costly for Its Workers to 
> Use 
> 
> Since the average full-time Wal-Mart employee earned $17,114 in 
> 2005, he or
> she would have to spend between 7 and 25 percent of his or her 
> income just
> to cover the premiums and medical deductibles, if electing for single
> coverage. [Wal-Mart 2006 Associate Guide and UFCW analysis] 
> The average full-time employee electing for family coverage 
> would have to
> spend between 22 and 40 percent of his or her income just to 
> cover the
> premiums and medical deductibles. These costs do not include other
> health-related expenses such as medical co-pays, prescription 
> coverage,emergency room deductibles, and ambulance deductibles. 
> [Wal-Mart 2006
> Associate Guide and UFCW Analysis]. 
> Wal-Mart trumps the affordability of its new health care plan. 
> According to
> Wal-Mart, "In January [2006], ...Coverage will be available for 
> as little as
> $22 per month for individuals" [www.walmartfacts.com] 
> What Wal-Mart's website leaves out: Coverage is affordable, but 
> using it
> will bankrupt many employees. Wal-Mart's most affordable plan 
> for 2006
> includes a $1,000 deductible for single coverage and a $3,000 
> deductible for
> family coverage ($1,000 deductible per person covered up to $3,000).
> [Wal-Mart 2006 Associate Guide] 
> Wal-Mart Admits Public Health Care is a "Better Value" 
> 
> President and CEO Lee Scott said in 2005, "In some of our 
> states, the public
> program may actually be a better value - with relatively high 
> income limits
> to qualify, and low premiums." [Transcript Lee Scott Speech 
> 4/5/05] 
> Wal-Mart's Health Care is Getting Costlier 
> 
> Between 2000-2005, the cost of premiums rose 169 percent for 
> single coverage
> and 117 percent for family coverage. [UFCW analysis of annual 
> Wal-Mart
> Associate Guides]. 
> In comparison, premiums for family coverage in the U.S. have 
> increased only
> by 59%, from 2000-2005. [Employer Health Benefits: 2004 Annual Survey,
> Kaiser Family Foundation & Health Research and Educational 
> Trust, 2004]
> Wal-Mart Employees Pay More for Health Care Costs 
> In 2004, Wal-Mart employees, in total, paid approximately 41% of 
> the plan
> costs [Wal-Mart IRS 5500 Filings, 2005]. 
> Nationally for 2004 on average employees paid for only 16% of single
> coverage costs and 28% of family coverage costs [Kaiser Family 
> Foundation,2005]. 
> Wal-Mart Covers Less of the Health Care Costs Compared to Its 
> Competitors 
> 
> In a state analysis, the Massachusetts Department of Health and Human
> Services found that in 2003, Wal-Mart covered only 52% of total 
> health care
> premium costs compared to K-Mart which covered 66%, Target which 
> covered68%, and Sears which covered 80% ["Employers Who Have 50 
> or More Employees
> Using Public Health Assistance," Division of Health Care Finance 
> and Policy,
> 2/2005] 
> Wal-Mart's Spending Falls Below Industry Standards 
> 
> Wal-Mart's spending on health care for its employees falls well below
> industry and national employer averages. In 2002, as reported in 
> the Wall
> Street Journal, Wal-Mart spent an average of $3,500 per 
> employee. By
> comparison, the average spending per employee in the 
> wholesale/retailingsector was $4,800. For U.S. employers in 
> general, the average was $5,600 per
> employee, Therefore, Wal-Mart's average spending on health 
> benefits for each
> covered employee was 27% less than the industry average and 37% 
> less than
> the national average. [Bernard Wysocki, Jr. and Ann Zimmerman, 
> "Wal-Mart
> Cost-Cutting Finds a Big Target in Health Benefits," Wall Street 
> JournalSeptember 30, 2003 p1] 
> Wal-Mart Only Spends 77 Cents an Hour Per Employee for Health 
> Benefits 
> 
> In 2004, Wal-Mart spent $1.5 billion on its health insurance. 
> This amounts
> to an employer contribution of around only $0.77 an hour per 
> employee. This
> accounts for approximately a half-percent of Wal-Mart's $285 
> billion in
> sales in 2004. [Susan Chambers, Wal-Mart Internal Memo, 2005, 
> Wal-Mart
> Annual Report, 2005]. 
> Wal-Mart Increased Advertising More Than Health Care 
> 
> In 2004, Wal-Mart spent nearly the same amount on advertising as 
> it did on
> health insurance. In 2004, Wal-Mart reports that it spent $1.5 
> billion on
> health care benefits and $1.4 billion in advertising. [Wal-Mart Annual
> Report 2005, Susan Chambers, Wal-Mart Internal Memo, 2005] 
> Between 2003 and 2004, Wal-Mart increased its advertising budget 
> by $434
> million, only increasing its spending on employee health care by $100
> million. That means Wal-Mart increased its spending on 
> advertising by 45
> percent while only increasing its spending on employee health 
> care by 7
> percent. [Wal-Mart Annual Report 2005, Susan Chambers, Wal-Mart 
> InternalMemo, 2005] 
> In fact, Wal-Mart has consistently increased spending on 
> advertising more
> than its spending on employee health care. Between 2002 and 
> 2003, Wal-Mart
> put more new funds into advertising than into health care. Wal-Mart
> increased spending on advertising by $290 million, while only 
> increasinghealth care spending by $215 million for the same 
> period. (note: this also
> occurred in 1995-96, 1997-98,1998-1999). [Wal-Mart Annual 
> Reports and 5500
> Filings] 
> One Out of Six Wal-Mart Employees Has No Health Care Coverage At 
> All 
> 
> This is more than double the national percentage for large firms 
> (firms with
> over 100 employees). In fact, we estimate that Wal-Mart 
> accounted in 2005
> for more than 1 out of every 40 uninsured workers who are 
> employed at a
> large firm. [Susan Chambers, Wal-Mart Internal Memo, 2005; Wal-
> Mart Annual
> Report; "Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Coverage: Sponsorship,
> Eligibility, and Participation Patterns in 2001," Bowen Garrett, 
> Ph.D.,released by the Kaiser Family Foundation September 2004]. 
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> 
> 
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