I was out on my lunch break so I stopped in at Wal-mart to return a pair of pants that didn't fit. I was about third in line. I could hear a little bickering between the associate and the customer. Being a little nosey, I and a few more people moved up a little to hear what was going on. The woman told the associate that she had bought this toaster here yesterday, got it home and it didn't work. So she wanted her money back. The associate looked at the sales ticket and told her that she could not return that particular item because it was on special. She said that she didn't care that she wanted her money back because the thing didn't work. The associate said he was sorry but he couldn't refund her money. The woman threw her arms up in the air and started yelling,"pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples. The associate who was getting a little worried asked her to stop. She asked if she did could she get her money back. He said sorry,, no. again, she threw her arms up in the air and started yelling, pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples. By this time there was a huge crowd gatherd around. The associate ran over to the manager and brought him over. He asked what was the problem. She stated that she had bought that toaster here yesterday and it did not work. She wanted her money back. He said mam, we can't do that. It is against store policy. She went into it again. raised her arms high and yelled pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples, pinch my nipples over and over. The manager butted in and asked, why are you saying that. She said that is what I always say when I am getting screwed.
Well, I may have to reconsider my boycott of the small-town downtown killer. Nothing interesting ever happens at Family Dollar.
My favorite documented Wal-Mart story was the man who left his car to have new tires put on. An employee of the tire shop stole the car, and it was never seen again. Wal-Mart denied any responsibility because the thief did it on his lunch hour.
It is a good thing that the courts determine culpability and not private companies. Those releases that you sign when you have your car service are usually more fluff than substance. In CA, you have to take great care when you are charging for a service (like a paid parking lot or a car dealership) - you can BS and try to intimidate the customer into thinking the dealer (or in this case, WalMart) is not responsible, but I have found that if you put your foot down and don't accept the answer of a clerk - then you will get your way. I never shop WalMart or WalMart.com. They are a greedy company who gives little back to the community.
What, we're telling jokes here now? OK, a priest, a drunk and a pedophile walk into a bar.......and that's just the first guy.
Highly recommended: "How Walmart Is Destroying America And The World: And What You Can Do About It" by Bill Quinn (I see on Amazon that a new3rd edition will be out in April) Quinn is a delightfully cantankerous 80-something who is devoting his retirement years to being the biggest possible thorn in Wal-Mart's side.
WalMart's only obligation is to maximize profits and value for its shareholders. That said, WalMart seems to do quite a bit for the community at large. http://www.walmartfoundation.org
And Wal-Mart maximizes profits by means which are thuggish, unethical and outright illegal. They constantly get sued for it but unfortunately they make more profit out of breaking the law than they do in paying their lawsuits. I have a family member who works for a Wal-Mart because its one of the only employment options in her town. All the horror stories about how they treat their workers are absolutely true, and then some. They have to clock out to pee. They are sometimes forced to work unpaid, off-the-clock overtime. And if a store manager is relocated to a store in a different city, his employees (managers are almost always men) have to go to his house and help him move... off the clock. Thankfully people are finally waking up to the sliminess. In Avondale, the Atlanta neighborhood next to us, the citizens just rejected a Wal-Mart location.
As far as I know, Wal-Mart operates within the rules (or at least as much as any other big business). As far as I know, Wal-Mart drives little Mom&Pop stores out of business everywhere they go. As far as I know, lots of people get part-time jobs (probably with no benefits) at Wal-Mart. As far as I know, Wal-Marts run one high-profile "lets feel good about our community" function per year. Few people benefit in any substantial manner. As far as I know, Wal-Mart sells merchandise manufactured in third-world sweatshops. As far as I know, the woman who asked for her nipples to be pinched had run into a policy that is standard in many, many stores. If you buy an item on sale, the sale is final, no exchanges, no refunds. If the policy is posted, it's legal. As far as I know, the world would be just fine if there were no Wal-Marts. Jack
And suspicously, a Walmart store that unionized suddenly is no longer profitable and will have to close. http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050210/NEWS/502100395/1001/BUSINESS
Walmart needs some different brand names to diffuse the bad opinions people have regarding the Walmart brand. Maybe they can buy the Sears name (not the Sears business) out of the Kmart/Sears merger? Or if they can't get the Sears name, perhaps Montgomery Ward (which I think is now out of business)? Or maybe they'll have to come up with some new store names.
