Elisa Cramer- Palm Beach Post columnist or union shill?

Ms. Cramer wrote a column in yesterday's Post. It was an attack on Wal-Mart and why she doesn't shop there.

I've defended the company in the past. In fact I worked for them. Then today I blogged about an incident in Florida where Walmart employees did inexcusible behavior. I don't think Wal-Mart is the bogeyman they are made out to be, they aren't saints either. Below is part of Ms. Cramer's column-

The New York Times on Oct. 26 wrote about an internal memo that Wal-Mart's executive vice president for benefits sent to Wal-Mart's board, recommending several ways the company could save face and more than $1 billion a year by 2011. Specifically, the company that made $10.5 billion in profit last year on $285 billion in sales wanted to preserve its reputation as everyman's friendly, cost-cutting provider of everything while cutting its own costs of employee health care and other benefits.

The memo suggests several ways to "dissuade unhealthy people from coming to work at Wal-Mart," including requiring "all jobs to include some physical activity (e.g., all cashiers do some cart-gathering)." It recommends recruiting younger workers and paying less into 401(k) plans. It also comes close to suggesting that the company try to get rid of senior employees, lamenting that they are no more productive than new employees yet cost considerably more. "Because we pay an associate more in salary and benefits as his or her tenure increases, we are pricing that associate out of the labor market, increasing the likelihood that he or she will stay with Wal-Mart." Read: We're going to be stuck with them!

OK, so a company doesn't want to swallow its employees' ever-increasing health insurance costs. Nothing new. What persuaded me to stop saving pennies on toiletries at Wal-Mart is the fact that nearly half of the children of Wal-Mart's 1.33 million employees in this country are on Medicaid or are uninsured. That shouldn't be surprising, since the average full-time Wal-Mart worker makes around $17,500 a year -- poverty in America is defined as $19,307 for a family of four -- and the company provides health insurance to fewer than 45 percent of its workers.

No health insurance for nearly half of its workers? Wal-Mart, boss of the working poor. For 38 percent of Wal-Mart's workers, a huge chunk of their meager salaries -- almost $3,000 on average -- is spent on health-care costs the company refuses to pay.

I've grown suspicious about the Post when it quotes facts and figures. There is a reason for this. So I checked out Ms. Cramer's work.

Yes I read the NY Times article where the leaked memo is quoted. That's one source for Ms. Cramer's column.

The second source is more interesting. WakeupWalmart, a website on the internet. Who runs this website? We'll go to the bottom of the webpage.

© 2005 United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
This site is in no way connected with Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. or any affiliate of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Anyone who knows a little of the company's history, knows Wal-Mart's employees are not unionized and the company has battled unions like the above to keep it that way. When Walmart employees have voted on unions, the unions have lost.

I just find it interesting a columnist would use this as a source for information on a company. Wouldn't a proper reporter want to get incontrovertible facts. I'm not even arguing that what the Website says is wrong.

That didn't stop Ms. Cramer from making mistakes. Two of them at least.

1- The poverty level for a family of four is $19350 not 19,307. Here is the proper source for this.

2- Walmart covers 48% of its employees not under 45%

There is one other thing I question. Ms. Cramer writes- For 38 percent of Wal-Mart's workers, a huge chunk of their meager salaries -- almost $3,000 on average -- is spent on health-care costs the company refuses to pay.

Suddenly under 45% is 38% but Ms. Cramer could be claiming just those employees who have the $3,000 deductible insurance. Then there are problems with that.

First its $1,000 per family member up to 3,000. A employee only pays that if they have medical bills. Employees don't automatically pay this.

Further hair splitting. Wal-Mart doesn't pay the medical bills, an insurance company does. Wal-Mart is not refusing anything.

I can tell you deductibles are a way of life with any insurance. My family's is $300 per family member. Up to $2,500 out of pocket too max per family member.

What I'm getting to is, Ms. Cramer attacks but without fully explaining what the full picture is. Including the fact that Wal-Mart is most dominant in the poorest parts of this country. Their low prices benefit the poor. Increase company costs, increase what the poor has to pay for food and necessities. That's economics.

Plus Ms. Cramer's sloppiness with facts and the source for her article make this look like an advertisement for Wal-Mart's competitors. Is this how low journalism will go today? Or is it just the Palm Beach Post?

Open Post- Don Surber, Bright & Early, Stuck on Stupid, Stop the ACLU, Right Wing Nation,