Special min wage for walmart

Wal-Mart decided to scrap plans for three new stores in Washington, D.C. after the city council passed a living wage bill requiring a $12.50 minimum wage for large retail stores, higher than the District's $8.25 per hour minimum wage, Twitchy reported Wednesday. The bill impacts stores that occupy 75,000 square feet or more of floor space.

The chain threatened to halt projects at Skyland, Capitol Gateway and New York Avenue in an op-ed at the Washington Post.

"From day one, we have said that this legislation is arbitrary and discriminatory and that it discourages investment in Washington," Alex Barron wrote.

"For months," he added, "we have chosen to use hard facts, statistical evidence and common sense — instead of idle threats — to educate the D.C. Council about the negative consequences of the LRAA."

But, he said, their opposition fell on deaf ears.

"As a result, Wal-Mart will not pursue stores at Skyland, Capitol Gateway or New York Avenue if the LRAA is passed. What’s more, passage would also jeopardize the three stores already under construction, as we would thoroughly review the financial and legal implications of the bill on those projects."

But D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans, a Democrat representing Ward 2, dismissed Wal-Mart's threat.

"I believe this will get resolved, Wal-Mart will continue with its stores and people in the District will get higher wages," he said.

Vincent Gray, mayor of Washington, D.C., told WTOP he didn't think the store was bluffing.

"I was convinced they were quite serious," he said. "They made it very clear that if this bill passes they don't intend to build the other three stores, and they may not go forward with the three that are already under construction."

Twitchy said the economic lesson the city council taught with passage of the bill was that "zero Walmart jobs at $12.50 an hour is preferable to hundreds at $8.25 an hour."

The higher min wage goes, the more tasks that are encompassed by it. These tasks are then forever min wage jobs. When I was a kid, working at those big dept stores was not min wage, but now they and others are.

When will the masses learn???

1) All the minimum wage does is to put more people into minimum wage
2) Some jobs are not worth theminimumm wage, let alone the "living wage"

Its been my experience that each time minimum wage went up, so did the prices of everything from gas to bread.  Furthermore, what will keep these DC businesses from relocating, leaving DC a wreck of a town with massive unemployment?

I have a feeling that liberals are behind this.

Not justthat, but wverytime the min wage goes up, theres fewer workers and fewer hours. The national average wage for a fast food worker is $8.50, but in north dakota its twice that. Not because of min wage laws, but because of demand.

Sir Pun wrote:Not justthat, but wverytime the min wage goes up, theres fewer workers and fewer hours. The national average wage for a fast food worker is $8.50, but in north dakota its twice that. Not because of min wage laws, but because of demand.

North Dakota is a very special case. Also note in some parts of North Dakota rent on a singe wide is higher then rent of a 3 bedroom house in many other parts of the country. If they didn't pay twice minimum wage the fast food workers would be homeless.

Just proving my point. A productive economy benefits everyone. From landlords, to fry cooks. But this will never happen in a stagnant economy, nor can it be achieved through legislation.

Sir Pun wrote:Just proving my point. A productive economy benefits everyone. From landlords, to fry cooks. But this will never happen in a stagnant economy, nor can it be achieved through legislation.

Those conditions only seem to manifest themselves in the most extreme conditions. North Dakota has such a desperate shortage of labor that they can't try to depress employee wages. In other parts of the country some employers would pay their employees nothing if they could get away with it.

They sure would.