THE LEFT-COAST SPIN…
Jonathan and I were pounding the keys at the same time on the announcement of Wal-Mart’s nearly $34,000,000 settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor. I hit publish at 1426.07 and Jonathan tapped in at 1429.02.
As always, there’s plenty of story to go around. Like this little sideshow out in California.
The California State Labor Commissioner today filed suit against Wal-Mart in the Superior Court of Sacramento County seeking all underpayments of overtime wages resulting from errors in the company’s payroll processes.
The errors in the calculation of required overtime payments to employees were first reported by Wal-Mart in early 2005. Most of the errors resulted in small amounts of underpayments to a large number of employees throughout the United States.
The U.S Dept. of Labor also filed suit today against Wal-Mart and immediately filed a nationwide settlement agreement regarding the overtime violations.
“Unlike the federal lawsuit, we have not agreed to a settlement of the California lawsuit,†said Robert Jones, acting state labor commissioner.
“While Wal-Mart has indicated its desire to pay all additional wages owed under California law, we will not agree to any settlement terms until state auditors have the opportunity to verify the accounting records relied upon by DOL officials and to examine additional records that relate to those issues that are subject to more stringent California statutes.â€
Wal-Mart voluntarily notified the California State Labor Commissioner of underpayment of overtime wages to approximately 50,000 California employees. Approximately 90% of these employees and former employees were underpaid in total amounts of less than $20.00 over the past 5 years.
Wal-Mart further informed the state that it intended to correct the payroll calculation problems as quickly as possible and that it would pay all workers employed in California since Feb. 1, 2002 all wage amounts they may have been underpaid, no matter how small the amount.
The Labor Commissioner’s Office has been working with Wal-Mart to determine precisely how much is owed to these California employees. This will ensure that each employee is fully reimbursed for all wages that exceed what DOL determined to be owed under federal wage and hour laws.
The obvious question is: are the other 49 states going to chime in?
I hate it when that happens, but yeah, it’s a big enough story we should keep both up.
Shalom Jonathan,
You’re absolutely right. Specially since we take two different tacks on the story. I’m sure that both Robert and Peter can find plenty of meat to chomp on in there as well. Hell, maybe even Someone will want a bite of it.
[Oops! See? He already has.]
B’shalom,
Jeff
Depending on where this one goes, maybe I’ll offer to write an exclusive piece for you guys. I guess we’ll see.
Shalom Someone,
Go for it.
B’shalom,
Jeff
I think Walmart’s motivation has been covered from several angles already so this is just a supporting remark.
Walmart is under close scrutiny both because of its lackluster performance from Wall Street’s point of view and from the number of highly visible legal issues it faces.
I think these concerns as well as those imposed by Sarbanes-Oxley would make the board anxious to avoid any further legal exposure. Companies, even “evil” ones don’t go out of their way to break the law, especially when there is a good chance they will be found out.
This is different than companies like Enron where fraud was a part of the corporate culture. Walmart makes its money the “old-fashioned way”, by being an SOB, not a crook.
Shalom Robert,
I agree. When you’re the 800-pound gorilla wih the deepest pockets in the known Universe, you have to avoid getting smacked down for stupid stuff.
This isn’t generosity or even a guilty conscience. It’s just good business practice.
B’shalom,
Jeff
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[...] THE LEFT-COAST SPIN… Jonathan and I were pounding the keys at the same time on the announcement of Wal-Mart’s nearly $34,000,000 settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor. I hit publish at 1426.07 and Jonathan tapped in at 1429.02. As always, there’s plenty of story to go around. Like this little sideshow out in California. Keep reading… [...]
[...] citing a 401(k) and the employee discount as benefits. Furthermore, the Wal-Mart of 2007 is more “enlightened” [Thanks to a $34 million dollar settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor.] than it used to be [...]
[...] citing a 401(k) and the employee discount as benefits. Furthermore, the Wal-Mart of 2007 is more “enlightened” [Thanks to a $34 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor. JH] than it used to be when [...]