In 22 states, Walmart is the largest employer
 

http://www.businessinsider.com/large...bama-walmart-1

Walmart isn't just the world's biggest retailer in terms of combined revenues, profits, assets, and market value.

In 22 states including Kansas, Texas, Florida, and Ohio, Walmart is king, with about 1.5 million full-time workers in the US overall, according to 24/7 Wall St report.

Even sadder is the fact that there is only one state with the largest employer being a company that actually makes things.

August beat me to it - my first thought when I read the headline. Its strange when just selling and consuming becomes more important and profitable than producing.

However, some years ago Walmart tried to "conquer" Europe. Trying to copy habits and behaviours that have been established by shops in the US, right these were the reason why in Germany Walmart suffered a crashing backfall to reality - they failed to get a foot on the market, and some time later withdrew. Lesson to be learned: German customers are different than American customers. :D

German customers especially did not like employeees who behind the cashdesk packed the bought iterms into bags for customers. Nanny-shop, some called it. Germans prefer to pack their bags and stuff themselves.

Internal and quite intrusive policies of mobbing and spying on own stuff also ruined Walmarts reputation over here. And brought the unions up into arms.

I wonder if state and federal governments were included in the data? :hmmm:

Looks like they succeeded in the UK when they purchased ASDA, the third largest retailer (in terms of sales) in the UK

http://www.retaileconomics.co.uk/top10-retailers.asp

Packing bags for customers? The savages! :)

I prefer the self checkout myself, I get to bag it pay for it and get out. Normally less of a line, no idle chit chat, or waiting in line for the cashier to do anything. My shopping mantra is 'Get in and get out'

Nah that is no good, do it all online listening to music and knowing full well you need not don your battle armour and fight your away around the shop. Plus free delivery and all done in a relaxing way not forgetting lower blood pressure. :)

Online shopping has it's advantages but also two glaring problems with it (imo). One is that you can't examine the item before buying it to make sure that is what you want and the other is that the buyer at the mercy of the mails. Late and missed deliveries, shipping damage, leaving packages unattended on your front door where anyone can walk up and steal it etc.

This is a spiritual problem, Sky. Your people don't like other people touching their stuff. While we just pick up the bags the cashier packs and leave the store. They have to touch them to scan them anyway, plus ya'll seem to bring your own bags too and we are now being forced to with plastic bags being banned in most stores.

The Japanese had the same spiritual problems when the war was over they wouldn't wear the clothes we sent over to repair the war damaged citizens.

Well my one has a good lay out and it tells you the size and weight of the product granted when it comes to fresh items I rather buy them from my local shop to inspect.

As for delivery they do that themselves all I have to do is book the day and time and if I have to go out I can alert them. And they will not leave the goods on the door step if no answer at the door.

As for emails flooding in yes there are some from the shop I order from but its a low volume and no third party emails.

I guess I don't need a DNA result to know my roots, my car doesn't even like other cars parking beside it. It parks way out to avoid those fools with their doors caught by the wind, and their chewing gum spitting out urchins. ...or the extremely bad electric kart drivers. :03:

California shocked me as many of the other states also had universities as the largest employer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_California

The UC president Janet Napolitano (ex-Secretary of Homeland Security ) has been called out for having a $175 million dollar slush fund while asking for more state funds

Been working at my local Walmart for about a week. Hate on them all you want, but they're hiring college students. They provide a full work week, flexible when I need to leave to do Air Force things and will transfer me back when I move back to college in the fall.

Pay starts out 2$ better an hour than most other places hiring locally.

I am certainly not complaining. The company seems to be very friendly and I haven't run into a single person in my store yet that does a half-assed job. More than I can say for the grocery chain I used to work at.

Even though I've only been there a week(ish) I can already tell for sure, from the inside, that there's a reason they're so good at what they do.

No, it is somethign different. There is nothing wrong and no difficulty in packing our just bought stuff into our bags ourselkves. If we need somebody elser to do this for us, that is like somebody carrying us around on his arms, feeding us, cleaning our lower end when we made our poopoo. Its like being treated like an idiot who is disabled, is slobbering and cannot drink without spilling half of it on the table, so to speak.

Many people here also do not like cashless payment. Its simply takes more time. A good cashier beats card terminals easily, every time, no matte rhow long the line (and I did that as a job for several years as a temporary aid, so I know it for sure). Also, we want to maintain cash payment so that the plundering state finds it more difficult to force people to keep their wealth and possession in digital format where state can expropriate it by force easily by a simply pressing of a button, so to speak. Also, banks and credit card companies can dicate terms and conditions and take just any fees they want if cashlessness would be enforced. Finally the mobsters of the central banks could enforce the plundering of those people via negative interest rates who so far do evade this robbery by keeping their money somewhere else and outside the reach and control of banks. Monopolies are always a bad thing for the sonsumer, and depening on companies is always a lousy idea - its better if business and companies depend on their customers, for else the customer is no free customer, but lifestock to exploit.

Cashless payment may give you that "Hey, I'm cool, man!"-moment for just a second of your day, Rockstar. But the longterm costs are much, much, much higher. You pay, in the end of this criminal development, with loss of protection of private property, and loss of civil rights and liberty. Is that really worth it? Its like locking yourself to a sinking boat, and throwing the key away. OInce the money is gone completzely, what you then are left with is planned pseudoi money and planned economy where they tell you what you have to want and what you have to do. Germans have been there. Twice. State-run economy ain't no pleasant thing to experience. And it always ends in just one way. Always the same way.

Please tell me you haven't done away with these yet?
https://previews.magnoliabox.com/cor...PC1114_850.jpg
I'd hate to just get beer, when I order beer. :03:

On not letting them do away with cash, I'm with you. Ever tried carrying around thirty pounds of silver? Makes gold look much more attractive. :D

Aw you'd love self check out over here Skybird. Not only can you make a purchase without any human interaction. The machine processes cash transactions just as easily as a credit card. Only the store security cameras record your coming and goings.

A few months ago, I was in a grocery store that had four of the automatic checkout machines. This family of four, doing a full week's shopping took over all four of them. They divided up the groceries and each family member took over an automated machine with the family's shopping card in the middle. At the end, the mother went to each machine and paid separately.

It was weird as there were several of the more traditional checkout lanes open and the lines were short.

Some people.