Wal-Mart tops for Medicaid workers (Iowa)

[Blue Gardener]

http://www.qctimes.com/internal.php?story_id=1046701&l=1&t=Iowa+%2F+Illinois&c=24,1046701

DES MOINES — Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, tops a list of Iowa employers with the most workers who receive health care paid for by state taxpayers, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.
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Wal-Mart employs 845 workers in Iowa who received health benefits from the state’s Medicaid program last year, according to a report by the Iowa Department of Human Services. The report was obtained by the AP in a public records request.

Critics say Iowa taxpayers are subsidizing labor costs for profitable companies that offer inadequate wages and benefits to workers.

And now they are building a new SuperCenter in Iowa City, on land that was sold to them by the city just this week.
How is this helping the city exactly?

[Jack Rabbit]

1. Kinda gives a new meaning to corproate state

WalMart expects the state to pay their employees for them.

[UL_Approved]

2. In every sense of the word

Walmart expects to have free land, free utilities, no taxes, no benefits paid to the workers, and in some cases even goes so far as to hire illegal aliens below minimum wage. These people essentially walk in, take out every last dollar from a community, and move on to the next after they have devoured a town.

Walmart is a disease and a predator. This corporation is the ultimate failure of capitalism as a whole, and is the reason that people like Karl Marx came up with socialism. This is like the rebates that Standard Oil got railroads to pay for hauling the oil before the days of pipelines.

What gets me, though, is why city planners can't seem to figure this stuff out. They destroy the community that they live in, sometimes to the point that the town dies. And yet they keep signing the lease...

[rurallib]

9. Iowa City

The so-called ivory tower of Iowa gives Wallyworld a pass last week. Thank God there are people still fighting it and it can still be stopped or at least altered. But it's hard to stop a boulder on a downhill roll.
Just can't stop muricans love of cheesy low quality crap made in slave shops.

[gizmo1979]

3. This is unexceptable!

Something must be done.We have to wake America up to the evil that is Wal-mart and it's ilk.They are single handedly bringing down the middle class.What can be done?

[Enquiringkitty]

4. "Walmart: Rolling Back Prices; Rolling Back To Victorian Era Pay"

[CornField]

5. They are also putting in a new store in Marion

I'm not sure if it will be a SuperCenter... those might be the only stores they are opening anymore. ???

My understanding it that the insurance offered by Wal-Mart sucks for day-to-day and year-to-year living, but it is pretty good when there is a catostrophic (sp?) event.

[Blue Gardener]

7. It's a SuperCenter

Replacing the current WalMart that is much smaller. If you drive 10 minutes up the interstate, you can already shop at the gigantic WalMart in Coralville. Yup, we really need another one.
Personally, I can't stand going in there. It's loud, dirty, smelly, and full of freepers. Ugh.

[progressoid]

6. I'll pass that info along to some of my family members that still shop

there.

The article said, " Employees can purchase individual health insurance for $38 per month or $153 a month for a family."

WTF? What kind of health coverage can you get for 38 bucks a month?

[pstans]

8. Wonder how many states that Wal Mart leads

I bet it isn't just Iowa. I also heard that Hy Vee is the 2nd with around 350 employees on Medicaid.

I live in Marshalltown and Wal Mart recently expanded their store on their current location. My dad works for the county and he said that Wal Mart got a building permit, but didn't check on any abatements on the property. They basically told the city they where building this huge building here and if they didn't like they would move their store out of town.

By the way, I haven't shopped at Wal Mart since August.

[rurallib]

10. I've been there once since August

breaking an old $150/wk habit.
BTW it really pisses me off that NPR plays their little 'Walmart is good for the community' bullshit blurb. I'd like to think any NPR listener ain't stupid enough to buy into that one.