Wal-Mart's Ethical Standards And Practices

Wal-Mart is one of the largest and most popular corporations across the globe having total revenues exceeding $250 billion per year, and employing at least 1.3 million individuals globally (TIME). Wal-Mart offers a wide variety of products with relatively lower prices than its retail competitors. In addition, the company usually employs a large number of local people and generates considerable sales and property tax for the local communities. However, Wal-Mart faces numerous criticism to a level whereby plans to set up a new franchise faces significant protest from local communities. This issue is imperative because businesses have to maintain a considerable level of ethical standards and practices when undertaking their operations, especially with respect to the effects imposed on the local communities in the course of executing their business operations. The business model used by Wal-Mart focuses on the use of low wage labor, restricted health benefits to employees and leveraging of government subsidies, which are all aimed towards reducing costs (Wal-Mart Movie).
The overall employment effects of Wal-Mart are actually detrimental to the larger society as a whole. Even if Wal-Mart generates increased employment opportunities for the local population, it serves to entrench poverty among its employees. Wal-Mart serves to lower the wages of employees in competing firms, which implies that people have little money to spend. This, in turn, culminates to negative impacts on the local economies (Wal-Mart Impact). Also, Wal-Mart has a poor track record of ethical practices regarding the welfare of its workers. For instance, the company offers limited healthcare and employee benefits. Wal-Mart persuades their employees to apply for welfare and medicaid as a result (Wal-Mart