Nearly one-quarter of Wal-Mart’s 37,000 workers in Tennessee rely on Medicaid, according to state officials who released the figures at the request of the Chattanooga Times Free Press.The data show that Wal-Mart has more employees enrolled in TennCare, the state’s Medicaid program, than any other company. Other states have also found that Wal-Mart’s labor practices are placing a heavy burden on public assistance programs.… Read More
Independent business owners in Portland, Oregon, and Grand Rapids, Michigan, have launched a multi-year educational campaigns to persuade residents to "think local first" when shopping. "We’re looking to achieve a percentage change in behavior," said Paul Needham, a founding board member of the Sustainable Business Network of Portland (SBNP), which organized the buy-local initiative.… Read More
Under pressure from Ikea, Wal-Mart, and Costco, the Irish government has relaxed its seven-year-old cap on the size of retail stores. The changes apply to certain areas of Dublin and eight other towns. The cap, which was adopted on a temporary basis in 1998 and made permanent in 2001, restricted stores selling food (including hypermarkets, which sell both food and non-food merchandise) to no more than 3,500 square meters (38,000 square feet) in Dublin and 3,000 square meters (32,000 square feet) throughout the rest of the country.… Read More
After two years of consideration—including a review by a city council-appointed task force, numerous public hearings, and a voter referendum—the town of Homer, Alaska, has adopted an ordinance that limits stores to no more than 45,000 square feet and requires retail development projects larger than 15,000 square feet to undergo a community impact review. Homer has a population of about 5,000 and is located on the Kenai Peninsula. … Read More
In a ruling that could have broad implications, a California appeals court this week nullified zoning approvals given to two big-box shopping centers by the city of Bakersfield. The court held that the environmental impact reports (EIRs) prepared for the projects were insufficient and did not adequately address the potential for urban decay and associated ecological effects that could be caused by extensive new retail development. The ruling orders the city to complete new impact studies and public hearings, and reconsider the projects. … Read More
Lawmakers in New Jersey have proposed legislation that would require communities to weigh the regional economic impact of proposed big-box stores before granting approval. As drafted, the law would apply to stores over 130,000 square feet that sell at least 25,000 items with a minimum of ten percent of their revenue in nontaxable groceries. The measure would therefore cover Wal-Mart, Target, and Kmart supercenters, but would not affect big-box stores that do not sell groceries, such as Home Depot and Staples. … Read More
Negotiations that could lead to the first union contract at any of Wal-Mart’s 5,000 stores worldwide began last week in Jonquiere, a town about 250 miles north of Quebec City in Canada. … Read More
Independent businesses in two dozen cites joined forces to urge residents to "unchain" themselves on Saturday, November 20, by patronizing only locally owned stores and restaurants that day. The event, dubbed America Unchained, was organized by the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA). The goal, according to AMIBA’s director Jennifer Rockne, was to broaden awareness of the local economic benefit of choosing to shop at locally owned businesses instead of chains. … Read More
A group of California state lawmakers, led by Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, are calling for the legislature to require that the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) sell its 18.8 million shares of Wal-Mart stock, valued at about $1 billion. "The Legislature needs to take a close look at how we put our money behind our values," Lieber told the Associated Press. "Wal-Mart is making a big push to expand in many areas of our state. … Read More
