How much profit is considered enough? Is it ethical for a multi million- dollar company to withhold its employees from full time status in order to avoid giving them the health benefits that come with it? Is it ethical for them to fire employees and prevent them from ever applying again at another branch after they legally protest for improvements in working conditions and better wages? Last Thursday, Walmart illegally fired 20 employees and disciplined another 80 for speaking out for their grievances. For a company that makes approximately $16 billion annually, providing its workers with these benefits that they rightly deserve is a dent in their pocket. In the short term, Walmart may make more money, but in the long run, improving their employee’s salaries and health benefits will give the employees more purchasing power. This will benefit both Walmart and the local economy. Because of their unethical choices, Walmart is the perfect example of “a business whose employees don’t want to be there everyday, who aren’t using a hundred percent of their efforts and energy and their creativity to make the business better”. According to Edward Freeman, “that’s a business in decline”.

Resources: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/story/2013/09/05/business-walmart-labour.html

Image from : http://www.humanevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/wal-mart.jpg