The second best page in the universe

I've had an awesome weekend: Big Dave came down on friday night and today we drove to Oshawa, hopped on the GOtrain to Union Station and toured the Canadian International Auto Show all day. So, in honour of this good time with a good friend, I present my pick of the show.

The good news is:

http://www.jokaroo.com/ecards/funnymovies/topten.html



The better news is:

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/02/22/mckenna-missile050222.html

If you already choose to put your money with Walmart, then this news isn't going to convict you. You have already chosen to ignore a long list of issues so that you can save $0.03 on your 24 pack of toilet paper. This company has for years taken advantage of its own employees, encouraged child-labour and sweat-shop conditions abroad, and caused North American cities to sprawl into a bland and depressing disconnect of hodge-podge warehouse buildings. There have been union attempts before, but the company has always won. However, despite Walmart's union-busting attempts, the store in Jonquier, Quebec managed to unionize just a short while ago. After 9 days of contract talks, Walmart decided to take unprecidented steps to flex its muscle: it will - for the first time ever (except relocation) - close a store.

Walmart's excuse? 'We have to remain competitive'. Remain competitive? They aren't just competitive, they've managed to destroy their competitors with these damaging business practices. Some argue that a corporation has to do what it has to do to make as much profit as possible, but I say that a corporation has a responsibility to the society from which it makes money. Walmart has not lived up to that responsibility.

But hey, if you think your $0.03 is worth it, then by all means contribute to this negative force in our community. You can count me out.

Wal-Mart to close union store

DANA FLAVELLE - BUSINESS REPORTER

Wal-Mart Canada Corp. says it is closing its first unionized store in North America after nine days of contract talks, but denies it is out to bust the union.
Canada's largest retailer told the 190 employees of its store in Jonquiere, Que., yesterday that the store would close this spring. It is the first time Wal-Mart has closed a store in Canada except to relocate, the company said.
The discount chain is a division of Wal-Mart Stores Ltd., the world's largest retailer.
Developments at the Jonquiere store were being closely watched across North America by investors and union organizers.
One of the keys to the success of Wal-Mart, which is considered strongly anti-union, has been keeping costs low.
The Jonquiere store is one of several the United Food and Commercial Workers union is attempting to organize across Canada, most in labour-friendly jurisdictions such as Quebec and Saskatchewan.
A second store, in Saint Hyacinthe, Que., was certified last month and is scheduled to begin contract talks soon. A third, in Brossard, Que., has applied for certification.
Michael Fraser, national director of the union, accused Wal-Mart yesterday of "ignoring the laws of Canada and playing the game by its own rules."
Wal-Mart spokesperson Andrew Pelletier, however, denied the company was out to bust the union.
"It is the first time we've had to close a store in a community and leave that community," he told the Toronto Star's Miro Cernetig.
"Ultimately it is a business decision, of course."
Pelletier said the Jonquiere store had never made money and the union's proposals "would have fundamentally changed the store's business model."
For example, the union had asked for scheduling changes that would have
required the store to hire 30 more people, said Kevin Groh, another Wal-Mart
spokesperson.
An analyst said low labour costs help Wal-Mart compete against other retailers.
"Wal-Mart is scared to death of unions," said analyst David Abella of Rochdale Investment Management. "Even if they could manage that store with a union, that could lead to a domino effect across Canada and the United States."
Pelletier said the store could have been closed months ago, but the company chose to bargain in good faith. But, after nine days of talks, including conciliation, the union applied to Quebec's labour board for first-contract arbitration, he said. That meant a contract would be imposed on the store, he added.
The union saw the Quebec organizing drive as key to conquering Wal-Mart.
"It's a pivotal moment," union director Fraser told The Star's Cernetig. "If we can do it, there are thousands of Wal-Mart workers who are out there who will want to be organized."
Jean-Marc Crevier, a Quebec Labour Federation spokesperson, called the store closing "a very big blow."
Claudia Tremblay, a cashier at the store, said many employees burst into tears, "myself included. I'm a mother of two children and I'm separated from my
husband. It's very hard."
News of the store closing leaked out after Wal-Mart advised the employees yesterday afternoon.
The store had opened three years earlier.
The Jonquiere store was certified last September. Talks began in October.
The company said it asked the Quebec labour board to appoint a conciliator after four days of talks.
On Feb. 2, the union applied to the board for first-contract arbitration saying conciliation had failed to produce any progress on major issues.
They included work schedules, employee status and seniority clauses, the union said.
Yesterday, Wal-Mart announced the store would close. The company said it "deeply regrets" the closing and has offered employees generous severance packages that exceed the legal minimum. The closing comes just five weeks after the parent company, Wal-Mart Stores Ltd. in the United States, launched a multimillion-dollar public relations campaign aimed at countering what chief executive Lee Scott called urban legends and outright lies about the company.

with files from THE star's wire services

As much as it makes me a communist hippy, I gotta say that I'm loving this story:

http://www.ktvu.com/news/4175954/detail.html

Ok, it's been awhile. But, two months after promising it to you right here on these pages, I have a good job. It's with Assurant Solutions. We offer third-party customer service for companies like Future Shop, Best Buy, HBC, CIBC, and others. I'm in the warranty deptartment, so I deal with the warranties that the salesmen try to sell you when you buy your electronics or appliances at Future Shop or Best Buy. I work in an ultra-modern office with all the trimmings, including the best chairs I've ever sat in and about 6,000 19" LCDs. Life is good.




In other news, Southern Ontario is about to recieve it's first-ever WINTER-TIME SMOG WARNING. Comon people! Geez.



I shoulda bought a hybrid.