‘Too Many Chiefs And Not Enough Indians’ At Wal-Mart
The Doctor, since he was not God, could not put a date since no one knew if or when he would get a liver. Wal-Mart terminated him in June, 2008 and told me, when I asked about converting benefits, that we had until August 2008 to convert medical, AFLAC, dental, life, etc., and that we would be getting a “termination package” telling us who to call, etc. We were never sent anything and I had to reconstruct the wheel as by this time my husband lacked “mental capacity” to handle his affairs. I guess I became Mother Wal-Mart’s step child and was treated as such. I called, thru the Wal-Mart benefits line, all the time asking for the information package we were told we would get but it never arrived. On August 1, 2008 I called Prudential again only to be laughed at and told I was too late to convert his life insurance policy. My husband died October 26, 2008. I called Wal-Mart and they put someone to reviewing taped conversations they had and the ones Prudential had. Of course, Wal-Mart stands by their claim that “they do not have any control over Prudential”. However, Wal-Mart is a self-insured corporation and farms its employees’ benefits out to companies for management and if a claim is made Wal-Mart pays it. I guess most people believe this and go away. I know they are blowing smoke and have refused to pay life insurance to me. My husband paid for life insurance for 7 years. They are the liars, cheats, etc., etc. Of course it is not over, I will pursue them forever.
As to the cutting of hours, my husband had taken disability in 2005 for 6 months and Mayo Clinic released him to go back to work on a 3 month trial basis for 8 hours a day and 5 days a week only. Well, when he returned they did everything in their power to work him 10-12 hours a day without days off, etc. They never had a release for him to return to work the way they worked him and I’m sure it was a purposeful act in order to get him to quit so “Risk Management and their so called legal department” could get rid of an employee who was costing them money. I have many friends who have or still work for Wal-Mart and all of them say it’s a nightmare. They cut hours so they don’t have to pay insurance and all the other things that go along with being a full time employee with benefits and work the ones they can’t get rid of to death doing double duty in hopes they will up and quit, especially the ones that have been with them for many years as their salaries have gotten too high and if they can get rid of their higher paid employees then they can get the young people and pay them nothing and its win-win for the management especially when they get bonuses. They do not care about their employees, they care about their wallets and what they get off the backs of the ones working and really keeping the company running. I’m with you: if Sam Walton were alive this probably wouldn’t be happening. Too many chiefs and not enough Indians. If someone doesn’t get a union organized with this company it is only going to get worse. I’d really like to see them run out of town and bankrupt and if we wait long enough they too will be the next “Enron”.
—anonymous
