After Wal-Mart was found to have violated child labor laws in Connecticut, Arkansas and New Hampshire, a secret agreeement between the giant retailer and the Labor Department agreed "to give Wal-Mart 15 days' notice before the Labor Department investigates any other 'wage and hour' accusations, like failure to pay minimum wage or overtime." The agreement was later criticized by the Labor Department's Inspector General report which concluded that the Labor Department had entered “into an agreement that gave significant concessions to Wal-Mart…in exchange for little commitment from the employer beyond what it was already doing or required to do by law.”
Well, the agreement has been allowed to lapse.
According to Miller:
“The Bush Administration made a sweetheart deal with Wal-Mart that put workers’ lives and livelihoods at risk,” said Miller, the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee. “Because of the public scrutiny and controversy surrounding this agreement, the Bush Administration had no choice but to let it expire last week. That’s welcome news for Wal-Mart workers, who never should have had to put up with this in the first place.”Related Articles
- Labor Dept Rebuked Over Wal-Mart Deal, November 1, 2005
- What's It All About, Vicky? Child Labor, Wal-Mart and the Bush Administration, February 19, 2005
- Wal-Mart -- DOL Deal: Clinton Did It Too? Not!, February 16, 2005
- More Wal-Mart/DOL Shenanigans, February 15, 2005
- Miller Calls For Investigation of Wal-Mart Deal, February 15, 2005
- Bush Labor Department Puts Wal-Mart in "Privileged Position", February 12, 2005
- Wal-Mart: Following In The Proud Footsteps of the Tobacco, Beer and Petroleum Industries, February 11, 2005
- Wal-Mart Enters 19th Century: Locks Workers In Overnight, January 18, 2004
