November 1, 2005
Government Report Shows Sweetheart Deal with Labor Department Benefited Wal-Mart
"It is an especially sad day in America when our children’s safety can be bought and paid for by Wal-Mart. In the end, it should be no surprise to the American people that Wal-Mart received a sweetheart deal from the Bush White House - Wal-Mart’s own lawyers wrote the deal."
--Statement by Paul Blank, Campaign Director WakeUpWalMart.com
When Wal-Mart was cited for violating child labor laws in its U.S. stores, the nation's largest employer and one of the largest corporate political donors got a sweetheart deal that gives the company fifteen days advance notice before the government will initiate any investigation of future violations of federal workplace laws. Read release
That agreement, reached in February, between Wal-Mart and the U.S. Labor Department, gave Wal-Mart "significant concessions" and weakened federal oversight of labor practices at the company, according to the Labor Department's Office of Inspector General.
In a report issued October 31, the inspector general said the deal with Wal-Mart "indicates need for stronger guidance and procedures regarding settlement agreements" by the Labor Department. The report found that Wal-Mart attorneys had drafted part of the agreement.
The inspector general's report found the agreement wasn't consistent with the department's internal guidelines. "We conclude that a significant breakdown occurred in the review and approval of the Wal-Mart agreement," the report said.
While the corporate giant with billions of dollars in revenue paid over $135,000 in fines, regulators promised to give Wal-Mart 15 days' prior notice of any department investigations or audits of alleged child-labor violations. Although both Wal-Mart and the Department of Labor said the 15-day advance notice of investigations applied only to child-labor violations, the inspector general report indicated the notice applied to a broader range of labor violations.
According to the report, Wal-Mart attorneys had removed from the agreement a proposed edit that would have limited the scope of the 15-day advance notification to only child-labor investigations.
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