Somehow I missed this. Why Wal-Mart sux, vol. XCCMMLLII

Apparently 200 Wal-Mart workers developed the spinal fortitude to walk out on a store in Florida--the reason was because the full-timers got cut from 40 to 32 hours, and the part-timers now have no regular set schedules. You could work 8-3 one week and noon to 9 the next. Kinda makes holding down another job hard. Or having a family. And the schedule gets set by a computer in Bentonville, Arkansas not your manager at the store.

On Oct. 16, workers on the morning shift walked out in protest against the new policies and rallied outside the store, shouting "We want justice" and criticizing the company's recent policies as "inhuman." Workers said the number of participants was about 200, or nearly all of the people on the shift.

But wait, there's more!

The employees drafted a protest letter that they have sent to executives at Wal-Mart headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., and also to Florida politicians, including Florida Governor Jeb Bush. "In the letter, we state that we want justice and that Wal-Mart should stop harassing us," says Vasquez. At least 400 store employees have signed the letter.

Solidarity beats apathy every time, folks. Now you might have also heard that Wal-Mart had to pay $78 million in back overtime last week:

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Wal-Mart Stores, the world's biggest retailer, must pay at least $78.5 million for violating Pennsylvania labor laws by forcing employees to work through rest breaks and off the clock, a jury found Friday.

Plaintiffs' lawyer Michael Donovan will also seek another $62 million in damages because the jury found that Wal-Mart acted in bad faith. Common Pleas Judge Mark Bernstein is expected to rule on that issue in the next few weeks.

I'll close with this, and it's really all you need to know about the ratfucks that run Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart executives have recently told Wall Street analysts that the company wants to transform its workforce from 20 percent part-time to 40 percent. Recently, it was also reported that older employees in some stores who had back and leg problems were barred from using stools on which they had sat for years.