Quote:
Earnings
Average weekly earnings in grocery stores are considerably lower than the average for all industries, reflecting the large proportion of entry-level, part-time jobs. In May 2004, nonsupervisory workers in grocery stores averaged $332 a week, compared with $529 a week for all workers in the private sector. Earnings in selected occupations in grocery stores appear in table 2.
Managers receive a salary, and often a bonus, based on store or department performance. Managers in highly profitable stores generally earn more than those in less profitable stores.
Full-time workers generally receive typical benefits, such as paid vacations, sick leave, and health and life insurance. Part-time workers who are not unionized may receive few benefits. Unionized part-time workers sometimes receive partial benefits. Grocery store employees may receive a discount on purchases.
Over 22 percent of all employees in grocery stores belong to a union or are covered by union contracts, compared with 14 percent in all industries. Workers in chain stores are more likely to be unionized or covered by contracts than workers in independent grocery stores. In independent stores, wages often are determined by job title, and increases are tied to length of job service and to job performance. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union is the primary union representing grocery store workers.
Table 2. Median hourly earnings of the largest occupations in grocery stores, May 2004 Occupation Grocery stores All industries
First-line supervisors/managers of retail sales workers
$15.08 $15.73
Butchers and meat cutters
13.00 12.45
Retail salespersons
9.24 8.98
Stock clerks and order fillers
8.94 9.66
Customer service representatives
8.69 12.99
Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food
8.59 7.06
Food preparation workers
8.54 8.03
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand
8.25 9.67
Cashiers
7.90 7.81
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http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg/cgs024.htm
Here is something from thr UFCW website on Walmart and Union Wages:
Quote:
Wal-Martization of Workers' Wages and Overtime Pay
Wal-Mart Wages
* Wal-Mart pays an average hourly wage of $8.23 an hour, according to independent expert statistical analysis, which falls below basic living wage standards and even below poverty lines.
* Wal-Mart claims an hourly wage of $9.68 an hour is its national average, though that still equals poverty levels for workers. Since “full time” at Wal-Mart is 34 hours a week according to company policy, full-time workers make a mere $17,114.24 a year—below the federal poverty level for a family of four.
* The most common Wal-Mart jobs earn less.
o A sales associate--the most common job classification--earns on average $8.23 per hour ($13,861 annually)
o A cashier—the second most common job—earns about $7.92 per hour ($11,948 annually)
o Sales associates and cashiers combined account for more than a third of all Wal-Mart jobs.
* The world’s largest and richest retailer—with more than $250 billion in annual revenue--can afford wage increases. Wal-Mart could pay each employee a dollar more per hour if the company increased its prices by a half-penny per dollar. For example, a $2.00 pair of socks would then cost $2.01. This minimal increase would annually add up to $1,800 for each employee.
* A Wal-Mart spokesperson told USA Today on 1/29/03 that their pay is close to or equal to union wages.
Union Wages
* Grocery workers are paid an average of $10.61/hour based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
* The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) reported in 2002 that United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Union-represented workers in the supermarket industry earned 31% more than their non-union counterparts. Women have a 33% advantage with UFCW representation.
* IWPR research showed that UFCW-represented supermarket workers are two-and-a half times as likely to have pension coverage than non-union workers and twice as likely to have health insurance coverage than retail food workers without union representation.
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http://www.ufcw.org/press_room/fact_...mart/wages.cfm
What does this tell us?
Wages at grocery stores are low, Union or non-Union, Walmart or non-Walmart.
The Union website doesn't compare wages job class to job class. This can be a bit misleading, don't you agree? And if Union workers are getting 1/3 higher wages and about one in five or four workers in the industry are Unionized, why are Walmart's wages in-line with the averages?