Each
Black Friday we hear all about Walmart, from the jaw-dropping discounts
that make competing customers resort to gunplay – to the deaths by
trampling. This year, we’ve been hearing about coordinated strikes, walk-outs and protests as
Walmart workers have begun to resent the depths of their corporate
exploitation. But we don’t hear about the rampant corruption uncovered
in Walmart’s expansion operations as multiple bribery probes continue to
widen.
Walmart is the biggest retailer in known history, employing one million US workers and making $3.63 billion in profits just in the most recent quarter. Obviously, a business this size will hold a lot of sway in media where they are regular advertisers. Maybe that’s why we’re not hearing about a global bribery scandal which should be leading to perp walks, but so far, is barely being reported.
Kudos to the Boston Globe for updating the story that David Barstow quietly broke in the New York Times last April. In brief, it explained how Walmart had systematically bribed officials to fast-track expansion in Mexico.
After a 10 year Walmart official blew the whistle, an internal investigation ordered by Walmart’s top executives buried the affair for some seven years. How? They simply made an official involved in the bribery allegations responsible for the investigation. Not surprisingly, he reported no wrongdoing. Management even promoted the chief executive of the Mexican division to vice chairman... MORE>>
