The Wal-Mart Tax

The national advocacy group Wal-Mart Watch has a useful new round-up of data on the hidden costs to the public of Wal-Mart economics. In 11 states, media and advocacy groups have analyzed how many Wal-Mart employees are forced onto Medicaid and other taxpayer-funded health programs because of the retail giant's low pay and horrible health benefits:

Consider these numbers: 2,800 in Arizona, 12,300 in Florida, 9,617 in Tennessee, 589 in New Jersey... the list goes on and on. These are actual numbers of Wal-Mart employees and dependents who rely on taxpayer assistance for their healthcare. Wal-Mart tops the list again. Far more than any other employer, Wal-Mart shifts the burden onto taxpayers rather than provide the health care benefits themselves.

We call it "The Wal-Mart Tax." Despite earning over $10 billion in profit last year, the world's largest company leaves over 53% of its employees without health care benefits. Wal-Mart's greed will cost American taxpayers more than $1.5 billion dollars per year.

Visit here to see information on your state and what Wal-Mart Watch is doing about it.