Governor Jim Doyle (D-WI) criticized Wal-Mart in State of the State

[papau]

Governor Jim Doyle (D-WI) criticized Wal-Mart for having more employees on the state's healthcare system than any other company.

http://www.shawanoleader.com/articles/2006/01/18/news/news4.txt

Text of the governor’s State of the State address

Associated Press

The prepared text of the State of the State address, titled “An Affordability Agenda for Middle-Class and Working Families,” delivered to the Legislature Tuesday night by Gov. Jim Doyle:


"I want to make this very clear to Wal-Mart and any other company that might be thinking of shifting its health care responsibility to taxpayers: BadgerCare is intended to help working families, not multi-billion dollar corporations."
"Tonight, I am calling on the Legislature to outlaw the practice of health care dumping. Companies cannot be allowed to deliberately manipulate the system. If they are dropping coverage for employees they know are eligible for state programs so they can increase profits, there should be serious consequences."
"It is unfair. It is unethical. And we should make it illegal."

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Wal-Mart Watch Executive Director Andrew Grossman echoed Doyle's call for action, saying in a statement: "It's unacceptable that Wisconsin taxpayers are paying over $2.7 million to provide health care for Wal-Mart's employees. Wal-Mart profited $10 billion dollars last year, yet 1,200 of its workers and their children are forced to rely on BadgerCare health care to make ends meet."

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Last week, Maryland became the first state to pass legislation requiring Wal-Mart to increase spending for employee healthcare.

[bluestateguy]

1. They call the state's health care system BadgerCare?

Fitting.

[marmar]

2. I don't understand why corporations...

the huge externalizing machines that they are, aren't out screaming in favor of socialized national health care. All these companies like GM are crying the blues because of their health care expenses, yet they're not out lobbying legislators to make it a federal responsibility and take it off their backs.
:shrug:

[sybylla]

4. I often wonder the same thing, marmar

It should be their next sentence after they finish bitching about healthcare costs. But it is never said.

[marmar]

5. Exactly....

It's one reason I think European airlines are making money - despite the intracacies of operating much more complex multinational networks - while American ones are losing big bucks - they don't have the health care costs to deal with.

[f-bush]

3. Wal Mart needs to be more than criticized

it needs to be shut down because it practices economic terrorism!