Reuters

By Reuters,
January 31st, 2007                                [back to top]

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is expected to move the chief executive of its U.S. namesake stores to an international position and replace him with the head of its Sam's Club warehouse club unit, Advertising Age reported on Tuesday, citing people close to the company.

The latest round of recent or pending management moves at the world's largest retailer is expected to involve 10 to 15 people, according to one person close to the company, the trade publication said in a story on its Web site.

Eduardo Castro-Wright, CEO of the Wal-Mart Stores Division in the United States, will move to an international post, though the level of that post was not clear, Advertising Age said.

Sam's Club's CEO Doug McMillon would replace Castro-Wright, the publication said.

Advertising Age said that executives were difficult to reach as they gathered in Kansas City, Missouri for an annual year-end meeting with supplier executives.

Last week Wal-Mart, which is trying to boost sales after a lackluster holiday season, named John Fleming as its chief merchandising officer. Fleming had previously led Wal-Mart's marketing division.

The Advertising Age report mentions an internal memo that was distributed last week. A Wal-Mart spokeswoman told Reuters that the company's internal communications concerned John Fleming's position and some other related changes. Wal-Mart publicly announced those changes on January 24.

When asked if the memo was related to Eduardo Castro-Wright, the spokeswoman replied "Absolutely not."

She added that Wal-Mart's policy is not to comment on rumors or speculation about personnel matters.

Castro-Wright joined Wal-Mart in 2001 as president and chief operating officer of Wal-Mart de Mexico, and then went on to be CEO of Wal-Mart de Mexico before moving to the Wal-Mart Stores division.

Meanwhile, WakeUpWalMart.com, a union-funded group, issued an open letter to Wal-Mart managers on Tuesday seeking to discuss various pay and benefit issues with them.

In the letter, the group suggests that Wal-Mart's executives, led by Castro-Wright, have implemented "a series of new anti-Associate policies."

"Sadly, these anti-family and anti-Associate policies, concocted by Mr. Wright and a bunch of consultants and accountants who have never run a store, have not only hurt Wal-Mart Associates and their families, but have even negatively impacted Wal-Mart's sales," the group wrote.

 [back to top]

Worry over Wal-Mart wooing tree huggers with organics

Carly Weeks
CanWest News Service
Wednesday, January 31, 2007                  [back to top]

OTTAWA - Canada's new organic food regulations won't come into effect for another two years, and even when they do, the government may lack the teeth to enforce them or stand up to corporate giants jumping on the organic bandwagon, critics are warning.

''There probably is real cause for concern in terms of the trend in the food industry to lower safety standards in pursuit of profits,'' said Michael McBane, national co-ordinator of the Canadian Health Coalition.

Organic food is becoming more popular than ever and there is worry some companies looking to make money without following the long-standing principles of the industry will push their product on the Canadian market.

Large companies such as Wal-Mart, Coca-Cola, Kraft Foods and General Mills have all entered the organic market, raising questions about the implications of corporate domination in what was once considered a fringe market reserved for tree-huggers and hippies.

Although most organic producers follow the traditional principles of the industry, some major players may try to import food made from countries that don't follow Canada's organic standards, said Cathleen Kneen, former editor of the BC Organic Grower and active member of the organic community.

''Whether Canada will go head-to-head with Wal-Mart for compliance here is a very interesting question,'' she said.

The federal government passed regulations in December which took about a decade to create.

The new rules, which take effect in December 2008, set out a number of changes, which include:

* Anyone who wants to sell a product as organic has to apply to a nationally recognized private-sector certification body, which inspects and evaluates the products. Organic certification remains in effect for one year.

* Certified organic products will have a uniform label that says ''Canada Organic.'' Multi-ingredient products, such as chips, have to be at least 95 per cent organic to have the label. Products with ingredients that are between 70 and 95 per cent organic must prominently display the percentage. Imported products with the ''Canada Organic'' label must display the country of origin.

* The CFIA can suspend the accreditation of an organic certification body if it doesn't comply with the regulations.

It's unclear whether federal inspectors will be able to do thorough checks to ensure organic food on shelves is the real deal when the rules come into effect.

The new Canada Organic Office, which is part of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, will oversee the organic industry. The office hasn't decided how it will operate, but one option is to hire 12 inspectors to do market checks and look for organic fraud at the retail level. Another option is to add that responsibility onto the duties of the food agency's regular inspectors.

The office's Ottawa headquarters will employ five or six people in administration and managerial roles.

The entry of some large companies have created a pressing need for governments to enforce their organic rules and be vigilant about ensuring products on the market with an ''organic'' label meet the national standards, said Mark Kastel, senior farm policy analyst at the Cornucopia Institute, a research group based in Wisconsin.

''There are companies that are now doing the minimum to try to conform and to stretch every corner, creating loopholes.''

Although the U.S. government passed organic regulations several years ago, it hasn't stopped some rogue companies from skirting the rules and refusing to live up to the long-standing principles that define organic farming.

Some companies that sell products labelled as organic actually run large factory farms, while others pressure the government to allow them to use synthetic chemicals, he said.

For instance, one major issue surrounds the fact U.S. regulations state livestock must have ''access to'' pasture. Since the rules don't explicitly state the duration or amount of pasture, some companies crowd animals or limit the access animals have to the outdoors, Kastel said.

That's why federal officials must be vigilant about what it means to be called ''organic'', he said.

''It's just literally a handful of mega-farms and they're corporate compliance certifiers that have caused this problem and that's what has to be guarded on both sides of the border so these things aren't exploited,'' he said.

While organic food has become a staple of mainstream grocery stores across Canada, it will be two more years before consumers can be assured what they're buying is the real thing.

That amount of time is needed to ensure everyone, from farmers to retailers to certification bodies, have time to make the transition to the new standard.

© CanWest News Service 2007

[back to top]

Wal-Mart denies new scheduling cuts hours

Critics cite memo saying employees could work less if they limit availability

The Associated Press
Jan 30, 2007                                        [back to top]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Wal-Mart’s union-backed critics released a company memo Tuesday saying that a new scheduling system could cut hours for individual workers, but Wal-Mart said the document was outdated and the new system is working fine.

WakeUpWalMart.com obtained a 2006 briefing packet for store managers on plans for a new computerized scheduling system aimed at better matching staff levels in Wal-Mart stores to peak crowds of shoppers.

Unions and other critics have said the centralized system, which analyzes an array of data to keep track of customer demand and generates schedules based on that, requires too much flexibility from Wal-Mart’s more than 1.3 million U.S. workers.

The briefing document, released by WakeUpWalMart during an annual meeting of Wal-Mart store managers in Kansas City, instructs managers to tell staff that workers who are unwilling to be available at peak evening and weekend times could wind up with fewer hours or drop to part time from full time.

Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said the document was a briefing paper from a pilot phase of the program last summer.

The new system has since been rolled out to all cashiers and customer service personnel, and experience has shown that employees are not losing hours, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Sarah Clark said.

“Our full-time staff is working pretty much the same days, the same approximate weekly hours, and within one to two hours of the same times as before,” Clark said.

Clark said Wal-Mart employees had shown support for the need to have more staff at peak times to take care of customers.

The pilot phase ended with a decision to allow local store managers to make last-minute changes in schedules based on individual needs, something that was not initially planned, Clark said.

“In fact, we’ve seen such significant improvement in our customer’s perceptions of their checkout experience, and such great acceptance by our associates (employees) to the scheduling program enhancements that we’ve encouraged our managers to continue to do modifications as needed to best meet the needs of their associates and customers,” Clark said.

Chris Kofinis, spokesman for WakeUpWalMart.com, said the briefing document contradicted Wal-Mart’s public statements that the new system would not cut worker hours.

“Wal-Mart has lied to its own workers and the American people because they didn’t want anybody to know the truth about the terrible effect this policy will have on its workers and their families,” Kofinis said.

The new scheduling system requires employees to fill out a form with the hours and days they are willing to work, as well their preferred hours within that range and any regular exceptions such as classes or regular medical appointments.

The briefing packet includes that form, which encourages workers to be as open as possible during peak evening and weekend hours and adds, “Limiting your personal availability may restrict the number of hours you are scheduled.”

In talking points for store managers addressing employees, the document says, “If you have restricted your personal availability to hours that don’t fall within peak customer traffic periods, it is likely that you will see a decrease in your number of scheduled hours on the draft schedules, and that could even impact your Full-Time status.”

The talking points go on to say managers will work with employees in an effort to fix the problem and add that managers should remain involved in finding a solution, such as moving the worker to a different job.

Wal-Mart tested the new scheduling system at a number of stores last year before adopting it for cashiers and customer service employees. It plans to adopt the system for all remaining employees at its U.S. stores this year, Clark said.

© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

[back to top]

Walmart may sell energy to Texans

United Press International
Earthtimes.org
2007-01-30                                [back to top]

AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 30 (UPI) U.S. big-box store Wal-Mart announced plans to install solar panels and windmills at some stores, as well as the creation of its own electricity company.

The company's environmental goals also include selling 100 million compact corkscrew fluorescent light bulbs this year, the Dallas Morning News reported.

The electricity company, Texas Retail Energy, will supply Wal-Mart's stores with cheap, wholesale power. About $15 million will be saved by this endeavor annually, also giving the company control over its utility bills.

The infrastructure of the energy company has grown, so TRE can now sell electricity to Texas consumers. High prices for power in Texas and an open market could lead TRE to be a local competitor.

We have considered it. Whether or not it will ever materialize, we don't know. It boils down to whether the customers and suppliers want that, said Chris Hendrix, general manager of Texas Retail Energy. Short-term, it's out of our scope. Longer-term, anything's possible.Many retailers have begun installing software to control store lights and temperature to help cut bills. While many big-box stores have taken energy issues to the corporate level, Wal-Mart is the first to buy energy wholesale.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International

[back to top]

WakeUpWalMart.com Launches First National Outreach Effort Targeting Wal-Mart Managers and Wal-Mart Associates

Group Releases 'Open Letter' to Wal-Mart Store Managers Attending National Conference in Kansas CityGroup Announces 'Management/Worker' Outreach Program Initially Targeting Over 350 Stores and 100,000 Employees

PRNewswire-USNewswire                    [back to top]

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Jan. 30 /-- WakeUpWalMart.com, America's campaign to change Wal-Mart, held a press conference today in Kansas City to announce a major new nationwide effort to reach out and target Wal- Mart store managers and Wal-Mart Associates in a coordinated program to recruit their support to change Wal-Mart into a better employer.

The new campaign initiative from WakeUpWalMart.com, titled "Working Together, We Can Change Wal-Mart," was officially launched in Kansas City -- the site of Wal-Mart's annual 7,000-person Store Managers Meeting. As of today, an estimated 2,000 Wal-Mart Store Managers had received the "open letter" from WakeUpWalMart.com. The letter points out the "moral dilemma" Wal- Mart store managers face in being forced to implement store policies they know to be "unfair and hurt the very people who work so hard to make Wal-Mart a success."

"By working together, we sincerely believe that Wal-Mart Associates, Wal- Mart Managers, and WakeUpWalMart.com can be an incredible force for change that will help return Wal-Mart to Sam Walton's vision where people and country come first," said Paul Blank, campaign director for WakeUpWalMart.com.

Beginning this week, as part of this new initiative, WakeUpWalMart.com began a new outreach effort to reach an estimated 100,000 Wal-Mart workers/managers at over 350 Wal-Mart stores across the country. Managers and Associates will be invited to join a nationwide conference call on February 8, 2007 to discuss the new changes that will be implemented as a result of the Wal-Mart managers meeting.

At the press conference in Kansas City, local community and faith leaders, including Reverend Doctor Ronald L. Faust, were joined by a current Wal-Mart worker, Kory Uselton, and leaders of WakeUpWalMart.com to discuss the company's recent adoption of a series of anti-family policies -- including salary caps, a restrictive attendance policy, the elimination of low deductible health care plans, and open availability scheduling -- that have negatively impacted Wal-Mart workers and their families. The speakers at the press conference implored the managers attending the Wal-Mart conference to "not let a small misguided group of executives use you to implement immoral and hurtful policies."

WakeUpWalMart.com is a nationwide group with over 310,000 supporters which has garnered national press coverage and political support from such leaders as Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John Edwards. The goal of the group is to change Wal-Mart into a moral employer and return the company to Sam Walton's vision where people and America come first.

A copy of the open letter to Wal-Mart Managers is available by request. WakeUpWalMart.com

CONTACT: Chris Kofinis, +1-202-486-6422, for WakeUpWalMart.com

[back to top]

Reliance promises to be ‘formidable’ rival to US giant Wal-Mart

AFP
1/30/2007                          [back to top]

NEW DELHI India's top business group Reliance promised yesterday to be a "formidable" competitor to US giant Wal-Mart as both move into India's lucrative and massive retail sector.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, teamed up late last year with India's Bharti Enterprises, the nation's top private phone firm, to start a nationwide store chain rivalling Reliance's huge home-grown supermarket bid. "We will be formidable competition in India," said Raghu Pillai, Reliance Retail's operations president, as the company opened nine western-style "Reliance Fresh" supermarkets in India's capital region.

The new stores are part of a cross-country retail rollout that began last November in southern India.

The retail foray comes as companies seek to tap India's increasingly affluent middle class, estimated at 300 million at least in what commentators have dubbed the "great Indian retail gold rush".

"Wal-Mart has the advantage of creating a larger-than-lifesize track record (in the US) but I'm not sure in other parts of the world that holds true," said Pillai, pointing to its experience in South Korea and Germany.

"They didn't flatten any competitors," he said.

Last July, Wal-Mart Stores announced it was getting out of Germany's cut-throat retail market and selling its 85 stores to a German retailer, incurring a loss of $1bn.

The move came two months after Wal-Mart sold its South Korean stores in what was an unusual pullback by the retailer from a breakneck global expansion spree.

In both countries, Wal-Mart did not appeal enough to domestic tastes and faced fierce competition from Korean retailers.

However, it is still faring well in many other foreign nations, especially in Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Britain.

Reliance, which has opened 49 stores so far in different parts of India, has said it aims to have 4,000 stores by 2011, with an annual sales target of $25bn.

It plans to invest $5.5bn to $7bn on its retail venture over the next few years.

Bharti Enterprises has said it will invest about $7bn in its project by 2010 and set up 200 large stores and hundreds of smaller ones. The government still bans foreign retail chains from selling directly to consumers but they are using a backdoor to enter the market by starting wholesale and sourcing firms which supply a local retail partner.

India's 15-million dusty, chaotic "mom-and-pop" corner stores are fearful that competition from the giant retailers, with their air-conditioned stores and plastic-wrapped produce, will drive them out of business.

But Pillai insisted that India's $300bn retail market "is big enough" for them to survive in the light of India's eight-to-nine percent economic growth, which he said was rapidly expanding the consumer pie.

"The traditional and modern retailers will co-exist very peacefully because the market is growing by an explosive amount," he said.

Pillai added that Reliance's retail plans will create "over 500,000" new jobs by 2010 and "two to three times that number of indirect job opportunities" in India where chronic unemployment is rife.

"The retail business in India is currently at the point of inflection," said Arvind Singhal, the chairman of retail consultancy Technopak Advisors.

Retail sales will more than double to hit $637bn by 2015, of which the organised retail segment would get a $65bn-to-$75bn share or 16 to 18 per cent of the total, up from three percent now, he forecasts.

 [back to top]

Ruling That Maryland Law Requiring Wal-Mart To Increase Health Benefits Violates ERISA Could Affect California Proposal

Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report
30 Jan 2007                                                        [back to top]

A federal appeals court ruling against a Maryland law that would have required large employers to expand worker health benefits could impede California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's (R) universal health proposal, the Los Angeles Times reports (Lifsher, Los Angeles Times, 1/25). Schwarzenegger's proposal, announced earlier this month, contains a provision that would require employers with 10 or more employees to offer health insurance for workers or pay a fee of 4% of payroll to a state pool that would help workers purchase coverage, with the amount that they pay based on income (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 1/9). The Maryland law, enacted on Jan. 12, 2006, would have required employers in Maryland with 10,000 or more employees to spend at least 8% of payroll costs on health care or contribute to a state fund for the uninsured. Wal-Mart was the only employer in Maryland that the law would have affected (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 1/18). In its ruling, the appeals court cited the 1974 Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which is intended to "help employers avoid a spate of conflicting state laws -- with different levels and types of worker benefits," the Times reports. Attorney Mark Johnson, a national expert on ERISA, said he expects that Schwarzenegger's plan -- if it is challenged in court -- would violate ERISA. Johnson said, "This would be a direct attempt to manage a plan. I don't think it would pass muster." However, the Schwarzenegger administration says its plan is different from the Maryland law and it would not be overruled by federal law because it would not be company-specific, nor would it mandate a specific type of health benefit. Kim Belshé, secretary of the state Health and Human Services Agency, said the governor's proposal is different than the Maryland proposal because it is built on the "principle of shared responsibility" spread among business, individuals and government (Los Angeles Times, 1/25).

[back to top]

Wal-Mart Japan unit sees wider net loss in 2006

Reuters                               [back to top]

TOKYO - Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s <WMT.N> Japanese unit, Seiyu Ltd. <8268.T>, on Tuesday said it would fall deeper into the red for 2006 than it first estimated, with the supermarket chain struggling to boost sales in a tough market.

Seiyu will mark its fifth straight year of losses despite investments of more than $1 billion by Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, which owns 53 percent of Seiyu and sees it as a key to expanding in the Japanese market.

"They still have yet to turn a profit, and it's unclear when they will be able to do so," said Kazunori Tsuda, senior retail analyst at the Daiwa Institute of Research.

"Mind you, it's a very tough market and Seiyu has a very weak store portfolio," he said. Seiyu estimated its group net loss at 55.8 billion yen ($459 million), wider than its earlier projection of a 54.5 billion yen loss for the year ended December but in line with analysts' forecasts.

Same-store sales rose 0.6 percent in 2006, the first annual rise in 15 years, but company spokesman Yasuhisa Nezu said that was still below the company's target.

Seiyu also is mainly a supermarket chain and unlike other Japanese retailers such as Aeon Co. Ltd. <8267.T> it does not have finance or specialty store operations to offset sluggish sales.

Wal-Mart Vice Chairman Michael Duke told a Japanese business daily that the company might look for more acquisition opportunities in Japan. But spokeswoman Amy Wyatt said on Monday that Wal-Mart was more focused on expanding business at the Seiyu chain.

Before the announcement, Seiyu shares closed up 2.6 percent at 195 yen, outperforming a 0.11 percent rise in the Nikkei average <.N225>.

Copyright 2007 Reuters News Service. All rights reserved.

 [back to top]

Critics, Wal-Mart spar over leaked memo

By MARCUS KABEL
Associated Press                      [back to top]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. Wal-Mart's union-backed critics released a company memo Tuesday saying that a new scheduling system could cut hours for individual workers, but Wal-Mart said the document was outdated and the new system is working fine.

WakeUpWalMart.com obtained a 2006 briefing packet for store managers on plans for a new computerized scheduling system aimed at better matching staff levels in Wal-Mart stores to peak crowds of shoppers.

Unions and other critics have said the centralized system, which analyzes an array of data to keep track of customer demand and generates schedules based on that, requires too much flexibility from Wal-Mart's more than 1.3 million U.S. workers.

The briefing document, released by WakeUpWalMart during an annual meeting of Wal-Mart store managers in Kansas City, instructs managers to tell staff that workers who are unwilling to be available at peak evening and weekend times could wind up with fewer hours or drop to part-time from full-time.

Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said the document was a briefing paper from a pilot phase of the program last summer.

The new system has since been rolled out to all cashiers and customer service personnel and experience has shown that employees are not losing hours, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Sarah Clark said.

"Our full-time staff is working pretty much the same days, the same approximate weekly hours and within one to two hours of the same times as before," Clark said.

Clark said Wal-Mart employees had shown support for the need to have more staff at peak times to take care of customers.

The pilot phase ended with a decision to allow local store managers to make last-minute changes in schedules based on individual needs, something that was not initially planned, Clark said.

"In fact, we've seen such significant improvement in our customer's perceptions of their checkout experience, and such great acceptance by our associates (employees) to the scheduling program enhancements that we've encouraged our managers to continue to do modifications as needed to best meet the needs of their associates and customers," Clark said.

Chris Kofinis, spokesman for WakeUpWalMart.com, said the briefing document contradicted Wal-Mart's public statements that the new system would not cut worker hours.

"Wal-Mart has lied to its own workers and the American people because they didn't want anybody to know the truth about the terrible effect this policy will have on its workers and their families," Kofinis said.

The new scheduling system requires employees to fill out a form with the hours and days they are willing to work, as well their preferred hours within that range and any regular exceptions such as classes or regular medical appointments.

The briefing packet includes that form, which encourages workers to be as open as possible during peak evening and weekend hours and adds, "Limiting your personal availability may restrict the number of hours you are scheduled."

In talking points for store managers addressing employees, the document says, "If you have restricted your personal availability to hours that don't fall within peak customer traffic periods, it is likely that you will see a decrease in your number of scheduled hours on the draft schedules, and that could even impact your Full-Time status."

The talking points go on to say managers will work with employees in an attempt to fix the problem and add that managers should remain personally involved in finding a solution, such as moving the worker to a different job.

Wal-Mart tested the new scheduling system at a number of stores last year before adopting it for cashiers and customer service employees. It plans to adopt the system for all remaining employees at its U.S. stores this year, Clark said.

[back to top]

Wal-Mart's New Marketing Strategy Hides Dirty Practices

By Jim Hightower,
Hightower Lowdown
January 30, 2007                                  [back to top]

You know that our world has turned totally topsy-turvy when Wal-Mart -- the low-price, bare-knuckle retailing behemoth known far and wide as the Bully of Bentonville for its ruthless corporate practices -- is suddenly putting on airs and positioning itself as (dare I say it?) metrosexual.

Yes, the world's largest and meanest merchandiser -- stung in the last few years by a grassroots rebellion of employees, small businesses, unions, neighborhood groups, environmentalists, and others that it has been so arrogantly stiffing -- is now straining to project a kinder and gentler image: urbane, upscale, green, socially responsible … even sensitive, for goodness sake. The image spiff-up comes as Wal-Mart executives have made a marketing decision to move from their suburban/rural base into cities, reaching out to a clientele that wants finer goods … and a more refined company.

But has the beast really changed? Inside the stores, and you can see a Nouveau Wal-Martique emerging. To appeal to more affluent customers (this advanced Wally-World calls them "selective shoppers"), Wal-Mart is upgrading its merchandise to include $500 bottles of wine, organic foods, $2,000 plasma TVs, 400-thread-count sheets, imported balsamic vinegar, organic-cotton baby clothes, microbrewed beers, and a new "Metro 7" line of designer fashions. Never mind that the average Wal-Mart shopper lives in the suburbs, is female, stands 5-foot-2, wears a size 14, and is looking for sensible skirts and durable go-to-work clothing -- the reinvented retailing giant is proffering skinny-legged, fur-trimmed jeans for the stylish set. It has even run an 8-page fashion spread in Vogue magazine.

Last March, this high-toned Wal-Martique opened a model store in the well-to-do corporate haven of Plano, Texas. No downscale blue-and-gray, concrete-block facade for this baby. It features two tone brick walls, wood floors, wide aisles, uncluttered shelves with cherry finish, halogen lights, and discrete fitting rooms for a hoity toity clientele. Also, forget the usual in-store McDonald's. There's an espresso bar with free wi-fi and -- Holy Sam Walton! -- a sushi bar to enhance what cosmopolitan retail consultants call "the shopping experience."

In addition, you might note what's not there. No more layaway plans, for example. No shotguns and hunting gear, either. Also, far less in the way of automotive tools and supplies. As the model store's project manager explains, "This customer is telling us they're not doing it themselves. They don't change their own oil."

Eliza Doolittles

Naturally, an upwardly mobile Wal-Mart cannot have its workers -- excuse me, "associates," as they are called in Wal-Martspeak -- garbed in those dowdy blue vests with "How May I Help You?" emblazoned on the back. Too, too tacky. When a corporate fashion designer was brought in, he took one look at Sam Walton's friendly vests and termed them "the lowest guppy in the pool" of retail outfits.

So Wal-Mart is giving a makeover not only to 1,800 stores, but also to clerks. A new dress code dictates a positively preppy look of khaki pants and navy-blue polo shirts, giving the place a feel described by the fashion designer as "much more business casual than working class." Yes, but should workers tuck their polos into their khakis for a sharp, snappy appearance, or leave the shirts untucked as a sign of an easygoing, fun-loving workplace? Believe it or not, the tucking question reached the top levels of HQ in Bentonville. Finally, the word came down from on high: "If they want to tuck it in they can. If not, they can leave it out."

And you thought there was no workplace democracy at Wal-Mart!

Workers, however, are less than charmed by the change in couture, for the company expects them to dig into their own pockets to buy the preppy uniforms. Perhaps these employees will find solace in the assertion by the fashion designer that the new duds "will raise the status of the 1.3 million Americans" who