Wal-Mart ripe for a bargain It pains me to say this, but the labor unions are wrong on this one

I hadn't been to North Austin recently, but the controversy overwhether a Wal-Mart was worthy of building on land in that areaspurred me to take a ride.

Judging from the heated exchanges between city officials and unionleaders over the impact of a Wal-Mart opening just northeast of Northand Cicero avenues, I expected to find a blighted corner in desperateneed of a little economic stimulation. After all, the arguments infavor of allowing the dreaded Wal-Mart into the city limits center onthe need for jobs and shopping options in that neighborhood.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I came upon the bright newshopping mall on the southwest corner of that intersection. Anchoredby a Cub Foods, the mall includes Old Navy and Marshalls clothingstores, a Payless Shoes and a Radio Shack electronics store. Acrossthe intersection sits a brand-new Walgreens drugstore.

This is hardly a corner that is hurting for retail options.

Still, Ald. Emma Mitts (37th) says, there are more people in herward who are unemployed than employed.

So why would labor unions be working so hard to ensure they don'twork at a Wal-Mart?

Because, they say, Wal-Mart is a bad corporate citizen.

And it may be. The mega-retailer benefits from a mom-and-apple-pie reputation that might have been deserved back in the days whenfounder Sam Walton drove around Arkansas in his pick-up truck. Buttoday Wal-Mart is one of the biggest companies in the world andoperates like it.

Years ago, my union member, buy-American husband headed to a Wal-Mart to buy a much-needed pair of new work boots. He came home empty-handed after noting all the work boots on display were made in China.A call to the company informed us that the company promises only tobuy American whenever possible.

In addition to thriving on a down-home reputation it no longerdeserves, the retailer seems to have avoided a label it mightdeserve: unfair to workers.

A report from the office of Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) says Wal-Mart pays its female workers less than its male workers. It hiresillegal immigrants. It is being sued for cheating workers out ofmoney they are owed. And it pays an average wage of $8.23 an hour --well below the average retail wage in Chicago of $10.93 an hour.Another report, from the Center for Labor and Community Research inChicago, predicts that opening a West Side Wal-Mart will actuallyharm the economy of that neighborhood.

All of which are good reasons to keep Wal-Mart out of Chicago. Butwe shouldn't. As a lifelong union sympathizer and former unionofficial, it pains me to say this, but the labor unions are wrong onthis one.

Standing in the way of economic development in a neighborhood thatstill needs jobs is no way to prove you are a defender of workerseverywhere. With labor unions appearing more out of touch withworkers' reality with each passing year, this stand against Wal-Martis doing more harm to the unions that it can ever do to Wal-Mart.

The reality is that Wal-Mart is coming. Mayor Daley is happy tohave the tax revenue. The aldermen, on the West and South sides, arehappy to have the shiny new stores and 200 to 300 jobs. So a fewgrumpy old union officials are not going to keep this fromhappening.

So what should they do? Wring some concessions from Wal-Mart.

Mitts says she is hopeful her Wal-Mart will be the first in thecountry to vote to be unionized. Not likely.

But there are other concessions to be had. She would like Wal-Mart to put in writing an agreement to hire 70 percent of the store'semployees from the neighborhood -- and to bank with local bankers,advertise with local newspapers and offer scholarships to localstudents and money to local nonprofits.

Sound like great ideas. Wal-Mart might be a bad corporate citizen,but it's coming to Chicago. So the city ought to use its muscle toforce policy changes that make it a better corporate citizen ofChicago, if not the world. And the unions ought to get on board.Because until there are workers, there isn't anyone to unionize.