Walmart Surprising Move to Leave The Conservative Group 'ALEC'
Wal-Mart was suspending its membership in the American Legislative Council (ALEC), which the retailer joined in 1993, the company said late on Wednesday.
Other groups that have backed away from ALEC include Coca-Cola Co., Kraft Foods Inc.,McDonald's Corp., Procter & Gamble Co. and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The move by Wal-Mart comes more than a month after ALEC abandoned its committee that worked on "public safety and elections" to focus on the economy.
ALEC had come under criticism for its support of "Stand Your Ground" gun laws, such as the "self-defense" law under scrutiny in the Florida shooting that killed unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February.
ALEC, a pro-business, free-market organization whose members include corporations and mostly Republican lawmakers and lobbyists, also drew scrutiny for promoting laws that require photo identification to vote. ColorOfChange, a liberal advocacy group for black Americans, had said such voting laws disadvantage the poor and minorities.
"Previously, we expressed our concerns about ALEC's decision to weigh in on issues that stray from its core mission ... to advance the Jeffersonian principles of free markets,"' Maggie Sans, Wal-Mart's vice president of public affairs and government relations, said in a May 30 letter to ALEC's national chairman and executive director.
"We feel that the divide between these activities and our purpose as a business has become too wide. To that end, we are suspending our membership in ALEC."
Sans is also giving up her role as secretary of ALEC's private enterprise board.
Well, since we are talking about Walmart, I will like to share with you a story I found last night
The Illinois State Board of Investment said it is voting against all 16 members of Wal-Mart's board, after the New York Times reported an alleged bribery scandal at the company's Mexican subsidiary last month.
The Fayetteville, Ark.-based retailer will tally the votes at its annual shareholder meeting on Friday.
"The situation in Mexico shows a real lack of oversight on the part of the board of directors in terms of management's compliance with Wal-mart's own standards and policies," said William Atwood, executive director of the state investment board.
Atwood, who can direct how the retirement system votes, said he came to the decision after polling its board. He rarely changes how the board votes its shares, he added.
"What's particularly troubling, is that in 2005, the New York State and Local Retirement System and other institutional investors met with the chairman of Wal-Mart's audit committee and asked they appoint a independent auditor," said Atwood. "Then ... they weren't able to comply ... they committed these infractions in Mexico paying hundreds of million in bribes that caused extreme harm to the company. Given this we'll vote against the board of directors."
The investment board manages $11.5 billion in the pension assets of the General Assembly Retirement System, the Judges' Retirement System of Illinois and the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois.
Last month, the New York Times reported that Wal-Mart had covered up an internal investigation that discovered that its Mexican subsidiary had bribed government officials as it aimed to expand in the country.
The move follows reports that two corporate governance firms are recommending shareholders vote against certain board members at the Wal-mart's annual shareholders meeting on Friday.
Wal-mart has annual revenue of $446.9 billion. ISBI holds roughly $7.1 million of Wal-mart's $222.5 billion market value.
"The bulk of Wal-Mart shares are owned by insiders. I'm sure these guys will get re-elected, but we're not going to vote for them," said Atwood.
The Fayetteville, Ark.-based retailer will tally the votes at its annual shareholder meeting on Friday.
"The situation in Mexico shows a real lack of oversight on the part of the board of directors in terms of management's compliance with Wal-mart's own standards and policies," said William Atwood, executive director of the state investment board.
Atwood, who can direct how the retirement system votes, said he came to the decision after polling its board. He rarely changes how the board votes its shares, he added.
"What's particularly troubling, is that in 2005, the New York State and Local Retirement System and other institutional investors met with the chairman of Wal-Mart's audit committee and asked they appoint a independent auditor," said Atwood. "Then ... they weren't able to comply ... they committed these infractions in Mexico paying hundreds of million in bribes that caused extreme harm to the company. Given this we'll vote against the board of directors."
The investment board manages $11.5 billion in the pension assets of the General Assembly Retirement System, the Judges' Retirement System of Illinois and the State Employees' Retirement System of Illinois.
Last month, the New York Times reported that Wal-Mart had covered up an internal investigation that discovered that its Mexican subsidiary had bribed government officials as it aimed to expand in the country.
The move follows reports that two corporate governance firms are recommending shareholders vote against certain board members at the Wal-mart's annual shareholders meeting on Friday.
Wal-mart has annual revenue of $446.9 billion. ISBI holds roughly $7.1 million of Wal-mart's $222.5 billion market value.
"The bulk of Wal-Mart shares are owned by insiders. I'm sure these guys will get re-elected, but we're not going to vote for them," said Atwood.
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