National NOW Times >> Spring 2006  >> Article

Maryland Legislators Stand Up To Wal-Mart

By Campbell Roth, Publications Coordinator

The Maryland general assembly made history on Jan. 12 by passing a bill that requires private companies like retail behemoth Wal-Mart to spend at least 8 percent of their payroll on healthcare for employees.

Maryland lawmakers overrode a veto by Republican Gov. Robert Ehrlich after progressive activists fought back against Wal-Mart's huge advertising and lobbying efforts against the bill.

"NOW applauds Maryland lawmakers for standing up to big businesses like Wal-Mart," said NOW Executive Vice President Olga Vives. "These legislators put the health and welfare of the people of Maryland above corporate profits, and for that they should be commended."

Wal-Mart is currently the only employer in the state affected by the legislation, although the law's language will apply to any private company that employs at least 10,000 state residents. Wal-Mart employs nearly 17,000 people in Maryland.

Drafts of similar "fair share" laws are under way in 30 other states, including a proposal in Rhode Island that would require companies with 1,000 or more employees to spend 8 percent of payroll on health benefits. A bill in Washington state requires companies with 5,000 or more employees to spend 9 percent of payroll on employee health care.

In all three states, the legislation would require companies that decline to spend the money on employee health coverage to instead pay the remainder of the threshold into a state fund for the uninsured.

"As the first state to enact such legislation, Maryland has set a bold example for the rest of the country," Vives said. "Workers in the United States deserve better than they've been getting from Wal-Mart.  If Wal-Mart executives won't do what's right on their own, then it's time for our elected representatives to lead the way."

According to a report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the percentage of businesses that offer employee health insurance has declined for five straight years, while the cost of health insurance premiums has gone up 73 percent during that time.

Fewer than half of Wal-Mart's employees are able to participate in the company's health insurance plan due to eligibility restrictions and the high cost of the coverage. Many Wal-Mart employees have had to seek assistance from state government programs in order to provide health care for themselves and their families.

By comparison, the National Organization for Women spends 10 percent of payroll on health insurance, providing employees with medical, dental, disability and life insurance coverage.

"The main reason Wal-Mart is the richest company in the world is because it pays workers so little, while contributing next to nothing toward their health care," said Vives. "The time has come to tell Wal-Mart, and any company tempted to follow its business model, that you cannot stay at the top if you're standing on the backs of your workers."