Is Walmart Ethical In 2022? (Staff, Clothing, Wages + More)

Major retail chains around the world are under increasing pressure from consumers to adopt ethical and environmentally-friendly practices due to their large social impact.

Since Walmart is one of the largest retail chains in the U.S., you may be wondering – is Walmart ethical? Below is all I have learned about Walmart’s corporate ethics!

Walmart is ethical in 2022

There are conflicting reports as to whether Walmart is an ethical brand as of 2022. Walmart makes regular donations to local charities and organizations. But, it does pay its employees very low wages. It doesn’t offer any health insurance. However, Walmart has expressed its aim to become more sustainable in the future.

You can read on to learn about Walmart’s sustainability, including whether or not it uses sweatshop labor.

Walmart, a ethical place to shop?

Walmart may be ethical up to a point, but ultimately it’s your decision whether to shop there.

Walmart donates significantly to local charities, such as Youth Build and Higher Education Policy.

Forbes magazine stated in fact that Walmart is America’s biggest philanthropic organization.

Despite this, Walmart does engage in unethical practices that increase air pollution and water pollution while directly affecting the loss of natural habitats and ecosystems.

These unethical practices include building Walmart stores on land that was previously home to endangered and critical species.

Additional to that, they also close down their stores, and leave behind vacant properties.

Does Walmart Use Sweatshops?

Walmart is known to have employed child labor in sweatshops.

A factory that provided Walmart with its products from China was found to have been beating and paying very low wages. The workers were forced to work 90 hours per week.

Walmart ended its contract with the factory after news of the treatment broke.

Walmart also cancelled agreements with suppliers located in Burma (Bangladesh), Nicaragua, and Bangladesh. Rumours abound that each of these places was home to sweatshop-based factories.

What Are Walmart’s Ethical Issues?

The following ethical issues have landed Walmart in some bad press concerning its engagement with environmentally-conscious practices:

Low wages for staff and active efforts to maintain these wages

The company does not provide affordable, accessible and accessible coverage for staff members.

Lands are used to store its products. These lands often lie on virgin ground (which is also home to numerous microcosms and eco-systems).

Walmart’s increased demand for meat products led many farmers to lose their land and be replaced by corporations that are not in “sustainable agriculture”.

What’s Walmart’s Code Of Ethics Like?

Walmart does not have a set code of ethics that it has made available to the public.

But, the code of conduct is a guideline that guides every aspect of the company’s business.

Respect for each individual

For excellence, strive

Provide for the customer

Integrity is key

What amount of money has Walmart donated to charity?

Walmart has donated over 500 million dollars to nonprofit organizations and charities across America in the past.

The following data sets were used to calculate this figure by Walmart FYE:

Walmart has increased its support for local organizations by $296 million to $378million between 2008-2009

In 2009, Walmart contributed $45.5 million to international markets and charities, which was up from the reported $41 million in 2007

Walmart customers and associates worldwide donated more than $106 million to charity through in-store donations and other programs

Walmart forecasted that it would surpass 1.5 million volunteer hours by 2010, with employees and customers participating in the schemes.

Walmart Makes Their Clothing Ethically

Walmart is known to source clothing from factories which do not ethically treat its workers.

The Business Insider reported that Walmart was still purchasing clothing made in Bangladesh from Mars Apparels.

Walmart announced its cancellation of its Mars Apparels contract in 2011. The apparel company had been exposed for forcing employees to work very long hours without any pay.

Despite this, the owners of the Bangladeshi factory confirmed that they were still doing business with Walmart two years after Walmart announced it had terminated the contract.

U.S. shipping records confirm this. This makes it increasingly difficult for Walmart to claim that their clothing is ethically made.

Is Walmart pursuing sustainability goals and efforts?

Walmart recently published the following set aims which detail the company’s efforts to create a more sustainable future.

Responsible source of goods

Eliminate unnecessary emissions

Redefine waste

Protect and restore nature and the ecosystems

Buy sustainable products

The company should be decarbonized

Is Walmart Ethical In 2022? (Staff, Clothing, Wages + More)