Election could be good and bad for Wal-Mart

[Scooter24]

Election could be good and bad for Wal-Mart
Minimum wage hike would help customers, but Dems may hold hearings
The new Democratic majority in Congress will bring both good and bad news for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which could benefit from a minimum wage hike but faces the possibility of congressional hearings on labor practices and health care at the nation’s largest private employer, analysts said Wednesday.

Wal-Mart’s core lower-income shoppers could get more disposable income if Democrats push through a raise in the federal minimum wage of $5.15 an hour. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, set to become the new House leader, said raising the base wage for the first time since 1997 would be one of the Democrats’ legislative priorities for the 110th Congress that opens in January.

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Democrats in the House and possibly Senate can be expected to call Wal-Mart executives on the carpet as part of broader hearings aimed at putting pressure on corporate America to improve health insurance and keep more jobs at home, said Gary N. Chaison, professor of industrial relations at Clark University in Worcester, Mass.

“Wal-Mart is huge and more people know its name, so it gets attention,” Chaison said.

“I think Wal-Mart representatives should be preparing already to make their case in front of congressional hearings on employment practices and health care,” he said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15626611/