Wal-Mart: The Face of Twenty-First Century Capitalism (review)

This text will appeal to undergraduates, postgraduates, and academic researchers who seek critical perspectives on the historical development of “big-box” retailing. The book is a multidisciplinary effort that brings together attorneys, historians, sociologists, economists, not-for-profit executives, community organizers, and specialists in business ethics and women’s studies. The book is the product of the 2004 conference held at the University of California, entitled “Wal-Mart: Template for Twenty-First Century Capitalism?”. In Chapter1, Lichtenstein leans heavily on Peter Drucker’s The Concept of the Corporation to argue that each era is shaped by a dominant business that constructs society in its own image. The thesis is that retailers have achieved a controlling influence within global supply chains, with Wal-Mart providing a template that is shaping the development of global capitalism. Wal-Mart, driven by its underlying business model of authoritarian management and transnational-scale economies, is positioned “as one of the great engines driving the growth of American inequality: economic, social, and spatial” (xiv). Several contributors, however, point out that the impact of Wal-Mart is a difference in degree, not in kind, amongst a range of global retailers all applying the low-cost formula of high turnover and low wages.

The book is divided into three sections. The first section “History, Culture, Capitalism,” containing Lichtenstein’s opener, provides a robust analysis of Wal-Mart’s historical development. Susan Strasser explores the development of the Wal-Mart business model, tracing destructive innovations associated with the development of department stores, mail order, and the chain store. Lichtenstein links Wal-Mart’s development to the parochial Christianity of the Southern Republican states. Bethany Moreton expands this cultural perspective, by examining the Arkansan agrarian roots of Wal-Mart management. James Hoopes, meanwhile, revisits Coase and Chandler’s theories of the firm to reflect on the development of management techniques at Wal-Mart.

The second section, “A Global Corporation,” explores the technical innovations and regulatory contexts that have allowed Wal-Mart to become dominant in home markets and a powerful presence globally. Misha Petrovic and Gary Hamilton review the rise of lean retailing, pointing to the impact of Voluntary Inter-industry Commerce Standards and the standardization of technology through Electronic Data Interchange. David Karjanen examines the local economic impact of Wal-Mart, examining the rationale underpinning public subsidies for store development. Edna Bonacich, with Khaleelah Hardie, demonstrates how modern logistics have contributed to a global race to the bottom to supply Wal-Mart. They highlight the inequalities generated by the greater mobility of retail capital relative to labor, and chart Wal-Mart’s attempts to circumvent a repeat of the 2002 shut down of the U.S. West Coast ports that interrupted the distribution network. Finally, Chris Tilly provides a case study of Wal-Mart’s entry into the Mexican market.

The third section, “Working at Wal-Mart,” is a damning appraisal of the corporation’s labor policies and managerial culture. Thomas Adams provides an excellent basic summary of the low-wage economic model driving Wal-Mart. Much of his subsequent discourse is related to an analysis of KMART and the deliberate tactics of big-box retailers to undermine unionization and infantilize their workers. Brad Seligman explores the initial findings of the Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. class action suit. The largest civil rights class action suit in United States history is still ongoing, but there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate institutionalized discrimination against female employees. Ellen Rosen provides evidence to suggest how central management imperatives are translated into managerial speedup, systematic understaffing, and working off the clock. Finally, Wade Rathke debates the potential for the establishment of a “Wal-Mart Workers Association.”

Rathke’s chapter deputizes as a concluding chapter to the volume, which looks to the future. Rathke is the founder of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform, which originated in Arkansas, the home of Wal-Mart. He argues that the...