Wal-Mart's First Gaffe of 2007: Scheduling Part-Time Workers

It's 2007- a new year. Within only three days, we have the first significant Wal-Mart gaffe of the year.

Last week, the Wall Street Journal carried an article discussing Wal-Mart's latest productivity improvement approach. They are employing new, dynamic labor-scheduling software which more closely matches store staffing to customer volume, as well as observes various constraints, such as employee hours worked, overtime, etc.

These guys just don't get it, do they?

Sure, labor scheduling software can be a good thing, within limits. But in their zeal to become the most efficient retailer, Wal-Mart risks total alienation of even the few capitalists who can still defend them.

This is the type of corporate behavior that brought us unions in the first place. It's just not wise. Why would you want to go after your own employees' qualities of lives and abilities to earn reasonable livings?

To me, this is just an open invitation to be pilloried again by a now-Democratic House and Senate.

Do you wonder, as I do, if Lee Scott has any common sense at all? Perhaps these continuing gaffes are, in fact, emblematic of the core competencies, or incompetencies, of the company?

On the heels of last year's many problems- the mistaken upscale repositioning, the race-based store segmentation, the reversal on selection on an ad agency, and public relations "ambassador" Andrew Young's invectives against other minorities- we now have the world's largest retailer improving productivity seemingly on the backs of its workers.

I'm all for efficiency, but, in reality, there are advisable limits within which a company should stay, in order to not invite regulation and excess scrutiny from government. I think Wal-Mart is off to a phenomenally bad start to this new year.