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- The Hill: Frank Knapp, Small business opposes multinational corporations' tax avoidance
4/9/13 - Minimum Wage News at our BUSINESS FOR A FAIR MINIMUM WAGE website
4/8/13 - The Hill: Report: Taxpayers shoulder burden for offshore tax haven use
4/5/13 - Paramus Post (NJ): Offshore Tax Havens Cost Average Taxpayer $1,026 a Year, Small Businesses $3,067
4/5/13 - U.S. PIRG, Sen. Levin, Small Business Leaders Release "Picking up the Tab 2013: Average Citizens and Small Business Owners Pay the Price for Offshore Tax Havens"
4/4/13 - American Forum: Scott Klinger, Half Time at the Federal Budget Super Bowl
1/31/13 - Philadelphia Daily News: Talking Small Biz
1/22/13 - Triple Pundit: Don’t Blame Google and Starbucks For Minimizing Tax Bills
1/10/13 - Roll Call: Time for Plan C - Close the Floodgates on Corporate Tax Dodging
12/28/12 - CFO: Small Biz, the Fiscal Cliff, and the Big, Bad Bank
12/27/12 - Westerly Sun: Business leaders urge change in tax system
12/27/12 - McClatchy Tribune News Service: A plea for tax fairness from small businesses
12/24/12 - UPI: 'Fiscal cliff': Is there a Plan C to avoid tax increases, spending cuts?
12/23/12 - Madison Capital Times: Wisconsin business owners join national call to raise corporate taxes
12/23/12 - Charlotte Observer: Charlotte small business owners urge tax reform
12/20/12 - Politico: 'Revenue-neutral' tax reform takes hit
12/14/12 - National Journal: Sen. Levin, Small Businesses Push for Corporate Tax Hikes
12/14/12 - Washington Post: Sen. Levin wants corporate tax revenue in a fiscal cliff deal
12/14/12 - The Hill: Corporate revenues must be in debt deal
12/14/12 - Accounting Today: Small Business Leaders Urge Closing of Corporate Tax Haven Loopholes
12/14/12
Investor Place: Costco Is More Than Low Prices
Its success stems from its focus on its customers -- and workers
By Will Ashworth
Investor Place, October 11, 2012
Discount retailer Costco announced its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings Oct. 10, the third quarterly report since the retirement of long-time CEO and co-founder Jim Sinegal. As is most often the case, Costco’s results were better than expected.
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However, when we do go, we always notice (my wife has 20 years retail experience) how genuinely happy the employees are to be working there. Costco’s starting wage for those working on the floor is $11 per hour, which is higher than the San Francisco minimum wage of $10.24 per hour, by far the best in the U.S. The federally mandated minimum wage is an embarrassing $7.25 per hour, 26% less than the minimum wage in Alberta, which is Canada’s worst offender at $9.75 per hour.
According to Holly Sklar of the Business for a Fair Minimum Wage project, when Wal-Mart’s first store opened in 1962, adjusted for inflation, it paid $8.74 per hour. Since then the Walton family has gotten rich while the workers haven’t. Costco Senior Vice President Jeff Long said the following about raising the minimum wage in New York State:
“At Costco, we know good wages are good business. We keep our overhead low while still paying a starting wage of $11 an hour. Our employees are a big reason why our sales per square foot is almost double that of our nearest competitor. Instead of minimizing wages, we know it’s a lot more profitable for the long term to minimize employee turnover and maximize productivity and commitment, product value, customer service and company reputation.”
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand why Costco’s formula is successful. When people want to come to work, it makes for a better customer experience. Most people who’ve spent a decent amount of time shopping at Costco will probably have noticed that the employee name tags also list the year they started at Costco. Most have been there for over a decade.
Treat people right, and they’ll want to stick around. Costco’s employee turnover is 24%, about half that of Wal-Mart, and much less than the retail average. Training new employees costs money. Interestingly, Costco’s selling, general and administrative expenses for its latest fiscal year were 9.8% of its revenue compared to Wal-Mart’s 19.2%. Despite spending more on its frontline employees (the backbone of any retail operation), it ends up costing Costco less. That’s how you run a business.
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Read full article at http://investorplace.com/2012/10/costco-is-more-than-low-prices/
Copyright 2012 Investor Place
