[lbo-talk] Every mark want they scrilla back (was: Walmart)

kelley at pulpculture.org kelley at pulpculture.org
Fri Mar 26 12:09:23 PST 2004


http://www.walmart-blows.com/news.htm, another link for John.

The 'slaves' might say 'yessah massah,' but they be lifting massah's wallet whenever they can because, as Boots Riley says, Every Mack want a Cadillac, every mark want they scrilla back."

In the restaurant industry, there's a long tradition of semi-organized ways for "marks to get they scrilla back." I know someone who works for a fastfood chain. In the three stores where she's worked, everyone from the GM on down rips off the place. Instead of punching a drive through order in, they call it over the mic. The food gets made, packaged, and the money taken. At the end of the night, the crew splits the proceeds.

If it's an independent restaurant, restaurant owners tolerate theft as part of the cost of doing business, as a way to extract loyalty, and to provide a "bennie" that can be retracted if need be. (Much like donuts offered to the maids in Ehrenreich's _Nickel and Dimed_)

When you become a waitress, for instance, you pocket the $40 a patron left on the table w/ their check. In the old days, you just 'voided' the check: ripped it up, flushed it, claimed you got stiffed, etc. That, or the auditor (i.e., head waitress or ass-manager) looked the other way (didn't notice missing checks) because they were ripping the place off too, or remembered when they used to.

With computerization, it still goes on, you just bypass the computer terminal. In fast food chains, you don't bother punching the order through the terminal, call it over the mic, pocket the money--usually splitting the proceeds since the line workers know that the order isn't legit. A friend of mine was explaining how he makes $100 a night delivering pizza (second job), by ripping off the pizza joint. SOP for every driver at the pizza joint.

Sometimes management looks the other way because they're robbing the franchise by cooking the inventory books, stealing cases of food and selling it off the back of a truck set up by stealing food and reselling it. They cook the inventory books here and there, cart a case of chicken breast to a flea market or a roadside stand and sell it themselves or to someone who sells the stuff. you just sold yourself or to someone else who sells it for you. Delivery drivers are well known for doing this to the clientele on their route.

ARe these people mindless slaves who identify with their employer? With capital? Yes, in the long run, since they aren't doing something more constructive to REALLY get they scrilla back. But, I would argue that what this suggests to me is that they are not people who bend over and hand capital the vaseline.

Kelley



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list