The Wal-Mart Tax

The AFL-CIO came out with a new study (pdf) yesterday that shows that in 19 out of 23 states for which the authors had data, Wal-Mart had more employees enrolled in state public health insurance programs than any other employer in the state. (That doesn't include New York, where preliminary data compiled by the WFP (pdf) would make that 20 out of 24 states)

And in exchange for taxpayer subsidies for its workforce, what does Wal-Mart give back in terms of economic development? Well, um, er ... Here's what the AFL-CIO study says:

On top of its health care subsidies, Wal-Mart has wrung at least $1 billion in economic development assistance from state and local governments over the past 20 years. [citing research by Good Job First]

Wal-mart: the company that keeps on taking, and taking, and taking.

Reason # 687 to make employers pay their fair share for health care.