Originally Posted by SilentKnight

Our small town has a similiar example - a local family-owned grocery store that pays its employees barely subsistent wages with no benefits. The owners are verbally abusive to their staff because they know the high unemployment rate in town guarantees they can easily replace someone. Their grocery prices are very high in comparison to other stores and their brand selection is poor.

My daughter worked there for a short while - and often came home with stories of abusive bosses. And she's not prone to exaggeration...a very level-headed, reasonable kid.

I've always tried to buy local and not deal with big box stores like Wal-Mart. But this particular grocery store has had a monopoly in town for generations...they've never felt the pressure to improve their treatment of employees.