I work at Wal-mart...
Seven months unemployed and they were the only call I got - of course I took it.
I am openly gay (although I may not LOOK it), but I am not the only one there, there is a very butch pharmacist in the department next to me (though I believe the pharm tech told me once that Wal-mart doesn't hire the pharmacists, they have their own superiors).
As for woman not making it in management, the majority of our department supervisors are female, and our store manager/asset protection manager and one of the asst mgr's is female.
Benefits? Well. Don't want to talk about it LOL I am only offered medical, profit sharing and now a 401k. Not shabby, but optical and dental would be nice (but you must be full time for that). My hours range from 25-38. Co-workers tell me the cost of full-time benefits is high, even as a full-time employee. I can believe it. Your starting pay is based on your previous experience. I got hired at $8/hour, the other girl in my department was at $10 because she had been a manager in a previous job.
ETA: When I first started I was offered some low medical plan through Starbridge until my year mark hit and I was eligible for other benefits (not sure if I would say better, I've yet to use them). And I know people who have been injured at and outside of work, can't meet their job requirement's, so Wal-mart makes a position for them so they can continue to work until they're better.
We have quite a few mentally challenged people working at my store (people greeters and cart pushers), but they are some of the nicest people ever. One man constantly repeats himself and will talk your ear off, but he knows everyone by name, asks how you/your family is doing, will always ask whoever he passes if they need help, and has on more than one occasion told many of us females how nice we
It shocks me how many people are rude to him and blow him off/tell him to stop talking.
Oh - about the over time? They will ask you to extend your lunch to make up for any overtime you have made (this applies to full time only it seems).
I don't really have a point with this post except to explain some of the posts I've seen from an employee's view.
We are a small town, with other towns 20 minutes away, and the next Wal-mart 40 minutes away. I know many of my customers, and a lot of my co workers I went to school with, have worked with when I was at P&C, or are people that know my dad from the VFW lol.. So I love my job mostly because the people I work with are fantastic.
OH! And about parking lot security? As someone who has had customers 'stalking' me for lack of a better word, that would be a good idea. The parking lot is vast and there are few cameras. The manager I reported to at that time shrugged me off, it took telling a co-worker (I told her, she is one of my good friend's mom and works in the pharmacy right next to HBA) who told her manager she reported to for anything to be done (i.e. they came through by department at the time the men normally came, they approached them when they came, and they escorted me to my car after a co-worker said the men were outside waiting in a car by where the employee's park).
That is all I have for now I think.