DoL as Sam Walmart's bitch

Wal-mart has settled allegations of breaking child labor laws (while denying them), agreeing to pay a $135,540 fine (as a point of reference, Wal-mart's annual sales last year were $284,800,000,000). The Department of Labor seems satisfied with the resolution, calling the agreement a "fairly standard thing." Labor Blog (via skippy the bush kangaroo) has more on the story including this:

As part of the agreement, revealed yesterday after it was secretly signed in January, the Labor Department agreed "to give Wal-Mart 15 days' notice before the Labor Department investigates any other 'wage and hour' accusations, like failure to pay minimum wage or overtime."

I don't know about you, but I'm heartened by our Labor Department's attempts to deal cooperatively with organizations like Wal-mart. It's time we tried to end the petty tensions between labor and management and asked "why can't we all just get along?" Wal-mart has been explaining their attitude toward labor for years:

Unions (For U.S. Operations Only)

At Wal-Mart, we respect the individual rights of our associates and encourage them to express their ideas, comments and concerns. Because we believe in maintaining an environment of open communications, we do not believe there is a need for third-party representation.

And I'm cheered that our government seems to really be listening. It's time to think beyond that "us and them" attitude and those pesky regulations and just try to love each other.

Our new labor secretary is the right woman for this job of transforming America's labor politics. Her remarks at last week's prayer breakfast beg us to ask, "Aren't we all God's children?"

I remember when I was eight years old, my family and I came to America. We didn't speak English. We didn't know anyone. We had no family or friends nearby. We were fearful of so many things in this new country. What sustained us and gave us hope and encouragement during those difficult times was our church community and the power of faith. The power of faith kept us going. It showed us that we had a chance to survive in this new country, which seemed so just and had such generous and wonderful people. Faith gave us confidence that there could be a better tomorrow.

Who needs laws when you've got Jesus?