that's why i don't shop at Whole Foods. i go to my local co-op and health food store, which both purchase from local farmers...and is owned by myself and other members. and i don't live in a real progressive area.
whole foods is overpriced and the quality of the food and standards of buyers is questionable. whenever something gets that big, there are ethics and quality concerns.

"i don't live in a real progressive area."

Not sure where you are, richtor, but I envy you. I live in Bush country and am lucky to have a Whole Foods nearby. No co-ops or local health food stores for us here. In fact, the Saturday "Farmer's Market" is full of conventionally grown produce from other states.

Not shopping at Whole Foods here would mean shopping at Albertson's, Publix, or gods forbid, Wal-Mart.

"...the character instilled in us in youth is not fully operant until tested in the real world ..."

Maybe a closer look needs to be taken at the character being instilled in the young people of America. Can we really be surprised that an adult acts this way when as youth the masses are being taught that competition, individualism and consumerism - at any cost - are the only keys to success and a happy life? Not very nourishing to the soul, which in my opinion, is from where good character comes. Maybe as a race we need to be re-think the definition of good character and how we convey it to tomorrow's adults. Just a thought...

A dishonest CEO.
Next you are going to tell me politicians do not have my best interests at heart.

At first I was going to say that Steven Baum must be unaware of what happens in high level management meetings because moral or ethical behavior has little or nothing to do with corporate management. I think externalized costs is where any ethical concerns are out sourced.

It is not a bad idea to hold CEOs to a minimum standard of ethical behavior but the truth would be they are still sitting on a rotten egg and the smell is equivocal.

So Mackey got a little carried away. What do you suggest, crucify him? Let those who are perfect cast the first stones!

I've been enjoying his organic foods (in Austin) for about 30 years and think he's alright. His grocery stores are the only ones that i know of where the employees are treated with respect, and actually like working there.

i question someone who quotes friedman. anyone who does not see the destruction that capitalism does not have nurturant parent values (lakoff). baum's credentials as a coach for ceo's for twenty years undermines his article. he never advised against ceo's high salaries????

Mackey's recent actions should not surprise anybody. He has been able to get away with sleazy tactics that the media documented and Mackey in many cases admitted to because he built a profitable enterprise. The recent allegations will be a minor bump in the road on his continued accrual of power and money.

It is true that Whole Foods treats their employees well for a large retail store. However, the Internet thing is the least of Makey's faults. Whole Foods has a policy of being predatory. If there is another health food store already established especially Wild Oats they will move in as close as possible even though there other good locations available where they could serve populations who do not have a health food store close to them. They do this with the full intention of putting the other store our of business.

Also, both Whole Foods and Wild Oats joined with General Foods etc. in trying to pass an ordinance which lowered organic standards.

Of course, if they are the only provider of healthy and organic foods in your area, they are still a lot better than Wal-mart. As CEO's of big corporations go Mackay is probably a moral paragon of virtue by comparison.

As to the ethics of CEOs, any CEO who takes a huge salary and bonus while slashing employees salaries, outsourcing or exploiting the people of other countries is completely immoral. These CEOs are also immoral when they seek to prolong or start wars for profit and to rip off resources, when they destroy the environment, make congress beholden to them and lobby fiercely against the greater good for their own profit and seek tax havens outside the US.
These activities should be made illegal and they should be behind bars or doing community service in one of the areas their company has ruined or impoveriched.
Of the top Fortune 500, I would venture to say that most of them are engaged in constant immoral activities of the type I have described. As long as the whole reason for existence of Corporations is profit powered by expansion and "efficiency" without also a corresponding dedication to service mankind and responsibility for their impact on the Eco-system, they will continue in their immoral and destructive ways.

I've noticed that. When Whole Foods came to Phoenix, it had alot of choices where to put it's store. Where did it put it? Right near the Gentle Strength Co-Op in Tempe. They are behaving more and more like the major supermarket chains. Gluttony.

"And Thomas Friedman's excellent Op-ed Piece..."

Best Oxymoron of the Week.

There have always been "enlightened capitalists" and there always will be. Just like there will always be an enlightened member of Congress here and there. Sadly, they have no place in the United States of Greed, where "I got mine, screw you" is the National Motto, and the goal is to hoard enough wealth to... to... be the one who said they hoarded the most wealth (at the expense of the most people, natch.)

Until Greed is officially labeled an ADDICTIVE MENTAL DISORDER, like GAMBLING, and treatment is offered, we will continue our downward slide. Meanwhile, we can help the acutely suffering by not enabling their economic terrorism via our hard earned dollars. If "they" want our money, then they need to earn it. Protest with your wallet - until "they" are cured, that's all they care about.

Unions are good for all workers

Unions are good if just by the fact that when one collectively bargains for wages one now has a friend in his fellow worker.

"At will" workers can be fired without cause.

Union workers can be fired for cause but only if the cause is just and then after fair review. Other union workers and union lawyers back union workers in this review.

Characterizing unions as parasites on capital as John Mackey, Chairman, President, Whole Foods Market has done is enough cause for me to go elsewhere when shopping, but actively setting out to destroy the union people in Madison, Wisconsin is so very wrong. So until Whole Foods' stores are union shops, there are better places to spend hard earned money.

what does "character" mean when you work in an organization that is legally obligated to maximize profit? what does "morality" mean when greed is the organizing principle of society? is the world of scrooge really better b/c scrooge now gives a turkey away?

A headline from Down Under: "Psychopaths Thrive in Corporate Offices"

http://www.news.com.au/mercury/story/0,22884,21904033-5005940,00.html

Not shopping at Whole Foods here would mean shopping at Albertson's...

Well, at least many of the grocery chains are unionized and pay decent wages and benefits. I have a brother in law who owns a home and raises a family on his union Safeway job in the DC area. I have trouble imagining someone doing this working for union-busting Whole Foods.

And food co-pos are nice, but my local one didn't exactly win me over when it's manager reacted in a hostile manner to an admitedly poorly planned union organizing drive. Richtor77, we wouldn't be talkng about the same food co-op, wouldn't we?

This may be of interest to some, before they call for Mackey to be tarred and feathered:

FORTUNE magazine ranked Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFMI), the world's leading natural and organic foods supermarket, number 5 on its 2007 list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For." The company made the list for the tenth consecutive year and is one of only 18 companies to be named every year since the list's inception.

...
Company employees-referred to as Team Members at Whole Foods Market-played an important role in determining the FORTUNE ranking. Two-thirds of a company's score is based on survey responses from randomly selected employees.

Among the reasons Whole Foods Market was again named to the "Best Companies to Work For" list in 2007 are the company's long-standing executive salary cap and the recent announcement that company CEO John Mackey has reduced his annual salary to $1 and will forgo personal compensation from future stock options, which will instead be granted to the company's two non-profit foundations: the Whole Planet Foundation and the Animal Compassion Foundation.

Whole Foods Market is one of 16 companies on the 2007 FORTUNE list that covers 100 percent of the cost of its employees' health insurance premiums.

John Mackey called the cops on a UFW informational picket line outside his store here in Austin a few years ago, then a few days later made a speech to the county commissioners urging them to make a point of buying non-union produce for the county jail. Yet he has consistently courted the approval of other progressive groups by donating food for benefits. I might have a tiny bit of respect for him if he were at least committed to some ideology, even one that stinks, but he is really just an ambitious rank opportunist. He'll never get my dollars.

Whole Foods moved their impressive store into the Louisville [Ky] area a few years back and where did they locate out of all the available locales? ONE BLOCK away from the newly opened Wild Oats !!! Coincidence? I don't think so.
Recent word is Whole Foods is trying to acquire Wild Oats? We have shopped both and the more we hear about Whole Foods practices, the more we choose Wild Oats. Too bad because there would seem to be room for both without killer tactics.

Stephen H. Baum is clearly an conservative hack himself with his advocation of very christian morality. There is no "character" instilled in youth; children are born innocent, good people that can either stay that way through unconditional love and support, or be turned into a very different creature through condescension, hate, violence, and not having their real individuality respected. The latter option always operates on hypocritical senses of "morality" where, for instance, parents beat their children for hitting a sibling, lie and deceive them but "teach them" that lying is wrong, and intentionally put them into all sorts of cruel, traumatic situations with the view that they will supposedly therefore "learn" something by it; by giving the child no respect whatsoever but forcing them to respect the "higher ups" i.e. right wing old people and corporate executives.

http://www.dreamingearth.net

The primary 'value' in our culture is a dominator/dominated one--Baum seems to be implying that leaders should be 'caring' and their character emulating this--and it would be great, but it is not the current story at all.

Mackey clearly reflects the dominator/dominated/capitalistic, last man standing wins mentality--and feels that anything he can do to ensure he's on top is just fine..... He states he is a 'conscious capitalist' and owes it to his stockholders to be on top.

This dominator/dominated value permeates us world wide--and is resulting in the crisis/chaos we see all around us. A great book about this--with suggestions of how we could change--Riane Eisler's Real Wealth of Nations. There she highlights the 'value' of caring--and how it creates a world of win-win.

Besides member owned co-ops, WFds seems hard to beat - even though they're not perfect.

Whole foods on the "best place to work" list. Well, maybe it is if you work for management. As far as the clerks and cashiers, I wouldn't trust today's young people who have decidedly lowered economic expectations to really know what a good job looks like!

When, a so-called Whole Foods clerk/cashier or even a shift manager living in the vicinity of a Whole Foods can afford a mortgage on a modest house and raise a family, and be protected from arbitrary firing, then, maybe I'll change my tune.

I like Seventh Generation, they seem to be a company that has at least some principles. You can't eat their products but I like some of their activities like the all-expenses-paid student activism training camp with Greenpeace in DC this summer. Here is where to read about their operating principles.
http://www.seventhgeneration.com/about_us/operating.php

I wonder how there employees rate their work environment?

My brother worked for a union grocery store in the 70's. Most of the people working in stores today make less than he did then and have less chance of promotion. That doesn't include inflation.

He was responsible for the dairy products and helped out at the checkout as needed. He could punch in the prices on a cash register faster than the scanners work today.

In other words, he was paid more, better trained, had more responsibility, and more efficient using old technology than I see today. The new business theory that people are interchangeable and don't need living wages and full time jobs isn't working.

"NoJusticeNoPeace July 31st, 2007 6:04 pm
"This may be of interest to some, before they call for Mackey to be tarred and feathered:"

Source of your data: Fortune

But more to the point, and I take it that you are not a union worker, is that Unions are good for all workers

Unions are good if just by the fact that when one collectively bargains for wages one now has a friend in his fellow worker.

"At will" workers can be fired without cause.

Union workers can be fired for cause but only if the cause is just and then after fair review. Other union workers and union lawyers back union workers in this review.

It make a difference to be in a union.

Characterizing unions as parasites on capital as John Mackey, Chairman, President, Whole Foods Market has done is enough cause for me to go elsewhere when shopping, but actively setting out to destroy the union people in Madison, Wisconsin is so very wrong. So until Whole Foods' stores are union shops, there are better places to spend hard earned money.

When John Mackey changes his attacks on unions and allows Whole Foods to be a union shop, then shopping there will again be an option.

Working people come first.

While we are at Whole Foods, please remember Trader Joes. The claim is that it is a privately held company. Yes it is, who is this private holder? The Albrecht Brothers of Germany who own Aldi, one of the biggest chains in Europe and the most predatory. So next time you go down the Whole Foods and Trader Joes aisles, remember, you are doing what Wallmart shoppers do, you just calling organic and think it's small and local.

Happy shopping and always look carefully who sells you your food.

Truthseeker58 - you said Whole Foods came to Phoenix and went in right near Gentle Strength Coop. WF in Tempe is 5.5 miles away from Gentle Strength - not exactly across the street. I realize in our urban sprawl that is a relatively short distance, but I wouldn't even consider it the same neighborhood. However, in a twist of irony, the coop did go out of business and Whole Foods Tempe is actually going to move into the space where the coop used to be (they are tearing down that whole corner and putting up a mixed use development with condos above, and retail below). Still, I don't think you can compare the clientele of the coop with WF. That was a pretty funky little vegan/anarchist place. I don't know anyone who shops at WF who ever even stepped foot in the coop, nor do I know people who were part of the coop that bailed on it to go shop at WF.

My husband works for WFM and I asked him what people at work are saying about this and he said "nothing". I guess no one even talks about it. My husband said that they got an email from Mackey apologizing (specifically for what, I am not sure - getting caught? embarrassment? doing a bad thing?) and that he can't really discuss it because of pending legal whatever.

A spotlight on John Mackey's mistake is a major stretch in the context of Wall Street. Some CEO conduct has resulted in massive harm to people, future generations, the environment, taxpayers. For openers, go to www.corporatecrimereporter.com. Let's get the priorities straight.

Stephen Blum also failed to include the positive side of Mackey's vision, contributions, character. Mackey's self-imposed limit on his executive salary, employee profit-sharing plan, terrific success story with Whole
Foods and his many other managerial expressions of heart and skill weren't even mentioned. How come?

So was this article and its smear headline really about "truth" and strength of character? Or was it really about character assassination?

hobbs July 31st, 2007 11:02 pm

It is about workers and not about some CEO named Mackey.

It is about collective bargaining and union contract workers not about some CEO named Mackey who takes his salary and shares according to how it benefits avoidance of taxes.

It is about workers rights not some guy giving orders to "at will" workers.

When John Mackey changes his attacks on unions and allows Whole Foods to be a union shop, then shopping there will again be an option.

Working people come first.

Truthseeker wrote: "They are behaving more and more like the major supermarket chains."

Whole Foods has always behaved worse than major supermarket chains. For one thing, Mackay has always brutally treated all efforts to unionize his employees. Major supermarkets have historically respected unions. Whole Foods helps destroy unions for all workers, eroding the unions in the big, bad chains.

But beyond the union issue, WholeFoods has never been what they have sold. It has always been his goal to be the largest chain in the world. He chose a clever market niche, the organic market, to begin his amassment of money and power. But WF has never been particularly good for the organic movement: it just exploited it.

anyone who thinks they are doing something alternative by shopping there is clueless.

I get that some folks need to shop there if they want organic food.

But WF drives up the cost of food, voraciously.

I did a thesis on whether or not WF was sustainable back when I got a masters in Org.DEvelopment in 2000. WF failed on every possible scoring in the model we used for our research.

I interviewed a WF manager. He flat out told me, in 2000, that WF worked to keep the prices of organic foods higher than nonorganic to maintain its high end marketing image. He said that it didn't cost more for the organic farmer to produce the food, he paid the organic farmer less because he could and he charged the organic customer more because he could. The guy was scary because he was bragging to me, as if he thought I would admit him.

And please don't assume all WF employees are happy. They are paid, across the board, less than employees at the 'bad' chains like Safeway. Health care is very expensive. WF hires lots of PT employees, of course, who aren't eligible for healthcare.

Mackay is a spin genius. He has convinced the whole world they do something good for the environment by shopping at his store. . . and his stores rape the enviornment, the economy of food and his employees.

If you're stupid enough to put faith in anonymous posts to a Yahoo! site, you deserve to parted from your money. I think anonymity is underrated. Maybe the author should adjust to online culture instead of trying to make it conform to his expectations.

I don't think the internet is going to remain anonymous, noisefactor.

We the people are going to sit idly by, posting aimelessly on sites like this but taking no action, and the neo con (the coup happened in 200, we lost our country then and they aren't going away next year. . . that's an old paradigm dream)

we the people are going to sit idly by and let the rich folk steal the internet and let big biz like ATT own it.

The net is not going to stay free and we're going to let them do it.

Welcome to the totalitarian state.

Most supermarkets and grocery stores should be nationalized, and managed by the state, because whenever a business is in private hands its sole purpose is exploitation of labor and profits

The actual definition of capitalist leadership would probably read more like this:

ACT CONSISTENTLY WITH RELENTLESS PURPOSE TOWARD PROFIT FOR THE ENTERPRISE AND ITS' MAJOR STOCKHOLDERS — BE RUTHLESS IN ALL YOU DO

I'm not sure what planet Mr. Baum is from but, on Earth, capitalism equals exploitation. No corporation is overly concerned with its' "reputation". That's the responsibility of marketing departments and ad agencies and bears no more resemblance to the truth than any other sales campaign. There has been no integrity in business since corporations became legal "persons". There will be none until they are restored to the non-profit status they were originally allotted at their inception.

A society is by definition a SOCIAL entity:

3a: an enduring and cooperating SOCIAL group whose members have developed organized patterns of relationships through interaction with one another.

Notice that the definition reads "cooperating", not competing.

No such entity exists in American today. There is instead a fascist enterprise, its' sole purpose being the subjugation and exploitation, for profit, of every nation on Earth.
It is well on the way to achieving its' goal.

non_sequitur@q.com

"Major supermarkets have historically respected unions."

All the talk of unions in this thread...While I disagree with absolutely none of it, I wonder where everyone lives. I live in Central Florida and I assure you all, the union is dead here. With no hope on the distant horizon of it ever returning.

We only have a few unions: firefighters, police, I suppose some government employees (maybe?) and Disney has some holdover unions from the early 70s. It is shedding them as fast as they can hire subcontractors.

There is not a single union at *any* supermarket chain here and all the chains are very aggressive in keeping them out. Furthermore, when you research these chains' political contributions, they overwhelmingly contribute to the Republicans. Some of them *only* contribute to Republicans. So when I tell you all I am jealous of your shopping options, please believe my sincerity.

Where I live, Whole Foods is still the best option for general grocery shopping and I will continue to support them.

Stephen Baum, thanks for the article.

On average, hasn't Whole Foods been a model corporate citizen for promoting a healthier organic lifestyle?

o.k., Mackey got overzealous and was foolish for saying mean things about his competition.

Compare that to Exxon/Mobil's damage to Iraq and Alaska and this article seems like a big waste of time.

I am fully aware of the complete destruction of unions in most of the south - and near-destruction elsewhere.

It will soon be the 1870's all over again, and I assure, you, when the RR workers were gunned down and crushed in 1877, or in Homestaed, Pa in 1891, Ludlow, CO, 1914, or Matewan, WV, 1920, they saw little hope for a union on the horizon either.

Sure, nothing close to this is happening yet - the sheeple are dazed or slumbering. But, I see no economic force to halt the slide into these historical situations - if the planetary environmental contradictions of capitalism don't kill us off first.

I agree with "Skeptical" above when he wrote that all foodstores need to be nationalized and removed from private control. Only when it is government that provides food for the people will we get plentiful food, at extremely low cost, served by union workers.

Mackey reduced his annual salary to $1 has eliminated his personal compensation from future stock options -with that money goint to two non-profit foundations: the Whole Planet Foundation and the Animal Compassion Foundation.

One would have to be an idiot or an extremely evolved divine being to think that he could please all the people all the time.

WFds is FAR BETTER than any of the other chains that bring pesticide infested, over processed dog food to the masses. I respect all those who are supporting organic agriculture and healthy foods, far more than those who are not. Mr. Mackey's work has helped countless organic farmers, employees, customers, animals, and the enviroment. He has much more of my respect than those who sit on the sidelines criticizing him and others who aren't perfect enough for them.

Capitalism is ok, as long as it's regulated and not driven by insanely greedy bastards. Social democracy is the wave of the future - it's where we are heading!

---------------

Good advice from Chief Tecumseh

"Live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about his religion. Respect others in their views and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and of
service to your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide.

Always give a word or sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, or even a stranger, if in a lonely place. Show respect to all people, but grovel to none. When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the
light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself.

Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision. When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, so that when their
time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again - in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home."

Chief Tecumseh -(the great - from the Shawnee tribe 1768-1813)

Who is Wild Oats? I do not see Mackey posting any negative commets about Trader Joes, Wegmans or other finer examples of Organic food groceries.
Whole foods has a high standard and is a little more pricer than most.
I am sure this Wild Oats is a way to cheapen the industry and hire more part time, unprofessional workers.
I do not care-I will continue to shop at Whole Foods. The corporations must feel people are misinformed.
I will not shop anywhere just to save a few bucks. I want quality food.
People have a right to their opinion even if it is the ceo.

WF wholey misrepresents what they are and what they sell. WF opened in Portland Maine last year to much fanfair, less than half a mile away from Wild Oats and after buying out a natural grocer. They trumpeted how they would be buying produce from Maine's (very strong) organic community. In the store they hung many gigantic posters from MOFGA (Maine Organic Food and Grower's Association) Common Ground Country Fair, prominenty trumpting their support for our local growers. MOFGA and Common Ground are one of the oldest, strongest and most stringent organic assocaitions in the country. Their requirements for organic are the real deal, far exceeding the USDA standards. In Maine Common Ground Posters and T-Shirst are the symbol of the organic community and have been for over twenty years. In a recent survey of the Portland WF by Maine NPR they found that only about 20 products/ produce were organic and local. Most organic farmers stopped dealing with WF due to unreasonable demands on the farmers, such as shipping greens to New York to be processed (on the farmer's dime). This destroys the whole idea of eating locally. The majority of produce sold at WF is not organic.
I think many people want to feel good about the food they buy. Unfortunately many do not want to take the time to really think about that food. WF allows people to buy their way out of being critical consumers i.e. "If I bought it at WF it must be good for me/the environment ect". It is just good for their concience. Not for the planet, and definitely not for local farmers.

I don't find it surprising at all. I used to teach my college freshmen from an essay about cheating in college and its impact on morality in "real" life...until I found a downloadable essay from an online "paper mill" about the decline of ethics based on that very article (http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=28933). Imagine a college student cheating by downloading a paper about moral decline in response to an essay written about college students cheating. No level of immorality (ironic or otherwise) surprises me anymore in the classroom, on the street, and especially in the halls of business.