A TikTok creator pointed out that Walmart employs Americans enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), but often does not pay them enough to get off the government assistance program.
User gigikov (@gigikov), a self-described 30-something Florida mom, said that Walmart takes advantage of SNAP recipients and the government in a stitch with Danielle Kirk. The video has received over 758,000 views and 104,000 likes as of publication.
Gigikov expounds upon the Danielle’s statement that the company “with the most SNAP recipients on their payroll is Walmart.”
“Not only is Walmart the largest employer of SNAP recipients they also receive a work opportunity tax credit for each employee who they hire whose on SNAP,” Gigikov begins. “But the rub is they don’t have to pay those employees enough to come off of SNAP.”
She continues: “For each employee that they hire on SNAP they can receive up to a $9,600 corporate tax credit, and there is no limit on the number of people they can receive that credit for.”
Many users were shocked, while others pointed out that Walmart screens applicants with SNAP enrollment.
@gigikov #stitch with @Danielle Kirk if you dont already follow Danielle, you must! Shes a fellow #bluedot … #corporatewellfare #eattherich #corporationsareevil ♬ original sound – gigikov
“She is 1000% correct!!!! a WOTC questionnaire is part of the on-boarding paperwork at both Walmart and Sam’s Club,” one claimed.
“The only time I ever qualified for SNAP was the 19 months I worked for Walmart. And it was the only job I got fired from for working over my 5,” a user claimed in response.
“Companies should be penalized for not paying enough and for their employees needing help from the system,” another added.
“Not to mention that Walmart takes snap as payment so it’s a win for them all around,” a third pointed out.
Some pointed out that Walmart isn’t the only company to take advantage of the program.
“I’ve had employers tell me, can’t you sign up for food assistance or gave me a list of pantries! my employer,” one shared.
“When I worked at Walmart and Kroger no one was on full time and like 99% were on snap,” another said.
SNAP is the largest provider of benefits to low-income Americans via an Electronic Benefits Transfer card. These cards are used like debit cards and can be used to purchase food from authorized retailers.
These benefits currently help one out of every 10 Americans, with 70% of all recipients either working full-time or part-time. According to a report, Walmart and McDonald’s are the largest employers of SNAP recipients.
One author in a report titled “Why Walmart Workers Are Still Broke,” explains that though Walmart raised worker pay in 2015, its overall pay is still not enough to cover day-to-day expenses. However, the gesture caused a large crash in the stock market. Upon announcing a pay raise for its workers, Walmart lost $20 billion of its market cap which could discourage the retail giant from raising pay in the future.
The Daily Dot reached out to Gigikov via TikTok comments and Walmart via email for further information.
