• Walmart offers career opportunities • Witch hunt on Kauai • Dogs sometimes have good reason to bark Walmart offers career opportunities It appears Mr. Zwiebel’s missed something in his recent letter, something Walmart customers and associates already know: Entry-level
• Walmart offers career opportunities • Witch hunt on Kauai • Dogs sometimes have good reason to bark
Walmart offers career opportunities
It appears Mr. Zwiebel’s missed something in his recent letter, something Walmart customers and associates already know: Entry-level jobs provide the experience to build and move into higher paying positions.
The average hourly full-time wage for Walmart’s 4,000 associates in Hawaii is $15.08 as of October 2013.
As Kauai Walmart’s store manager, I’ve seen firsthand how this company supports and provides opportunities to all associates. I built my career right here in Hawaii since starting more than 17 years ago as an hourly associate in customer service at the Kailua-Kona store.
Once you join Walmart, the opportunities are unparalleled. We promote 160,000 associates a year — 40 percent of those promotions went to people in their first year with the company.
Eligible associates get quarterly bonuses for store performance, a 401(k) retirement plan, education and health benefits and associates receive a discount card.
At Walmart, you can climb the ladder from a cart-pusher to a department manager to a store manager and beyond. About 75 percent of our store management teams started as hourly associates just like me, and we have more than a quarter million associates who have been with the company for more than 10 years.
I am proud to work at Kauai Walmart. The company has given me and the thousands of employees here in Hawaii the opportunity to build a career.
Crystal Fernandes
Lihue
Witch hunt on Kauai
What’s happening on our island is not always ordinary. Presently, there is a case against our county auditor, Ernie Pasion. He is at the receiving end of the county executives’ “blessings,” apparently just for having done his job. Oh, yes, he has done his job right, but not necessary to the liking of his superiors. No, it was not the method he was using, it was the result of his audits. But let’s see who is the one who might not like these results? Apparently, our mayor, Bernard Carvalho.
Interestingly, any manager in good moral standing would welcome an audit even if it shows mistakes made by him or his staff because this would give him a chance to improve. The question is if he or she really wants to improve, or rather choose to cover up the mistakes. In my opinion, if a county auditor audits the books of an administrative unit as large as our county and finds absolutely no mistakes or shortcomings in reviewing the records of two years, he would have to be replaced because people make mistakes, and the auditor’s job is find those. So, if he did not find any, either he is incompetent or the county operates on a cloud in the heaven.
I have known Ernie Pasion and his family about 17 years and they have always set a good example for others in honesty, integrity and helpfulness and his name has not been mentioned in connection with any insincerity or dishonesty. It is certainly the sign of someone’s integrity because as you all know, there are no secrets on this island.
On the other hand, I have known the mayor of our island only about five years, but his name has already been associated with inappropriateness on several accounts. Wasn’t he the mayor who wanted to terminate the chief of police? Yes, he was. Interesting. The chief of police was and is responsible for the public order, did his job well, but the mayor still wanted to get rid of him. He was unsuccessful. Now the auditor is responsible for the financial order of the dealings of the county and the mayor wants to get rid of him too. Interesting similarity.
Generalization would be a mistake, so I won’t do it, but I know of two instances when the mayor ignored the law that he had sworn to obey. It is not an excuse for him that he seems to have followed only what the former governor, Linda Lingle, has done, who also ignored some laws.
If we put the pieces together, it appears that a person of less than unscathed integrity is trying to create conditions to get rid of a person of integrity, which thus qualifies for a witch hunt.
For fairness sake, my suggestion is to make Ernie Pasion’s audit reports public and also the answers of those who were responsible for the mistakes pointed out in his reports. Let the people of Kauai decide about the case. It is about their future and about their money. Without a fair judgment of the public it will remain as it appears to be — a modern-age witch hunt.
János Keoni Samu
Kalaheo
Dogs sometimes have good reason to bark
I wish to address recent comments attributing dog barking issues to animal cruelty. Sadly, this is true, but sometimes other reasons exist.
My new, adorable puppy suffers from separation anxiety. As a newborn, she was thrown by the road. She grew up in a cage at the shelter. We brought her home where she is well-loved and fed. When mommy is away she tends to bark and whine. I have consulted with a vet and animal trainer. We are making slow and steady progress. Yes, I have a grouchy neighbor. He has received both my sympathy and we are seeking a resolution. I will not abandon my puppy for any reason.
Second example, a neighbor’s cat entered our yard. My other dog chased him up a tree and sat below it, barking at the intruder. I was home and brought the dog in. My cat-owner neighbors have no intention of keeping the cat away. In a few places, cat leash law exist. Not here.
I am researching legal doctrines to fight unjust tickets as listed above. If we or other hapless dog owners get tickets, I am available for the right thing.
I will close with a quote from Gandhi, “the measure of morality of a society is the treatment of vulnerable animals.”
Suzanne Woodruff
Kapaa
