Boycotting Circuit City

UPDATED BELOW I and II

Executive greed is about to drive yet another nail in the coffin of the American dream of a living wage for the working class.

Electronics chain Circuit City announced today it will fire 3,400 of its "higher-paid" sales personnel, Bloomberg News is reporting. "[R]eplacements willing to work for less" will be hired in their place.

"Higher-paid" is Circuit City doublespeak for $11 an hour. "Working for less" means just above minimum wage.

"The sales people being fired weren't given an option of taking a pay cut, spokesman [Bill] Cimino said." But some day they might be "allowed" to re-apply for a lower-paying wage, or so the company claims.

The company previously announced plans to shed another 400 lower-paying jobs in the U.S. and Canada by closing 70 stores. All of this follows the company's most recent quarterly earnings report which showed a loss for the first time in six quarters. Circuit City, with a market cap of nearly $3.4 billion, remains profitable. It's just not quite as profitable as Wall Street wants.

But that's not what makes this newsworthy. The reason Bloomberg News gives for Circuit City's disappointing performance last quarter is that its recently-acquired Canadian store chain has "been hurt by competitors such as Best Buy Co. which has bigger stores and more selection."

In other words, the company's executives made a bad corporate acquisition two years ago. Then they mismanaged it by neglecting to stock the right mix and range of goods. So, of course, those same executives now have decided that the sales staff should be fired! The people who barely earn enough to feed a family of one.

Does that make sense to you?

Meanwhile, Circuit City CEO Philip Schoonover continues to draw compensation of $8.52 million per year. That's nearly three times more than what industry leader Best Buy Corp. pays its CEO, Brad Anderson.

Schoonover and the idiots on the Circuit City board who authorized his compensation package are the reason why we, speaking for ourselves, will be boycotting Circuit City from now on. They feel no loyalty to their hourly work force? We feel no loyalty to them.

UPDATE I
March 29, 2007

Check the salaries, bonuses, and stock options of the brilliant crew in Circuit City's executive suite at Executive Pay Watch.com

UPDATE II
March 30, 2007

New York senator and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton sent a letter Friday to Circuit City CEO Philip J. Schoonover asking him "to reconsider your company's actions."