Wal-Mart workers cost taxpayers in states like California, Washington Georgia and Tennessee tens of millions of dollars a year in the hidden costs of low-wage jobs. Thousands of Wal-Mart workers are on state subsidized health insurance because they lack adewquate employer-provided health insurance. Ken Jacobs of UC-Berkeley's Labor Center says organizing Wal-Mart would be the best response to dealing with the burden of these hidden taxpayer subsidies for Wal-Mart workers.

[Ken Jacobs 1]: "We look at what's going to improve wages and benefits - the two avenues are through public policy and through organizing."

Unlike the biggest U.S. employers in previous eras like GM and Ford, Jacobs says Wal-Mart¹s workers do not enjoy full middle class living standards with health benefits and pensions.

[Jacobs 2]: "Wal-Mart has really gone in the other direction. They're pushing the bar down and really leading the race to the bottom. And that has ripple effects - not just through the retail industry where it's really driving down wages and benefits - but through the economy as a whole."

Jacobs says Wal-Mart destroys jobs that pay better as it creates jobs that pay less. And he says states and communities have to decide how to deal with the extra social burden that places on taxpayers.