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Wal-Mart continues to face serious difficulties in Germany. Business is not successful and the relationship with its own workers is strained. Apparently, Wal-Mart's concept has not travelled well to the largest European Union market.

When Wal-Mart entered Germany a few years ago, there was much talk about how this would profoundly change the country's retailing. But the Arkansas retail multinational has not been successful in what is Europe's largest consumer market. In addition, it is - not surprisingly - in trouble with the world's largest trade union, UNI Commerce affiliated ver.di. Our picture is from Berlin.

UNI Commerce affiliate ver.di, the world's largest trade union, says it will not rest until Wal-Mart is covered by its branch collective agreement. The company must either join an employer association which is covered by the collective agreement, or attach itself to the agreement through a special arrangement with ver.di.

A poor employer at home in the United States, Wal-Mart has apparently thought that it will be able to adapt the same concept of low wages and poor benefits also in Europe. Here, they have made a mistake. The strong German commerce trade union has no intention to let the Arkansas multinational launch a social dumping operation.

But also business is poor. For years, Wal-Mart has been in the red in Germany, generating losses that have added up to hundreds of millions of dollars. For the 1.2 million worker company, this may be affordable, but it also tells that without a good relationship to its own workers, Wal-Mart may not succeed in conquering Europe.

Six hypermarkets are now apparently on the closing list. According to Lebensmittelzeitung, the German food industry and distribution magazine, the stores in Ingolstadt, Sigmaringen und Wilhelmshaven/Genzstraße would quite certainly be among those to be closed.

It seems clear that Wal-Mart's concept does not work well in Germany. The American commerce giant has not been able to lower its prices below those of its competitors. On the contrary, the German hard discounters seem to be winning the low price game.

With well stocked department stores in German city centres, consumers have not been very eager to shop for clothes and other non-food products at Wal-Mart's hypermarkets.

Wal-Mart is also paying the price of its poor employer performance. German commentators have repeatedly pointed at logistics problems and low standards at hypermarkets. Staff cuts have hardly helped to resolve these problems.