Wal-Mart, the biggest retailer on the planet, is admired by cost-conscious consumers, feared by competitors and famous for keeping profits up and costs down. An irresistible force in the business world, Wal-Mart is known for having its way, regardless of obstacles. But Wal-Mart has found one thing it cannot do, at least not so far.

It can't stop profiting from the abuse of undocumented workers.

In a raid of 60 Wal-Mart stores on Oct. 23, federal agents arrested 250 illegal workers, mostly working as night clean-up and maintenance crews. They are the kinds of jobs that can be done even by employees who lack English language skills. Typically the workers were paid sub-minimum wages and without customary job benefits. In other words, they were cheap employment that gave Wal-Mart a considerable cost advantage over competitors who follow the rules.


Trying to defend themselves, Wal-Mart executives say the workers are brought to them by contractors and are not direct hires, implying that should absolve the company of blame and legal exposure. The question arises: Would Wal-Mart defend itself the same way if its customers complained of shoddy hammers or tainted produce? Would they shrug and dump the blame on distributors and middlemen, or would they take responsibility for fixing the problem?

Here's the rub: The issue is not new to Wal-Mart. On several previous occasions, beginning in 1998, the company had been hit by roundups of undocumented workers, giving it plenty of reason to be aware of the problem and plenty of time to tighten practices to stay out of trouble. Federal law enforcement officials -- dubbing their probe "Operation Rollback" -- are investigating whether the company knowingly allowed the use of illegal workers, which could expose Wal-Mart to criminal prosecution.

Privately, Wal-Mart officials wonder why hundreds of federal agents were stalking the company rather than tending to bigger business. That's akin to the busted motorist who asks why the traffic cop isn't out catching "real crooks." It is not a defense of wrongdoing, not now, never has been.