- Insider spoke to Walmart employees about the slang terms they use at work.
- “Plugging” is a term used for when you stock an item where it’s not supposed to go.
- The produce section, which can get damp from fresh vegetables and fruits, is called the “wet wall.”
Walmart is the biggest retailer in the world, employing around 16 million people in the US alone.
It’s no surprise then that the company’s millions of employees have developed a culture — and code.
A handful of Reddit posts detail some of the terms that employees use at work, ranging from acronyms to describe specific parts of the store to more obscure slang that customers probably wouldn’t pick up on. Insider asked current Walmart employees about the words they hear at work. Here’s what we learned.
1. Dance Floor
The big open area where delivery trucks unload crates of products is called the “dance floor” at Walmart, according to a Texas employee Insider spoke to and some Reddit posts.
2. Plugging
“Plugging” is when employees stock items in the wrong spot. According to one Walmart employee, it can happen when they have more product than what fits on the shelf. “Instead of properly dealing with the overstock, they’ll cram it out wherever,” he said.
At other times, it can be an honest mistake — like when someone mixes up two flavors of a product. Another employee told Insider that at their store, they deliberately “plug” to make the shelves look more full if they’re running low on stock.
3. Action Alley
Action Alley is — fittingly — where the action happens. It’s what employees call the wide aisle that runs across the store and separates departments. This is where you’ll often get the most foot traffic.
4. The Wire
The Wire is what employees call Walmart’s internal portal for employee resources. Employees can log on to do online training, adjust their schedules, and check company policies. While officially, it’s called OneWalmart, employees told Insider that everyone just calls it “The Wire.”
5. Wet Wall
The wet wall is what employees call the produce section, which typically has a mat in front of it to soak up any moisture that may fall from damp vegetables or fruits.
6. Meat Wall
The meat wall is where Walmart stores stock their meat products — from ground beef to chicken to deli meats. One employee told Insider that the fridge is typically built into one of the store’s physical walls, thus the name.
7. The Mule
The mule is the machine that employees use to round up carts in the parking lot. Typically red with an orange light on the top, it helps lessen the load and lets employees get more carts faster. But not all stores may have a mule. One employee who works at what she describes as a “smaller Walmart” said that her store’s cart pushers gather carts by hand, with some straps to help them along, but no machine.
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