PR Coup: Amid Wall Street bonus debacles, Wal-Mart says it will give $2 billion in bonuses to hourly employees

As bailed out banks and Wall Street firms continue to reward their top executives with bonuses spiked with taxpayer money, the usually scorned Wal-Mart said Thursday it will spend $2 billion on financial incentives for its hourly employees in the U.S. This includes almost $1 billion in cash bonuses, $788.8 million in profit sharing and 401(k) contributions, millions of dollars in merchandise discounts, and contributions to its employee stock purchase plan. Wal-Mart awarded $1.7 billion in bonuses to its …