Sounds good that you can keep your money and not need anyone to stand up for you. Sadly, everyday we see good people that are tossed out on the street for speaking up or for no reason at all, because they are an "at will." So just because you are confident enough to stand up and speak out, doesn't mean the company will listen, and they might find a reason to fire you for doing so. Given walmarts size I would see better benefits and bigger pay with a union. The reason is that with all the bad press walmart has been getting from unions, it has actuauly causes walmart to expand on current employee benefits. So with a bigger paycheck, you dues will probably be less than the raise you receive for a secure job.