Wal-Mart said First Lady Michelle Obama, who spearheaded a White House drive to encourage businesses to hire veterans, has expressed interest in working with Wal-Mart and with the rest of the business community on this initiative.
Some respondents, however, expressed concerns that cost-cutting continues to drive earnings growth or that higher profits are not translating into economic growth.
Geraint Price-Thomas, chairman of Gwent Police Authority, also expressed concern that there was "a political drive" to push through the changes quickly, which he said was causing "tremendous difficulty".