Walmart boosting store workers’ pay by at least $1
Walmart store workers are getting at least $1 more an hour as the retail giant responds to one of the tightest labor markets in history.
With the peak holiday season approaching when retailers typically hire thousands of seasonal workers, Walmart is raising the hourly wage for 565,000 store associates.
“Effective Sept. 25, associates in the frontend, food and consumable and general merchandise work groups will receive at least a $1 an hour raise,” Walmart’s US chief executive, John Furner, wrote in a memo obtained by The Post.
It’s the third such wage hike for store associates who will make on average $16.40 an hour, Furner added.
Walmart stores associates in other departments have seen similar pay hikes over the past year, including 425,000 workers in the digital and stocking division who were given raises taking their pay to $13 to $19 per hour, depending on their location.
Walmart’s entry-level associates are promoted to roles of greater responsibility and higher pay within about seven months, according to the memo.
The company has also offered $1,000 retention bonuses to warehouse workers who agreed to work during their regularly scheduled shifts this summer and bumped up other warehouse workers’ hour rates by between $1 to $5 an hour through January 2022.
Walmart needs to catch up to some of its competitors who pay hourly workers more, say experts.
The Bentonville, Ark-based retailer’s starting wage is $11 an hour in some markets with store workers earning on average $14.61 an hour and supply chain workers earning an average of $20.37, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
By contrast, Costco recently raised its minimum hourly wage to $16, and Target and Amazon each pay at least $15 an hour.
On Wednesday, Walmart announced plans to create 20,000 new permanent jobs at its warehouses and distribution centers this month.
