Walmart raises salaries a bit, cuts hours to compensate

Walmart department manager Karren Gomes helps stock shelves with school supplies as the retail store prepare for back to school shoppers. | Photo: Reuters

Store managers reduced hours to diminish costs, instructing employees to take longer lunches or leave their shifts early.

When Walmart announced in June it was raising the wages of more than 100,000 workers in U.S. outlets, labor organizations and campaigns like “Fight for 15” hailed it as a modest victory.

But now, the retail giant is cutting some workers’ hours in order the hold down costs.

Think Progress reports that store managers were instructed to reduce hours to diminish costs, which has led to situations in which employees are sent on longer lunches, or told to leave their shifts before they end.

According to a company spokesperson, this is only happening in outlets when managers have over-scheduled workers.

However, one employee near Houston, who did not want to be named, said that her store had “saved” 200 hours a week sending people home early. Others report as many as 1,500 cut, with employees told to take two-hour lunch breaks if they had stayed later on other days.

In July this year, Walmart increased the wages of certain departments that are more service-oriented. Those in the electronics and auto-care departments received a wage increase from US$10.30 - US$20.09 per hour to US$13 - US$24.70 per hour.

Those in the clothing department saw their pay scale increase from US$9.20 – US$18.53 per hour to US$9.90 – US$18.81 per hour.

The wage increase followed an announcement made by Walmart earlier this year that they would raise wages for over 500,000 employees across the country by 2016. The increase would be applied to entry-level and long-term positions, but falls short of reaching its over 1.3 million employees spread out across the U.S.

However, earlier in August, the company decreased its annual earnings forecast based on the higher cost of employees’ wages.

“The changes we need to make require investment, and we’re pleased with the steps we’ve taken,” CEO Doug McMillon said at the time. “Even if it’s not as fast as we’d like, the fundamentals of serving our customers are consistently improving, and it’s reflected in our comps and revenue growth.”

The company spokesperson said decreased hours won’t affect the focus on improved staffing stores, lowering checkout lines, and stocking shelves, some of the key concerns for customers, which have contributed to lower profits. “(W)e are committed to improving the customer experience and we will protect the investments necessary to achieve this goal,” Greg Foran, head of U.S. operations, said

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