Walmart announced that it will be increasing the starting wages for its U.S. workers next month, with wages ranging from $14 to $19 per hour.

The company’s President and CEO, John Furner, informed employees of this change in a memo on Tuesday, stating that the pay raises will be reflected in their March 2 paychecks and will be a combination of targeted and regular annual pay increases.
The pay increases will affect workers at 3,000 stores, raising the average pay to $17.50 per hour from $17. Currently, starting wages at Walmart vary between $12 and $18 per hour depending on the location. Due to the ongoing labor shortage, competition for low-wage retail workers remains fierce, and as a result, Walmart and its competitors have raised wages and added benefits in recent years to retain workers, including coverage for in vitro fertilization, fertility testing, and financial assistance for surrogacy and adoption.

With this latest pay raise, Walmart, the largest retailer and biggest private employer in the country, is now closer to its competitors, such as Target and Amazon, who have raised their minimum wage to $15 per hour.

Walmart is raising its base pay from $12 to $14 an hour. The company says the raises are expected to bring its average hourly wage up to “more than” $17.50 an hour. https://t.co/4Iva237Yig

— CNN (@CNN) January 24, 2023