'We're on a journey of developing our talent, strengthening our culture,' says CPO
Walmart Canada is investing $53 million in higher wages for its hourly store associates.
The hourly wages will increase for roughly 40,000 store associates, said the company, and the “targeted investment” ensures the retailer “continues to provide attractive pay.”
"We're on a journey of developing our talent, simplifying and modernizing how we work, investing in our teams, and strengthening our culture," said AnnMarie Mercer, Chief People Officer, Walmart Canada.
In addition to investing in wages, Walmart Canada recently invested in digital handheld devices for store associates. These enable employees to better support customers by looking up items more quickly in the store’s systems and allowing for faster, real-time communication between associates to better facilitate customer requests, said the company.
"As a people-led, tech-powered, omnichannel retailer, we know how important it is for our associates to have the right tools they need to do their job," said Joe Schrauder, Chief Operations Officer, Walmart Canada. "These devices play a critical role in helping our store associates perform their day-to-day tasks more efficiently and better serve our customers."
Walmart invests in US workers
The changes in Canada follow increasing investments in the chain’s US store workers to retain more employees, according to a Reuters report.
In February, Walmart raised the annual average salary and bonus for US store managers and, in June, introduced bonuses for hourly store workers, including those in its pharmacy and Vision Center stores.
According to Reuters, these changes are expected to benefit around 700,000 front-line staff across the US.
Benefits at Walmart Canada include fertility treatment, tuition
Walmart Canada’s benefits also include an annual incentive bonus aligned with company performance; prescription drug coverage, health and dental, fertility treatment, mental health care, and gender affirmation care; access to 24/7 virtual care; employee assistance programs, and wellbeing programs through TELUS Health; a Walmart discount card for savings of 10 per cent on groceries and general merchandise sold at Walmart stores and on Walmart.ca; and a deferred profit-sharing retirement plan and a discounted stock purchase program.
In September 2023, the retailer also unveiled the Live Better U (LBU) educational program, covering 100% of the cost of tuition, books, and course fees for course offerings curated based on the new and future needs of the business. To date, over 3,000 associates have participated in this offering.
Walmart Canada, which operates over 400 stores nationwide and employs more than 100,000 associates.
