America’s largest retailer said in a statement Wednesday that jobs will be filled at its stores, clubs, campuses and supply chain facilities. The company plans to hire new workers by the end of the current quarter, which ends in April. This was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Last year, Walmart hired about 5,500 pharmacists and pharmacy managers, more than 13,000 pharmacists and about 4,500 truck drivers. As of the end of March 2021, the company employed 1.6 million people in the US, according to Walmart’s latest annual report.
Amid a tough job market, Walmart raised employee wages to $16.40 an hour and $30 an hour in “select positions and in the marketplace.”
Meanwhile, Target (TGT) recently announced that it was raising starting wages for workers in some positions to $24. Competitor Walmart said the increase would affect hourly workers at discount stores, supply chain businesses and headquarters.
The moves come amid an ongoing shortage of workers in retail, fueled in part by the pandemic, as companies around the world struggle to retain and hire more workers.
“In addition to the health risks, uncertainty and stress associated with working during the pandemic, many service workers continue to struggle with chronically unpredictable and volatile work schedules,” according to a recent report from the Shift Project, a joint venture between Harvard University and the University of California, San Francisco.
— Pariah Kavilanz of CNN Business contributed to this report.