Investor Advocates for Social Justice

Tri-CRI Commends Walmart for Raising Wages

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Tri-State CRI joins colleagues at ICCR in recognizing Walmart‘s progress on workers’ wages:

NEW YORK, NY – Thursday, February 19, 2015 – Members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) and shareholders of Walmart were heartened by Walmart’s announcement today of measures it is taking to improve both wages and opportunities for advancement for its 1.3 million U.S. employees.

ICCR members who have long engaged the company on employee wage and benefit issues are hopeful that, as the world’s largest employer, Walmart’s announcement will send a strong signal of the importance of raising wages for U.S. workers. The shareholder coalition has engaged companies in a range of sectors, including agriculture, apparel, consumer goods, restaurant, and technology on similar issues throughout their global supply chains.

According to the package of changes the company announced today, Walmart has committed to increasing its base pay rate to $9/hr. in all markets and to raising its current associates’ wages to $10 an hour or higher by early next year. For reference, the current federal minimum wage is $7.25/hr. In addition the company is reforming how schedules are developed for its Associates and investing in capacity-building programs that will provide internal advancement opportunities.

 

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