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Key Takeaways
- Sam’s Club is raising its entry-level wage to $16 and is increasing the rate at which pay rises with years of service.
- The membership-based retailer anticipates the average hourly wage for Sam’s Club front-line associates will be above $19.
- The move affects nearly 100,000 Sam’s Club employees.
Sam’s Club has introduced an employee compensation plan that raises the average hourly wage for almost 100,000 employees.
The Walmart-owned (WMT) membership-based retail chain is increasing its entry-level wage to $16 per hour from the $15 per hour rate it established three years ago. Sam’s Club said Tuesday that these steps will bring the average hourly wage to more than $19 for associates. The company added that the company’s average hourly wage has increased almost 30% over the past five years.
The new plan increases the annual pay jump for years of service to between 3% and 6%, depending on time worked at the stores. Walmart says these income milestones will give associates “a longer-term perspective on their financial futures.”
Changing Associate Compensation Approach
“Until now, retail compensation has largely been about hourly wages, and it’s almost unheard of to talk about frontline associate compensation in terms of a predictable financial future—that changes for Sam’s Club starting today,” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chris Nicholas said.
The company operates more than 600 locations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Shares of parent Walmart finished down more than 2% Tuesday at $78.61 but are up about 50% in 2024, thanks partly to strong second-quarter earnings last month.