More than 10,000 Walmart associates working in Northeast Ohio will get a pay raise, a company spokesperson said in a media release Tuesday.
According to the release, 10,652 employees in the Cleveland and Akron -- and more than 44,000 associates in Ohio -- will receive a raise in their March 10 paycheck.
The raise also impacts more than 1.2 million Walmart and Sam's Club associates in the U.S.
The pay changes include:
- All associates hired before Jan. 1, 2016 will earn at least $10 per hour.
- New entry-level associates hired after Jan. 1 will continue to start at $9 per hour and will move to the higher rate after successfully completing Walmart's new retail skills and training program.
- Employees already earning more than $10 per hour will see their annual pay increase starting in March and do not have to wait until their anniversary date.
- Increase in starting rate of non-entry level hourly pay bands. Those earning below the new minimum will be automatically moved up to the new minimum.
- Associates at or above their pay band maximum will now receive a one-time lump sum payment, which is equal to 2 percent of their annual pay.
The release said the increases are aligned with Walmart's two-year, $2.7 billion investment "in higher pay, better training, clearer career paths and additional educational opportunities for its workers."
The spokesperson said Walmart employees are eligible for quarterly cash bonuses based on store performance.
Along with the raise, the March 10 paycheck will include a share of the more than $9 million bonus earned in the fourth quarter of the year alone. The company said Walmart associates across the country earned more than $550 million in bonuses, including more than $25.6 million in Ohio.
Walmart said that it also converted 5,317 employees from part-time to full-time last year.
