Walmart Halves New Associates’ Training Time

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is shortening a training program that new store associates must complete before they can receive a pay raise, as part of an overall effort to reduce turnover and boost customer service, according to published reports.

The program will now run three months instead of six, The Wall Street Journal reported. Upon completion of the training, associates receive a raise from $9 per hour to $10. Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart raised its starting wage to $9 two years ago. 

The adjusted training period grew out of nationwide “listen sessions” undertaken by Walmart COO Judith McKenna.

According to the WSJ article, a full-time Walmart associate’s average salary is $13.69 per hour, or about $25,000 a year. Full-timers make up around half of the mega-retailer’s store employees.

Additionally, the financial newspaper reported that Walmart employees hired on or before Oct. 31, 2016 will receive a 2 percent raise on Feb. 18, while long-term employees who have reached the limits of their pay grades will receive a onetime lump sum of 2 percent of their annual pay.