Walmart raises minimum wage for American workers because of GOP tax bill
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
On Thursday, Walmart announced that it would raise its minimum wage for its hourly workers in the U.S., citing the recent Republican tax reform bill as the catalyst. The company's U.S. employees will, starting in February, earn a minimum of $11 an hour, Reuters reports.
Walmart is the world's largest private employer and retains more than a million hourly employees in the United States.
In a press release, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said the new tax law enables the company to provide "better wages and training for associates and investments in the future of our company." Walmart will also offer more comprehensive parental leave benefits and disburse a one-time prorated bonus to certain workers.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Reuters notes that AT&T, Boeing, and Wells Fargo have made similar pledges after President Trump signed the Republican tax bill, which cut the corporate tax rate by 14 percent.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kelly O'Meara Morales is a staff writer at The Week. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College and studied Middle Eastern history and nonfiction writing amongst other esoteric subjects. When not compulsively checking Twitter, he writes and records music, subsists on tacos, and watches basketball.
