Mike Duke is a man concerned with cutting costs. Walmart's CEO came into the job a couple of years ago pledging to find ways to shrink the company's overhead and, true to his word, the company has targeted Sunday as a day it can save some money. Walmart announced that all hourly workers hired in the new year will no longer be eligible to receive an extra $1 an hour for working on Sunday. Current workers will not be affected.
Dorian Warren, an assistant professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University, told Bloomberg News, "It amounts to a huge wage cut. Wal-Mart has been underperforming financially relative to its competitors and needs to find quick ways to shore up profits."
With high turnover rates, Walmart's move will certainly save it money, but the company did not cite how much it expected to drop to the bottom line. One thing is clear, the company does not believe it will negatively affect its store-level recruiting efforts.
Greg Rossiter, a spokesperson for the chain, told Bloomberg, "We regularly review our compensation programs and we are confident Wal-Mart's pay and benefits are as good if not better than other retailers."
Discussion Questions: Do you think Walmart's plan to eliminate additional Sunday pay will hurt the chain's ability to recruit new workers? Are other large retail chains doing the same thing?