BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart announced this week that it will be issuing a new pay hike and around 565,000 employees will benefit from it.

John Furner

 

John Furner, Walmart’s US president and chief executive officer, announced the news to its workforce through a memo. It stated that starting Sept. 25, staff associates working in the company’s store front end, food and consumable, and general merchandise divisions will be given at least a $1 an hour pay increase on their wage. This is the retailer’s third hike in the last 12 months.

“It’s our third wage investment in store associates over the past year,” Furner wrote in the memo. “The investment means that over the past year, we’ve raised pay for approximately 1.2 million hourly associates in our U.S. stores, increasing our U.S. average hourly wage to $16.40.”

Currently, Walmart is paying its associates the average rate of $15.25 and this places the company’s workforce. With companies raising their minimum salary rates, some government officials want to pass a bill that will make $15 the minimum wage level for all workers.