Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will give nearly all its U.S. hourly store employees—and not just minimum-wage earners—a raise next month, as the nation’s largest private employer tries to combat a tighter labor market and the turnover endemic in the retailing industry.
Wal-Mart previously said it planned to boost its minimum wage in February to $10 an hour.
But the giant retailer said Wednesday that hourly workers employed in its stores as of Dec. 31 would get at least a 2% pay bump.
The wage increase will affect nearly 1.2 million U.S. employees at the company’s Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores.
Minimum-wage increases took effect in 20 states last year, and several of the biggest employers of hourly workers, including McDonald’s Corp. and Starbucks Corp., have raised their starting pay.