Recently, Target made public a plan to increase its beginning wage for certain professions to $24. The retailer, headquartered in Minneapolis, announced the pay raise for hourly employees at its discount stores, distribution network facilities, and corporate offices.
The retailer Target established a $15 minimum wage in 2020. That won’t change, but Target says some employees will earn a raise depending on the specifics of their position and the going rate of compensation in their area.
More than 350,000 people are employed by Target (TGT), which operates more than 1,900 shops in the United States. The company has announced plans to invest an extra $300 million in its personnel, including a raise in starting wages. With this new funding that began in April, hourly workers will have greater access to healthcare.
Hourly Target employees who put in at least 25 hours per week on average will be able to sign up for the company’s medical insurance program. The previous minimum was 30 hours each week, so this is a significant reduction.
The business will also reduce the enrollment period for its medical plan for hourly employees. Complete health care coverage will be available to employees three to nine months earlier, depending on their position. They will also streamline the 401(k) enrollment process for employees.
More businesses are implementing the new policy as they follow suit in adopting the $15 per hour minimum wage.
Best Buy (BBY) increased its minimum salary to $15 in 2020, while Amazon (AMZN) increased its beginning salary to $15 in 2018. The largest retailer in the United States, Walmart (WMT), said in September that it would raise the minimum wage of its front-of-store, food, and general merchandise employees to $12 per hour. Over 565,000 Walmart (WMT) employees would benefit from the wage increase.
The decision by Target is in response to a widespread shortage of workers in the retail sector, which has been exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic and the difficulty of many businesses in retaining and hiring new employees.
Recent research from the Shift Project, a collaboration between Harvard University and the University of California, San Francisco, found that “many service staff continues to deal with perennially unexpected and unstable work schedules, in addition to the health risks, uncertainty, and stress of working during a pandemic.”
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