Walmart Offers Pay Raise to Boost Hiring of Truck Drivers
The 8,000 truckers who work for Walmart are getting a raise, with average pay soon approaching $90,000 a year, as the company looks to hire hundreds more drivers amid an ongoing shortage of truck drivers. Walmart's bid to recruit more truck drivers had it running national TV ads in the fall, shortening the hiring process, and offering referral bonuses of as much as $1,500. The retailer hired 1,400 new drivers in 2018, and "hundreds more are slated to join in 2019," according to Walmart. Starting next month, truck drivers will get a per-mile hike of one cent and an extra $1 each time they drop a trailer at a destination, Walmart said Wednesday. That will bring average pay for drivers to $87,500 a year. Walmart also said its truck drivers can expect predictable schedules, at least 21 days of paid time off, and possible quarterly bonuses.
Total Retail's Take: The nationwide shortage of truck drivers has impacted many industries, perhaps none more so than retail. And like other positions within retail organizations (e.g., store associates) that have seen a labor crunch due to a historically low unemployment rate, among other factors, companies such as Walmart are being forced to sweeten their offers to attract in-demand truck drivers. Higher wages, more vacation time, access to benefits, and other perks are being used to recruit truck drivers in a competitive environment for their services. Those rising transportation costs figure to be absorbed by consumers in the form of higher prices for goods, as well as hits to retailers’ gross margins. Furthermore, considering the continued growth of e-commerce and the need to deliver freight from distribution centers to stores, the demand for qualified truck drivers isn't likely to abate any time soon.
