After 11 years at Walmart, Patricia Locks of Seattle earns $13.10 per hour and usually works 34 hours per week. However, since her schedule can vary, her income is not predictable and she struggles to cover bills for herself and her 14-year-old daughter. Demos released new research showing that Patricias situation is far from inevitable. Not only could Walmart afford to pay higher wages now, it could do so without costing customers a dime. By redirecting the $7.6 billion spent annually on buying back shares of Walmart’s own company stock, the nation’s largest retailer could instead invest in its workforce and put an extra $5.83 an hour into the pockets of its lowest-paid employees. “These share repurchases benefit an increasingly narrow group of people, including the six Walton family heirs,” said Catherine Ruetschlin, Demos Policy Analyst and co-author of the brief. “But buybacks do not improve the fundamentals of the firm. If the funds were used to raise the pay of Walmarts 825,000 low paid workers, it would not harm the retailers competitive ability and would add no cost to the consumer.” Vice President of Policy & Outreach Heather McGhee was on MSNBC to discuss the reports findings. Watch here! Demos 220 5th Ave, Floor 2 New York, NY 10001 unsubscribe from list update preferences
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 23:47:35 +0000
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