Walmart's decision to raise 500,000 workers' pay to $9 an hour in April is having a ripple effect in the retail industry, with TJX,
the parent company of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, saying it will raise its minimum pay to $9 an hour in June and, for workers who've been with the company for six months or more, to $10 an hour in 2016. It's clear that Walmart's move was a factor:
"This pay initiative is an important part of our strategies to continue attracting and retaining the best talent in order to deliver a great shopping experience for our customers, remain competitive on wages in our U.S. markets, and stay focused on our value mission."
Other big box chains are not planning the same move.
Target, for instance, doesn't have any $9 plans.
While having major retail chains raising wages to $9 and ultimately $10 an hour is very good news for workers, it's not a living wage, especially for the many workers who remain trapped in part-time jobs with unpredictable scheduling that can prevent them from getting second jobs to supplement their income. In short, as positive as this news is, we're not going to see an end to workers at hugely profitable chains needing food drives or government assistance yet.