Walmart raises minimum wage for US store employees

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US-based multinational retail major Walmart announced Tuesday it has decided to raise minimum wage for its 340,000 store employees across the nation.

The hypermarket chain said it expects the raise will bring its US average hourly wage to more than $17.50, and they will be reflected in employees' March 2 paychecks.

From March onwards, employees that work in stores will make $14 and $19 per hour, a raise from $12 and $18 an hour, respectively.

The raise will affect approximately 21.2% of Walmart employees, which is around 1.6 million.

The move by the nation's largest private employer comes at a time when some US majors, especially in the tech industry, are laying off workers in groves, partially due to recession fears and falling advertisement revenues.