For decades, Walmart has taken heat for how it treats its work force, including paying low wages and creating unpredictable schedules. Now, the giant retailer is trying to ease some of its workers’ financial strain, allowing them to receive wages before their next payday.
Instead of waiting two weeks between paychecks, Walmart workers can now use an app to access a portion of wages for hours they have already worked.
But Walmart’s new service also highlights, albeit unwittingly, the financial struggles of the low-wage workers in the retail and service industries. Even as the economy strengthens, many workers in stores and restaurants are not earning enough to make ends meet.
Walmart said the new initiative is intended to help workers avoid costly payday loans and other debt traps, and reduce the stress that comes with financial hardship.
Workers who are less worried about cash issues “feel more confident and more settled at work,” Judith McKenna, Walmart’s chief operating officer, said in an interview.
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