Another national retailer announces across-the-board raises of up to 6%

Another national retailer has announced plans to boost pay for front-line workers.

Walmart-owned Sam’s Club is raising entry-level wages from $15 to $16 while increasing the rate at which pay rises with years of service. Overall, pay will increase between 3% and 6%, bringing the average hourly rate for Sam’s Club employees to above $19 an hour.

In the last five years, Sam’s Club average hourly wage has increased nearly 30%, according to the warehouse club.

“Until now, retail compensation has largely been about hourly wages, and it’s almost unheard of to talk about frontline associate compensation in terms of a predictable financial future — that changes for Sam’s Club starting (now),” said Chris Nicholas, president and CEO of Sam’s Club, in a LinkedIn post. “Our new approach is one step in a series of investments we’ve made in our people over the last several years, all designed to provide more meaningful jobs and build successful teams.”

The move will affect nearly 100,000 Sam’s Club employees.

In recent years, officials with the warehouse club said, it has implemented more consistent weekly schedules for employees, increased number of full-time employees and increasing training and technology for workers.

Sam’s Club is the latest major retailer to announce pay boost for workers. Just this month, discount grocery chain Aldi announced it will add 13,000 workers while booting average hourly wage to $23. Target is adding 100,000 employees for the holiday season with pay up to $24 an hour.