Walmart store managers can earn $50,000 to $170,000 a year, a company spokesman said.
HOLYOKE — Walmart pays its workers the same or more than competitors' wages and gives employees opportunities to advance into careers with the world's largest retailer, which also is a good neighbor in a community, a spokesman said Friday.
Spokesman William Wertz responded to criticism directed at Walmart Thursday in a meeting attended by about 100 neighbors, labor union members and politicians at Donahue School.
They were protesting Walmart's plan to build a 160,000-square-foot store at 222 Whiting Farms Road that Wertz has said will have more than 300 employees in a site offering general merchandise, a garden center and a full line of groceries at low prices."More than 11,000 people in Massachusetts make the choice to work for our company because we offer good jobs and the opportunity to build a career," Wertz said.
In fiscal year 2013, he said, hourly Walmart employees received more than $770 million in quarterly bonuses and $800 million in matching 401(k) contributions.
Walmart also meets the quality standards for employee health care plans under the federal Affordable Care Act, he said.
"Our lowest 'associate-only' medical plan is available for $8.70 per week...," Wertz said.
Walmart has a record of helping employees advance, he said, with 160,000 workers last year promoted to positions of greater responsibility and pay. Store managers earn $50,000 to $170,000 a year, he said.
"Our highest earning store manager last year earned more than $250,000. A job at Walmart – unlike some others – offers an opportunity for a real career," Wertz said.
Wertz also addressed criticism here that Walmart's low prices wind up being a no-net-gain in a community's economy because existing businesses suffer or close.
"Walmart stores often serve as magnets for other new businesses, large and small. The small businesses that surround our stores generally have products and services we don’t offer or are strong in areas where we can’t compete," Wertz said.
A big concern of residents who live near the site of the proposed Walmart is traffic will increase into even more of a problem in the area than it is now. Mayor Alex B. Morse said one reason he has changed course and now opposes the Walmart is because company officials in preliminary discussions they are not willing to make the extensive infrastructure investments needed to address traffic concerns.
Wertz, in a previous statement, addressed Morse's point: "The planning process for Walmart's Supercenter in Holyoke is in its very early stages, so discussions about what steps might or might not be needed to address traffic haven't really started. We have certainly not ruled anything out at this point."
Walmart has scheduled an informational meeting about its proposal from 6 to 8 p.m. on Aug. 12 at Holyoke Community College, he said.
Here is the statement from Walmart spokesman William Wertz in response to criticism made of the company at a meeting Thursday:
With respect to Walmart’s wages and benefits:
"Walmart’s wages and benefits meet or exceed those offered by most competitors. More than 11,000 people in Massachusetts make the choice to work for our company because we offer good jobs and the opportunity to build a career. In Florida our average, hourly full time wage is $13.86 an hour. In fiscal year 2013, hourly Walmart associates received more than $770 million in quarterly bonuses, $800 million in matching 401(k) contributions and $550 million in savings via our 10 percent employee discount.
Our health care plans continue to exceed the test for affordability and quality of the Affordable Care Act, and we pay the majority of premium plan costs for our associates – over 75 percent, which exceeds other retailers. Our lowest “associate-only” medical plan is available for $8.70 per week, or about $17 per pay period, and offers benefits that include no lifetime maximum for covered expenses, preventative care covered at 100 percent and a company contribution of $250 to help pay for medical expenses. The $17 premium is half the national average for single coverage per-pay period.
In addition – and this is an important point – Walmart has a record of moving hourly associates into better and better jobs and into management. Our company promoted 160,000 people last year to positions with more responsibility and higher pay. Plus, around 75 percent of our store management teams across the country started as hourly associates, and their average pay is between $50,000 and $170,000 a year. Our highest earning store manager last year earned more than $250,000. A job at Walmart – unlike some others – offers an opportunity for a real career."
With respect to Walmart’s impact on local businesses:
"Walmart stores often serve as magnets for other new businesses, large and small. The small businesses that surround our stores generally have products and services we don’t offer or are strong in areas where we can’t compete. In fact, a study by Richard S. Sobel and Andrea M. Dean at West Virginia University said this in the abstract of their study: 'Saving traditional small ‘mom and pop’ businesses has been a justification for political and court decisions preventing Wal-Mart from opening new stores virtually everywhere across the United States. We present the first rigorous econometric investigation of how Wal-Mart actually impacts the small business sector. We examine the rate of self-employment and the number of small employer establishments using both time-series and cross-sectional data. Contrary to popular belief, our results suggest that the process of creative destruction unleashed by Wal-Mart has had no
statistically significant long-run impact on the overall size and profitability of the small business sector in the United States.'"