Costco raised its minimum wage to $17 an hour

[demmiblue]

Source: CNN

New York (CNN Business)Costco this week raised its starting wage for hourly store workers in the United States for the second time this year as businesses hike pay to draw and retain workers amid a labor shortage.

Costco (COST) told employees last week that it would increase its minimum wage from $16 an hour to $17 starting on Monday. Costco has around 180,000 US employees, and 90% of them work hourly. Costco's new starting wage puts the chain— which has among the lowest turnover rates in the retail industry— $2 per hour above Amazon (AMZN), Target (TGT) and other top retailers' minimum wage, and $5 an hour above Walmart's (WMT).

Costco's latest pay bump comes as many retailers, restaurants and other service sector employers raise pay, offer signing bonuses and sweeten their benefits packages in response to struggles hiring workers.

Costco raised its minimum wage to $14 in 2018 and $15 in 2019. In February, the Issaquah, Washington-based company hiked it to $16 an hour. Business Insider first reported its most recent increase.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/27/business/costco-minimum-wage/index.html

[ms liberty]

1. Kicked. And Rec'd. n/t

[revmclaren]

2. My 18 year old son just started at Costco

a few weeks ago. He's thrilled to be working there.

[Sherman A1]

3. Excellent!

[Steelrolled]

4. I imagine this wage allows Costco to be more selective

which can make the entire store run smoother. Even though they are a warehouse store, customer service seems really good.

[Lemon Lyman]

13. Yep

And they have very low turnover, which saves them money. People want to work there. They enjoy working there. Costco doesn't have to constantly train new people b/c they're losing their old people.

[dweller]

5. Noticed today local school system offering $16.50

for bus drivers with a 4K sign on (stepped with meeting criteria)
and 40 hr workweek … they must be really short handed


✌🏻

[Enter stage left]

6. Even more reason to love Costco...

We shop there whenever we need paper products, OTC meds, steaks (they're huge, but OMG they're good) and electronics, glasses, hearing aids, rotisserie chicken, left-overs from their rotisserie chicken...do you get the picture?

LOVE COSTCO, haven't been in a SAM's store in almost 7 years.

[PennyC]

7. Well that decides it for me

One is opening next month in my area and I wasn't sure I should sign up. YES!

[hamsterjill]

8. If I can buy it at Costco..

I buy it at Costco. Love that store.

[bucolic_frolic]

9. I don't know how there is a labor shortage

Still think workers just hopped off, found a cheaper more efficient way to live as well as work a home gig, and don't want back on the rat race.

[Steelrolled]

12. There are also people who just spent a lot less money due to COVID, have

some money banked, and don't see a reason to go back to work. Probably not what I would have done back in the day, but I can't blame them.

[Withywindle]

15. Tens of thousands of retail and food workers have DIED

They were some of the highest death rates by profession pre-vaccine.

[Ishoutandscream2]

32. Bingo. Don't hear too many folks talk about this.

Wish I could recommend this.

[BigmanPigman]

10. Fucking A!

It's about time workers are beginning to get some of their true worth recognized and valued. The unions making a come back with clout gives me short term hope. The police unions do not fall into this group in my opinion. Their unions are all about anti-vax these days, not about better pay.

[Hamlette]

11. Bank of America took out a full page ad in the NYTimes raising their minimum to $21

21 for for 2021 was the headline. Say they are on their way to $25
https://newsroom.bankofamerica.com/content/newsroom/press-releases/2021/10/bank-of-america-increases-us-minimum-hourly-wage-to--21-as-next-.html

[cstanleytech]

14. Question is are they going to do what alot of other companies do when they make such announcements?

By that I mean will they reduce the number of employees they have by reducing new hires? Will they cut hours? Benefits?
I know, its pretty jaded of me to assume they will do this but history has shown that when companies make such accouncements they plan on screwing the employees one way or another like Walmart has done for decades.
Heck even Publix is doing it as when they made their raise announcement they paid for it by doing away with quarterly bonuses for employees and changed it so instead of 2 potential raises a year employees only get one potential one.

[Withywindle]

16. A lot of companies advertise these high pay rates

But when people apply for the jobs, they don't actually hire anyone.

They want to keep on squeezing their remaining workers for insane hours, and also apply for government bailouts, and also push the narrative further right because "we can't find workers, oh no, lazy people don't want to work."

[cstanleytech]

17. Exactly. nt

[Polybius]

21. Not Costco

They notoriously don't give workers more than 40 hours unless it's an emergency. They do everything they can to avoid paying time and a half.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

24. Yes, unless

you work Sunday then you get time and a half. I was hired 2 weeks ago as a seasonal employee. I'm 71, retired in June and a long time union member and delegate in my workplace. They are doing lots of thigs right to prevent people from thinking they need a union.

[Hortensis]

31. Probably VERY few. We need to differentiate between the shocking things

some stupid-mean people do out of uberpartisan spite and usual practices.

Certainly, if a professional manager wasted resources that way, risking bad PR and even potential liability and/or legal exposures, he or she'd almost certainly be fired. That's not what they're paid for. In fact, as I recall, one we heard of here was as soon as his stupid-mean bragging got back to the business's owner.

[Torchlight]

22. If recent history is an indicator, no.

Costco's last two minimum wage increases were not coupled with a reduction in employee hours or benefits, nor did it reduce net workforce.

Given this is the second wage increase this year alone, and that gross number of full-time employees has risen every since 2011, maybe the company's management just believes employee turnover is a greater cost than increasing their minimum wage.

[cstanleytech]

25. At one time Walmart was known as a company that treated its workers good as well but that was

before the Walton kids took over.

[Torchlight]

26. I'm afraid I don't understand the reponse.

A=B=C so X?

[cstanleytech]

27. Simply that companies can change how they treat their workers and rarely is it for the better.

[Torchlight]

29. Quite the assertion, but then again, I never argued the change was "for the better"

only that employee retention might be more cost effective.

That's why your responses are puzzling to me; your arguments are against a point I didn't make and that you asserted without any real corroboration.

[JanMichael]

30. No. They have super low turnover of workers & most earn $40k a year after 3-5 years.

Plus full health insurance and other benefits.

This has been the case for a long time. Costco has always been a good employer.

EDIT - I emailed Costco 5 or more years ago asking if the founders principles of good employment would continue when he retires and they said that was a condition that would always be met as long as they existed.

[gademocrat7]

18. K&R

Costco is my favorite store.

[The Jungle 1]

19. Sure I retire and wages finally go up.

It is all about me.

[madville]

20. Better be some decent benefits that go along with that

The Buc-Cee’s gas station near me pays their janitor and car wash attendant positions $17 an hour to start. It’s $18 an hour for cashiers. With inflation, rent increases, and gas/grocery prices taking all these gains and more it’s like we’re right back where we started or worse.

[Mysterian]

23. That's pretty far out!

I joined, even though I'm 90 minutes and two mountains away from the nearest warehouse. I have a very good impression of Costco and I want to suport it.

[OriginalGeek]

28. We have a store about 10 minutes away but

we were recently considering moving to a 55+ community that's about an hour away and all I could think of was that's a 2 hour drive there and back every other week and mighty inconvenient to get my weekly gas fill-up.

We eventually decided not to move there and that was not part of the decision as I had already decided it would still be worth the trip.

Instead we're building a house near downtown and nearer our kids and grandkids and we'll only be 15 minutes away from Costco. win win!