Pay raises have been announced for a large portion of Walmart’s employees.

While the current minimum wage is about $7.25 an hour, the retailer is promising to increase 40 percent of their more than a million employee’s wages to $10 an hour by next year.

The initial plan is to not only bring the hourly wages up, but also provide opportunities for their staff to move up the corporate ladder. 

According to the Associated Press the plan is to bring the pay for cashiers, which can range from $7.65 to $16, to a range of $9 to $17.55. Increases are also planned for department managers and new hires.

There are also plans to create more predictable scheduling and training programs to provide advancement opportunities.

Walmart has received a lot of negative press concerning their unpredictable scheduling and low pay rates, which at times prompts their employees to file for federal benefits to make ends meet, as Forbes reported in April of last year.

Part time employees have been forced to often work second jobs as well, the Associated Press story states. While these changes are welcome for many Walmart employees, the question remains, which 40 percent of their employees will benefit from these changes?

Will it only be the employees working in states with higher cost of living expenses, or will workers in our own community also benefit? 

Other concerns focus on whether this $1 billion investment will prompt the retailer to increase the prices of their goods to cover the expense. 

The AP story states that Walmart expects a hit to their profit margins as a result of the move, which could be read as price increases are not planned, but it’s not clearly stated. 

It’s promising to see that such a large corporation is investing in methods to provide upward mobility to those willing to put in the hard work. 

However, the unforeseen long-term effects of this move should prove interesting.