Two years ago, facing moribund sales in its stores and stiff competition online, Walmart committed $2.7 billion to improving employee wages and training. Shares tumbled and analysts scratched their heads; it was not the kind of news Wall Street tends to embrace.
But Walmart’s decision to invest in workers is now paying off with increased sales both in stores and online, as the the world’s biggest retailer reported third-quarter earnings today (Nov. 16) that surpassed analyst estimates.
Revenue from stores open at least a year rose 2.7%, a substantial increase given the struggles most retailers are facing. And online sales jumped 50%, as the company is now counting results from Amazon competitor Jet.com, which Walmart purchased last year. [...]
Walmart still has a ways to go to outrun its history of questionable business practices and mistreatment of workers. Its earnings were impacted by a $283 million expense to settle overseas bribery accusations, and last week a group of female employees sued in federal court, alleging discrimination on the basis of gender, and are seeking class-action status. A Walmart spokesman told Bloomberg that a class-action suit isn’t appropriate because the various claims don’t represent how most women at the company were treated.
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