Wal Mart laying off a 1000 people

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Bloomberg

Wal-Mart Job Cuts Rise to 1,000 in Company's Latest Shake-Up
By Matthew Boyle
January 25, 2018, 12:54 PM CST
Updated on January 25, 2018, 3:09 PM CST
About half of layoffs happening this week, with rest in 2019
Cuts follow store closures and restructuring at Sam’s Club


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Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is cutting as many as 1,000 jobs at its headquarters this year and next, the latest effort to streamline a retail empire under threat from Amazon.com Inc.

The first wave of layoffs totaled between 400 and 500 jobs and hit the company’s marketing, human resources, merchandising, real estate and other divisions this week, the Bentonville, Arkansas-based chain said. Those affected will have 60 days to find a new role.

A second phase of cutbacks will come in 2019, when some buildings are consolidated to make way for the company’s new corporate headquarters. Under 500 positions will be part of that wave, Wal-Mart said.


The shake-up extends a busy month for the world’s largest retailer, which also shut 63 Sam’s Club warehouses and reorganized that unit’s purchasing division. But even as it makes cuts, the company has also taken broader steps to retain employees -- like boosting its hourly wage and creating new roles focused on its online grocery business.

Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon is betting that a leaner organization can better battle Amazon, and has said Wal-Mart “is not where we want to be” in terms of reducing corporate expenses.

More on Sam’s Club shake-up affecting its purchasing division

“We’ve been looking at our structure for some time as we explore ways to operate more effectively,” the company said in an emailed statement on Thursday. “Those efforts continue. We’re committed to handling every transition smoothly and ensuring everyone is treated as fairly and respectfully as possible.”

The company has outgrown its current headquarters, a patchwork of more than 20 buildings in Northwest Arkansas. The new campus, about two miles away, will take five to seven years to complete and include a fitness center, the company said last year. A company spokesman wouldn’t disclose how many employees currently work at its headquarters.


While competition with Amazon is intensifying, Wal-Mart is handling it better than most retailers. In the third quarter, same-store sales in its home market rose the most in more than eight years. Overall, the holiday shopping season was the best for U.S. retailers since the Great Recession. Wal-Mart reports its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 20.

The Wall Street Journal previously reported on the layoffs.

So, what does this mean for the company that wrecked small town America?

[Gandalf]

Presumably they're gearing up to compete more directly with Amazon, which makes sense as I recall they have a pretty strong logistical arm.

Maybe some of those giant stores can be turned into warehouses for online orders, with the items delivered by those in the glorious new sharing economy.

[Broomstick]

My experience around here is that the "giant stores" generally are NOT turned into warehouses,they simply stand empty. Two reasons, really: first, you don't need as many warehouses as you do retail stores; second, you get more efficiencies from a building designed and purpose-built to be a warehouse rather than trying to modify an existing store to be a warehouse.

A few stores will be repurposed, a few knocked-down and replaced by modern warehouse/fulfilment/logistical facilities, but most will be abandoned.