Once again, Walmart is working towards bettering the lives of their employees. The mega conglomerate has decided to invest almost $1 billion over the next five years towards career-driven training and development for their employees.
Considering that it’s the biggest U.S. private employer, Walmart recently announced that they will be paying 100% of the college tuition, as well as the books required, for their workers enrolled in the company’s Live Better U (LBU) education program.
Starting August 16, they will be removing the $1 a day fee for their associates, which will make their education programs paid for by the multinational retail corporation.
What this means is that about 1.5 million part-time and full-time Walmart and Sam’s Club employees within the United States can work towards gaining college degrees or learning certain trade skills minus the strain of having to pay for their education or the anxiety over rising debt from exorbitant tuition fees.
In a statement from Lorraine Stomski, Walmart’s Senior Vice President of Learning and Leadership, she said, “We are creating a path of opportunity for our associates to grow their careers at Walmart, so they can continue to build lives for themselves and their families. This investment is another way we can support our associates to pursue their passion and purpose while removing the barriers that too often keep adult working learners from obtaining degrees.”
The LBU program was created after consulting with experts, taking into review and consideration similar employer-provided education programs, as well as studying other research that has shown which programs are geared toward higher completion rates in the adult working group of learners.
The data they gathered is what helped them come up with the initial $1 a day approach. But considering the way the job market and the economy have shifted, Walmart has always been one to look for innovative ways to embolden their employees to pursue their educations further.
VP Stomski added, “We’re also excited to add in-demand college degree and certificate options in business administration, supply chain, and cybersecurity. These additional offerings join a robust catalog of programs to set associates up for new career opportunities. Our education offerings tie directly to our growth areas at Walmart, and what better way to fill the pipeline of future talent than with our own associates.”
Moreover, the company has also added four more academic partners such as the University of Arizona, the University of Denver, Johnson & Wales University, and Pathstream. These additional academic partners complete the already existing ones on their roster like Penn Foster, Wilmington University, Brandman University, Voxy EnGen, Southern New Hampshire University, and Purdue University Global.
Our Live Better U program just got better. We’re proud to announce we’ll now pay 100% of college tuition and books for our associates seeking additional education, a planned investment of nearly $1 billion over the next five years. https://t.co/a4GTT9dTmu pic.twitter.com/wxx3xCmWg0
— Walmart Inc. (@WalmartInc) July 27, 2021
These particular institutions were picked precisely for their success stories of adult working learner programs. These institutions are also well known for their pursuit of degree completion for those that take the said programs.
Notably, cost has always been an issue when it comes to adults attempting to earn their degrees while working. This is evident in the massive student loan debt, which currently sits at over $1.7 trillion in the United States.
Since first launching the LBU program back in 2018, more than 52,000 employees have joined the program, while at least 8,000 managed to graduate. And during this summer alone, 28,000 associates have been actively participating in one of the LBU programs.
CEO & co-founder of Guild Education, Rachel Carison, also shared, “As the company making one of the nation’s largest investments in education for America’s workforce, Walmart is setting a new standard for what it looks like to prepare workers for the jobs of the future. Walmart is creating growth opportunities for their workforce and preparing them for the future of work.”
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