Business & Tech
Austell Target Workers To Get Pay Raise
Target announced Thursday all of its workers will make at least $13 an hour starting in June.
Target workers in Austell are about to see their paychecks go up. The retail giant announced Thursday that all of its workers will make at least $13 an hour beginning in June as part of its commitment to have a $15 minimum hourly wage by 2020.
“Our teams give guests their very best every day, so taking care of them and their families is a top priority,” the company said in a statement. “We do it by investing in their careers and well-being, through robust training and leadership programs, competitive benefits, discounts and support in times of need.”
Target raised its minimum hourly wage to $11 in 2017 and then $12 in 2018. Target workers will now make more than the state’s minimum wage of $5.15.
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Target's Austell location is at 4125 Austell Road.
The move comes amid increasing pressure from labor groups and some Democratic lawmakers concerned about the effects of rising income inequality. The federal minimum wage has sat at $7.25 an hour since 2009. Currently, 29 states and Washington, D.C. have a higher minimum wage than the federal rate, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
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Recently, lawmakers in Congress proposed the “Raise the Wage Act” to raise the federal hourly minimum to $15 by 2024, though the bill faces opposition from business groups and many Republicans.
Target’s wage increase comes as unemployment continues to fall. The rate ticked down to 3.8 percent in February 2019 from 4 percent in January, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That number was 4.7 percent two years ago, and 5.5 percent in February 2015.
Other major companies are also raising their minimum wages.
Amazon, perhaps most notably, raised its minimum wage to $15 an hour in November for all of its American workers. Walmart in January 2018 raised its minimum wage to $11 an hour, and just last week, fast food giant McDonald’s announced it would no longer lobby against minimum wage hikes at any level.
Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.
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