Walmart has been expanding the proportion of women among its officers to 36% by mid-2022 up 5% from two years ago, Donna Morris, the company’s chief people officer pointed out in a blog post celebrating Women’s History Month, and it intends to continue creating opportunities and support initiatives with female employees in mind.
Morris pointed out that Walmart is the largest private employer of women in the United States. Women represent 53% of the company’s global workforce of over two million. As such, Morris stated, fostering a culture of belonging is critical. So Walmart tracks representation data and reports the results twice a year to drive transparency and accountability.
In addition to internal readings, external reports tell Walmart that it’s improving female representation, Morris said, and the company plans to continue working to make its global workforce representative of the communities where it operates and the overall labor force.
Even as it has expanded programs to foster employee growth, Walmart has made a concerted effort to ensure female workers are growing in their careers by providing a path of opportunity and advancement, she said. In the company’s U.S. Live Better U education program, 60% of enrollees and graduates are women. In Canada, Walmart’s Women in Retail program has helped female store manager representation, Morris noted.
“As we think about the future of work and shifting customer expectations, we’re focused on growing and upskilling our workforce,” Morris maintained. “From our stores and clubs to our DCs and the driver’s seat of our trucks, women have opportunities to expand their skills and grow in other areas of the business. In fact, Women in Trucking recently recognized us as a ‘Top Company for Women to Work for in Transportation’ in 2022.”
Morris added that Walmart also is addressing women’s well-being as it relates to employment and the workplace. As such, the company has been introducing new benefits in the U.S. in partnership with Kindbody, expanding adoption and surrogacy benefits to include financial support of up to $20,000 for related expenses. Walmart announced the Kindbody partnership in September of last year. The company designated Kindbody, which it described as a family-building benefits organization, as the fertility provider for its new Center of Excellence. Through the partnership, Walmart employees will have access to Kindbody’s network of facilities across the U.S., including a new state-of-the-art clinic and in vitro fertilization lab in Rogers, AK, that can provide comprehensive virtual, at-home and in-clinic care.
In an effort to improve maternal and infant health in underserved communities, Walmart now offers Doula services, which support pregnant women, in Georgia, Louisiana, Indiana and Illinois. Morris added that Walmart understands family support extends to aging family members and that it will continue to bolster emotional, physical and financial well-being benefits with that under consideration.
