Walmart's wages targeted by new Bernie Sanders legislation

Walmart has been targeted by a new bill that would prevent large companies from completing stock buy-backs unless their employees are paid at least $15 an hour, which was introduced by senator Bernie Sanders.

The legislation is titled The Stop WALMART Act, or The Stop Welfare for Any Large Monopoly Amassing Revenue from Taxpayers Act, and would also require larger employers to give employees up to seven days of paid sick leave for themselves or to care for family members and limit chief executive compensation to no more than 150 times the median pay of all staffers.

"The Walton family, the owners of Walmart, are the wealthiest family in America with a net worth of about $180bn. Meanwhile, most Walmart retail workers are working for horrendously low wages with minimal benefits. The wealthiest family in America must pay its workers a living wage," said Sanders in a statement.

Walmart in February increased its starting wage rate for hourly employees in the US to $11 and expanded some benefits.

Even so, chief executive Doug McMillon earned more than $22m last year, or 1,188 times the $19,177 earned by the supermarket chain’s typical worker.

The legislation is unlikely to progress through a Republican dominated Senate, but could gain traction in the House of Representatives after dominance was snatched by the Democrats in last week’s midterm elections.

Vermont senator Sanders has battled to pressurize large companies into raising wages before, in September unveiling the Stop BEZOS act, which targeted e-commerce giant Amazon by calling for a tax levy on companies that equaled the value of public benefits received by employees.

Consequently, Amazon upped its minimum wage to $15 per hour from 1 November but eliminated bonuses and stock awards for non-salaried workers.

Former Presidential candidate Sanders has also voiced his intention to press for a rise in the US national minimum wage from $7.20 to $15 an hour when the next session of Congress convenes in January.