St. Cloud Target Raising Minimum Wage

Since the pandemic of 2020... have you heard of that?  Some people have had to keep working and have talked about getting some "hazard pay".  Some places complied and others really didn't do anything about that, but still required employees to work.

Target did give their employees a bump in pay that was to be temporary.  But now, it seems that they are raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour.  Plus, they were given a $200 one time bonus.

Since 2017, Target Corporation has been increasing their minimum wage.  They went to $11 an hour in 2017, then they went to $13 an hour last year, and had a goal to go to $15 an hour by the end of 2020.  This had nothing to do with the pandemic.  But, the decision to go to $15 earlier than expected does have everything to do with the pandemic. Target has been considered an essential business.  They have remained open throughout this shut-down and they are giving their employees a bump in pay because they have had to continue to work under uncertain conditions.

This pay raise also keeps up with other businesses in the area such as Costco and Amazon and ahead of competitor Wal Mart.  And if some people have lost their jobs because of the shut down, this might make Target look like a good place to work.

“Workers are going to be looking around for jobs. And if they can get a job at Target over Walmart, they’re going to choose to do so,” said Erin Hatton, an associate professor at the University of Buffalo who researches the sociology of work.

According to Marketplace.org, Target will also continue to give paid COVID-19 benefits to employees who are at high risk like people who are 65 and over and can't, or shouldn't work during this time.