Walmart Starts Layoffs

By Douglas A. McIntyre Published Feb 5, 9:15AM EST

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Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) has begun layoffs as it consolidates into larger central offices.
However, the decision will not affect the retailer’s bottom line.

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Walmart Starts Layoffs — © monkeybusinessimages / Getty Images

Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT | MCD Price Prediction) has begun layoffs. This move is part of a plan to transfer people into larger central offices. However, it may not be the only reason for the move by America’s premier retailer.

Many of the people who are affected will move to world headquarters in Bentonville Arkansas, according to Fox Business. This means offices in Atlanta, Dallas, and Toronto will be shuttered

Walmart Chief People Officer Donna Morris wrote to workers, “Through this review process, we have eliminated some roles as we streamline how we work.” She also said the move was made to encourage “shared understanding” and “people working together in person.”

Unlike many layoffs, the decision will not affect the company’s bottom line. Walmart has 1.6 million workers in the United States and 4,606 stores. It says 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of one of its stores.

Walmart’s most recently posted financials showed e-commerce growth up 27%. Revenue rose 5.5% to $169.6 billion, while per-share earnings came in at $0.58. Its stock is up 78% in the past year, compared to a 22% gain for the S&P 500.

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About the Author Douglas A. McIntyre →

Douglas A. McIntyre is the co-founder, chief executive officer and editor in chief of 24/7 Wall St. and 24/7 Tempo. He has held these jobs since 2006.

McIntyre has written thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St. He is an expert on corporate finance, the automotive industry, media companies and international finance. He has edited articles on national demographics, sports, personal income and travel.

His work has been quoted or mentioned in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, NBC News, Time, The New Yorker, HuffPost USA Today, Business Insider, Yahoo, AOL, MarketWatch, The Atlantic, Bloomberg, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Forbes, The Guardian and many other major publications. McIntyre has been a guest on CNBC, the BBC and television and radio stations across the country.

A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, McIntyre also was president of The Harvard Advocate. Founded in 1866, the Advocate is the oldest college publication in the United States.

TheStreet.com, Comps.com and Edgar Online are some of the public companies for which McIntyre served on the board of directors. He was a Vicinity Corporation board member when the company was sold to Microsoft in 2002. He served on the audit committees of some of these companies.

McIntyre has been the CEO of FutureSource, a provider of trading terminals and news to commodities and futures traders. He was president of Switchboard, the online phone directory company. He served as chairman and CEO of On2 Technologies, the video compression company that provided video compression software for Adobe’s Flash. Google bought On2 in 2009.