Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, has announced significant job cuts as part of its ongoing efforts to simplify its organizational structure. In addition, the company is eliminating hundreds of store-support positions. This extends to roles such as market coordinators, who assist market managers in the day-to-day operations of the market. This decision comes on the heels of other layoffs earlier this year and is indicative of a broader trend of reorganizing within the organization.
The recent cuts hit positions that train and oversee store operations. Market coordinators, some of whom have corporate type positions and in turn oversee different store managers, are included in these cuts as well. These regional coordinators are responsible for a dozen or more store managers apiece. They are the backbone that ensures stores operate smoothly and successfully. By cutting out these positions, Walmart plans to make its management layers less cumbersome and its operations easier to navigate.
In early February, Walmart made a big move to change the composition of its workforce. They shuttered their office in North Carolina, moving employees to their main hubs in California and Arkansas. The company’s new leadership has consistently communicated that thriving – and surviving – in a rapidly-changing retail landscape is imperative. That focus has spurred a number of changes to structural defaults.
On top of eliminating thousands of jobs, Walmart is planning to increase prices on certain items as well. This expensive boom is fueled by the steep prices due to tariffs imposed in the former President Donald Trump’s administration. Because of these tariffs, the retailer has been under extreme financial duress, meaning swift adaptations to its operational playbook standards have been crucial.
While these cuts in labor may be required, Walmart still has a long reach around the globe—as of May 2023, employing close to 2.1 million associates worldwide. The firm is committed to providing deeply meaningful and fulfilling work. Along the way, it artfully threads the needle through tightening economic uncertainty and the retail apocalypse shockwaves shaking up the competitive landscape.