Walmart Shareholders

30 • Walmart Shareholders • 6.2.2019 Mr. Sam Walton once told the co-founders of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals that Walmart and Sam's Club associates would amaze them. Since then, Walmart and Sam's Club associates, customers and members have raised nearly $1 billion to help kids live better. Walmart and Sam's Club associates continue going above and beyond to help sick and injured kids right in their local communities live better. They do this by raising funds for their local Children's Miracle Network Hospital, most of it raised one associate at a time, $1 at a time. The more than 30-year relationship between Walmart and Sam's Club and Children's Miracle Network Hospitals is a perfect match, given Walmart Giving's pillar of strengthening local communities and CMN Hospitals' model of ensuring all money raised stays local. Walmart and Sam's Club have impacted thousands of local communities through fundraising for CMN Hospitals. Today, 170 of the best children's hospitals in the U.S. and Canada are part of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. It's these hospitals that Walmart and Sam's Club associates, customers and members are supporting when they participate in fundraising activities. Given the cost and specialization of pediatric care, the need for donations is truly great. CMN Hospitals provide 32 million patient visits to more than 10 million children annually. In one day, these hospitals treat an average of 16,000 children for emergencies, 935 for diabetes, 2,218 for cancer, 925 in the newborn ICU and 2,329 for surgeries. The primary CMN Hospitals fundraiser for Walmart and Sam's Club is the annual register campaign. Associates are encouraged to ask every customer and member to make a donation to the Children's Miracle Network Hospital in their area when they check out. This year's campaign kicks off on Aug. 27 and runs through Sept. 23. Walmart and Sam's Club associates have certainly amazed everyone at Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, but most importantly, they have helped improve the lives of millions of sick and injured kids in thousands of local communities. The impact of $1 billion SponSor Content CMN Hospitals provide 32 million patient visits to more than 10 million children annually. NORTHWEST ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE STAFF REPORT Walmart Inc.'s hourly workers are now able to use banked, paid time off for unexpected ab- sences without incurring a penalty, the compa- ny announced in early February. The Bentonville retailer said in a news re- lease the new policy, called Protected PTO, was based on feedback from employees who wanted more flexibility to deal with unforeseen events. Any unscheduled absence from work, even though covered by paid time off, in most cas- es resulted in a mark on the employee's atten- dance record, the company said. The worker would be fired after nine such absences. Under the new policy, covered absences won't affect an employee's attendance record. Workers can bank up to 48 hours of paid time off in a year, and any unused time will roll over to the next year. No previous approval is re- quired to take the accumulated time off. Walmart has 1.1 million hourly workers na- tionwide. All will start with a clean attendance slate, the company said in February. Some states and cities across the country have enacted laws requiring companies to offer paid sick leave, so Walmart workers in those areas already have that benefit. The new policy will ensure employees companywide are cov - ered. Laws vary, and a few jurisdictions don't al- low a cap such as Walmart's 48 hours. In those areas, Walmart spokesman Justin Rushing said, the company must comply with local law. Ten states require employers to provide paid sick time, according to the National Con- ference of State Legislatures,: Arizona, Cali- fornia, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Washington, D.C., also re- quires the benefit. Walmart will begin rewarding hourly work- ers who have perfect attendance records along with the new timeoff policy. They'll receive an additional 25 percent on the quarterly cash bonuses that are awarded based on the perfor- mance of their stores. Drew Holler, vice president of associate experience for Walmart's U.S. division, said in the release that more than 300,000 hourly workers have "spotless" attendance records. Those employees will get their bonuses in May, Rushing said. The goal of the new paid time off and re - ward for attendance policies is delivering a more consistent experience for customers and rewarding the comany's most dependable asso- ciates, the release said. "These changes are based directly on feed- back from associates who wanted more flex- ibility when life happens, while also being rewarded for consistently showing up to work and serving our customers," it says. Walmart has made other recent changes to improve worker pay and benefits that coincide with a low national unemployment rate. Last year, the retailer raised its starting wage to $11 an hour. It also expanded parental leave, relaxed its dress code and introduced a new scheduling system that gives employees more control over their hours and lets them swap shifts with co-workers. The latest policy change, "along with previ - ous wage investments, parental leave, adoption and other benefits, is another important step on our journey to be the employer of choice," Hol- ler said in the release. Walmart alters time-off policy for its workers Change offers absence flexibility NWA Democrat-Gazette/J.T. WAMPLER Stephany Ponce of Springdale selects grocery items May 3 at Walmart on Pleasant Crossing in Rogers. Ponce is a personal shopper at the store, filling orders for pick-up.

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