Find a job with Journal-News: Ohio’s largest employer boosts paychecks


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More than 44,000 employees of Ohio’s largest employer got a bigger paycheck March 10 when Walmart raised wages as previously promised.

That includes more than 10,000 employees in Southwest Ohio working at Cincinnati- and Dayton-area Walmart Supercenters and Sam’s Clubs, according to one of the world’s largest retailers.

The increases are part of Walmart's two-year, $2.7 billion total investment nationwide in higher pay, better training, clearer career paths and additional educational opportunities for its workers, the company first announced in January.

Since Sameer Suri started working at the Fairfield Twp. Walmart store on Princeton Road a little more than a year ago on the overnight shift stocking inventory, he’s been promoted twice and received two raises, he said. He finds the job stability a plus, he said.

“First of all, Walmart is a Fortune 500,” Suri, of Hamilton, said, who now manages the electronics department. “No matter where you are in your life, Walmart is everywhere.”

“We don’t have to be worried about jobs,” he added.

Pay changes mean all associates hired before 2016 earn at least $10 an hour and new entry-level associates hired after Jan. 1 will continue to start at $9 an hour and will move to at least $10 an hour after successfully completing the company’s new retail skills and training program. Additionally, associates already earning more than $10 an hour will see their annual pay increase starting in March rather than waiting until their anniversary date, according to the company.

When these changes go into effect, impacting more than 1.1 million people nationwide, Walmart’s average full-time hourly wage will be $13.38 an hour and average part-time hourly wage will be $10.58 an hour.

Walmart is Ohio's largest private-sector employer with about 174 stores employing nearly 47,000 people, according to the most recent report from Ohio Development Services Agency.

The average annual wage for Ohio’s private sector was $45,486 in 2014, the most recent information available from Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Based on an average 2,087 work hours a year, that’s an average hourly wage of approximately $21.79.

Community First job fairs this week

Nonprofit Community First Solutions is holding this week a three-day hiring event to fill job openings for nurses and home caregivers.

The job fair times are: 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, March 17; 1 to 5 p.m. Friday, March 18; and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, March 19. Apply in-person at the nonprofit’s headquarters and resource center located at 230 Ludlow St., in downtown Hamilton.

Hopes are that holding job fairs at different times and after-hours will attract more applicants who can’t attend during regular 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. business hours, said Melissa Park, executive vice president of human resources for Community First.

Currently, there are about 15 licensed practical nurse job openings, 10 to 15 state tested nurse aide openings and another 10 to 15 in-home caregiver openings depending on the number of full- and part-time hires and schedules, Park said.

Those attending the hiring event should be prepared for more than just dropping off their resume.

“We would love it if they came smartly dressed for an interview with a resume in-hand prepared to meet with department managers,” she said. “We’re looking at this event to expedite the hiring process.”

For that reason, she also suggests applicants bring identification to complete a background check necessary for the health care field because on-the-spot interviews will be conducted. Sign-on bonuses are also offered, she said.

Community First — through its subdivisions Colonial, Community Behavioral Health, Community First Pharmacy and Partners in Prime — operates retirement communities, runs senior centers, provides mental health services and sells discount prescriptions, among other services. Altogether, the organization employs between 650 and 700 people.

“I think there’s a lot of competitiveness in the job market but I think there’s a lot of things about Community First that stand out as an employer of choice,” Park said. “For people that are interested in any type of caregiving and social support as a career, we offer a lot of diversity in breadth of opportunities.”

“This is a great place to not only have an entry-level position but also find opportunities to grow careers.”

For more information, call 785-4056 or apply online at www.community-first.org/careers.

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