Walmart is raising the starting pay for truck drivers to $95,000 to $110,000 as part of its new private fleet development program that aims to expand the retailer's driver workforce.
Walmart currently employs 12,000 drivers. The starting pay for drivers was previously $87,000, a Walmart spokesperson confirmed to the Wall Street Journal. The average salary for truck drivers is $78,526 to $80,566, according to Indeed.com.
The pay raise coincides with Walmart's launch of its private fleet development program, a 12-week course for Walmart associates in other roles to earn their commercial driver's license and become truck drivers with the company's fleet. Current fleet drivers serve as instructors in the program, which consists of classroom learning through Walmart's Live Better U educational program and actual driving.
"At the end of the classroom portion of the training, associates graduate with their CDL through [Live Better U], months of real-world experience under trained instructors, and a dedicated mentor to help them smoothly transition into their new role. In lieu of a graduation cap, they get something just as distinguished: a Walmart Private Fleet shirt and trucker cap," Walmart said in its news release.
The trucking industry was short a record 80,000 drivers in 2021, according to the American Trucking Associations. Trucks move about 72.5 percent of the nation's freight by weight.