Walmart Store Announces A 'No Quit Program' & Tells Employees To Meet With Management Before Resigning
Is adding extra steps to quitting really going to keep anyone from resigning?
Victoria Ditkovsky / Shutterstock The retail sector is still gripped by a worker shortage, and at least one Walmart store has come up with what it seems to think is a clever solution — try to talk people out of quitting.
If the online response to the viral notice is any indication, the approach is likely to backfire entirely, and it has employees crying foul about being coerced to stay at a job that they're quitting for a reason.
A retail worker's Walmart store announced it has a 'No Quit Program' for those who want to resign.
Despite how many people seem to be struggling to find work these days, America's pandemic-induced labor shortages have largely persisted, and sectors that require in-person attendance, like retail, are the hardest hit according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Experts say the problem is unlikely to be solved any time soon, and Walmart itself was hit so hard by the trend that corporate began offering benefits like retention bonuses of up to $1000 — an unthinkable move for a company so notorious for underpaying workers — to attract and keep new employees.
The company has since resorted to other techniques to try to stem the flow of employees out of their stores by trying to make the process of quitting more time-consuming and cumbersome — and also manipulative.
The Walmart 'No Quit Program' asks employees to have a meeting with management before quitting.
"What are they gonna do, fire me?" a Reddit user who says they're a Walmart employee wrote in a post about the policy they found posted in their Walmart location.
"We value you, your growth and your contributions," the notice read, adding in all caps, "we have a no quit program." What on Earth is a "no quit program?"
Reddit
It's a meeting with management to discuss why you're quitting so they can try to convince you to stay, from the sounds of it. "We feel that many situations can be resolved," the notice goes on to say. "We ask that any Associate, prior to deciding to quit, speak with their store manager."
Walmart has one of the highest employee turnover rates in the country and many assumed that was the reason for the notice.
What exactly Walmart could possibly say to retain employees in these meetings is a mystery. Retail jobs are retail jobs, and when it comes to everything from pay to benefits, Walmart has long been notorious for being one of the lowest tiers in the industry.
They have worked toward changing that in recent years — likely by necessity. Starting pay at Walmart now ranges $14-$19 an hour depending on location.
But even after its efforts to modernize its pay structure, the company has shown it's not quite as bothered by its prior reputation as one might think — the company actually lowered starting pay for many positions in 2023.
Unsurprisingly, Walmart also has one of the highest employee turnover rates, estimated by analysts to be around 70%. Other Walmart employees on Reddit theorized that was the reason for this absurd notice. "Who wants to guess what store has corporate up their [behind] for turnover?" one Redditor joked.
Another theorized how this "meeting" was likely to go. "'Can you beat better pay, better/more hours, better benefits, or a more fulfilling job? No? OK, I quit,'" the user joked.
Regardless, policies like this are totally voluntary and not enforceable by law.
Whatever the intent or purpose of this absurd procedure, the end result is likely to be nothing but wasted time, because workers are under no obligation to comply with Walmart's request.
So-called "at will" employment laws, intended to tamp down unionization efforts and on the books in every U.S. state except Montana, mean that employers can fire employees at any time so long as the reason for firing isn't illegal, like discrimination.
But they also stipulate that employees do not have to give any reason whatsoever for quitting a job, and they certainly don't have to meet with managers to talk about it.
In fact, it's probably best if employees refuse to do so. Many online pointed out that part of the purpose of such meetings is so Walmart's management can document reasons to deny any claims for unemployment benefits, though procedures for such benefits vary state to state.
So if you want to quit, quit. You don't owe it to Walmart or any other employer to explain why you're leaving, and you're not required by law to indulge their curiosities either.
John Sundholm is a news and entertainment writer who covers pop culture, social justice and human interest topics.