Walmart reportedly increasing bonus, stock awards for some managers, raising their max to more than $600,000

Walmart reportedly is increasing bonus and stock awards for some regional store managers, and eliminating some perks for office workers, per a WSJ report.

At the same time, Walmart is cutting back on perks for office-based staff such as gradually ending remote work, cutting some pay and shifting workers to the same health-insurance plans offered to most store staff, the WSJ report said.

Regional managers responsible for clusters of a dozen Walmart stores—a role known as a market manager—will be able to earn between $420,000 and $620,000 if they get their full bonuses this year. That total is up from a range of roughly $320,000 to $570,000 last year, the WSJ report said.

The report also noted that a Walmart spokeswoman said that stock grants for market managers will increase to $100,000 a year, up from $75,000, while potential annual bonuses will rise to 100% of base pay, up from 90%.

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Minimum base pay will increase to $160,000 a year, up from $130,000. The maximum a market manager can earn in base pay will stay at $260,000 a year.

Walmart employs around 440 market managers in the United States that oversee around 4,600 stores, according to the report, which also noted that Walmart has been paying its store-level staff and managers more in recent years to keep turnover low and attract top talent, executives have said. 

Last year, Walmart added an annual bonus for hourly store workers and increased compensation for individual store managers so that top performers can earn more than $400,000 a year. Giving market managers who oversee those store managers a raise is the next step, the Walmart spokeswoman said, per the report.

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 Walmart has reportedly cut perks for rank-and-file office staff. Recently some corporate employees who work in offices outside of the Bentonville, Ark., headquarters were told their healthcare coverage will become less generous next year, according to people familiar with the situation.

The new plan options include higher deductibles. One of the new plans will require a $5,500 annual deductible for a worker and their family, according to documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The change, which will take effect in 2026  will affect less than 1% of corporate staff 2026, a spokeswoman said. The legacy plans were the result of acquisitions, she said, and the change will bring greater parity to medical plans for all workers, per the report.