Wal-Mart To Add 34,000 Jobs In 2017 Following Other Major Employers

Retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc WMT said it would add 34,000 jobs in 2017, including 10,000 retail jobs in the United States as part of its planned multi-billion dollar investment in the country.

Wal-Mart is planning to invest $6.8 billion in the US in the coming fiscal year to construct and remodel stores, clubs and distribution centers, and expand new services such as Online Grocery Pickup.

Wal-Mart said its investments would create about 10,000 retail jobs via the opening of 59 new, expanded and relocated Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club facilities as well as e-commerce services. The company has nearly 1.5 million associates in the US.

In addition, an estimated 24,000 construction jobs supported through the opening of those facilities, plus the remodeling and improvement of existing U.S. facilities.

By July, Wal-Mart will open 160 new training academies around the country, bringing the total number of Academies to 200. They would provide specialty training for up to six weeks to its 225,000 plus associates.

Wal-Mart’s announcement comes as peer Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN announced it will add more than 100,000 new jobs in the US in the next 18 months.

Shares of Wal-Mart closed Friday at $67.13. In the pre-market hours Tuesday, the stock is up 1 percent to $67.80.