Return to work…in a new city, Walmart tells employees

Walmart’s technology employees face relocation and more frequent in-person work as the retail giant closes offices in three cities.
By: | February 17, 2023

In its latest initiative to have employees return to in-person work, Walmart is now requiring its technology employees to work in the office for a minimum of two days each week.

The decision was announced in an internal memo issued by Suresh Kumar, CTO of Walmart, and comes with an added catch, as the retail giant has also announced that it will be closing its US offices in Austin, Carlsbad, and Portland. This means that affected employees will have to either relocate to one of Walmart’s remaining primary offices, such as its headquarters in Bentonville, or leave the organisation.

The memo further stated that Walmart would pay severance to those who decide to leave instead of relocating and would cover the costs of those who choose to transfer. Walmart has not set a timeline for the relocation.

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The closure of offices in the three cities might present a challenge to employees who will have to move closer to the remaining primary offices. Specifically, employees who choose to move to the Bentonville headquarters might be asked to return to office more frequently, as Walmart mandated most head office employees to work in the office five days a week since last year, reported Fortune.