World’s Largest Retailer Ups Pay for First Year Truckers to Around $100K

From Tyler to Longview, folks, if you are looking for a great paying job, with long hours, but where you get to travel across the U.S., and earn a solid paycheck, this may be for you.

Walmart just upped their minimum pay for first-year long-haul driver and it may send a lot folks scrambling for their CDL.

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If you didn't know, Walmart is one of the few retail chains that actually run their own trucking fleet, and as trucker seats get harder to fill, they are now raising the average starting salary for first-year drivers. In '21 first-year drivers could expect to make from around $88,000, now it's going to range from $95,000 to $110,000.

That right, six figures, out the gate, to drive for Walmart.

Via ABC 7 Chicago, the latest pay bump will "help us continue to hire aggressively to meet all-time high demand from customers," a Walmart spokesperson said in an email.

Walmart needs drivers to deliver goods to stores and e-commerce warehouses, as well as meet growing demand for customers' online orders. Walmart added more than 4,500 drivers last year, a record hiring spree for the company, which employs around 12,000 truck drivers.

In an industry that's still struggling from the pandemic, hours are long, at times the job can be grueling, but it is a necessary job. Did you know that round 70% of American freight moves on trucks? Not trains or planes, on trucks. Which explains why Walmart is ready to pay a hefty salary.

Despite the incentives, the same story reported that companies "have raised pay to recruit drivers and stay competitive, but the trucking industry said last year it was still short 80,000 drivers."

Perhaps cross-country driving isn't your thing? Check this out: