WASHINGTON — Wayfair announced on Thursday that it is raising its minimum wage for all U.S. employees to $15 an hour.
The online home goods company said that the increase took effect on Monday, Jan. 3, and applies to all full-time, part-time and seasonal employees.
"Now, as we enter 2021, we are continuing to build upon our steadfast commitment to our team and their families by increasing minimum pay for all hourly employees,” said Niraj Shah, CEO, co-founder and co-chairman of Wayfair, in a statement.
As a result, the company said more than 40% of its hourly employees have received a pay increase.
On top of increasing the minimum wage, the Boston-based company said it is also offering other benefits to its employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic like bonuses, emergency time off and childcare support for all employees.
"We are fortunate to have an incredible team that puts our customers first each and every day and it is important to us that they feel supported and fairly compensated for the important work that they do," Shah added.
The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, although all but five states have adopted a state minimum wage higher than that.
According to the National Employment Law Project, 20 states raised their minimum wages at the start of 2020 and four more joined later in the year. A report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition found that people who work full-time minimum wage jobs cannot afford a fair market two-bedroom rental home in any state in the U.S.
Wayfair isn't the first company to raise its minimum wage in recent months. Walmart in September said it was raising the pay for approximately 165,000 of its employees. It said the new wage ranges between $18 and $21 an hour and can go up to $30 an hour in Walmart Supercenters.
Hobby Lobby at the beginning of October raised its hourly wage to $17. In July, Target bumped its starting wage to $15 an hour. In January, Walmart said it would be testing new higher wages for new hourly positions at 500 of its stores.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
