Wal-Mart Tests Computerized Scheduling System

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Introduces New Electronic Employee-Scheduling System

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. recently introduced a new electronic employee-scheduling system at its more than 650 U.S. grocery stores, a move the retailer says is meant to give employees more consistency and transparency in arranging their shifts while better serving customers during busy times.

The nation’s largest retailer rolled out the new system, Customer First Scheduling, in late July to test what works well and what can be improved before potentially introducing it in its supercenters nationwide. The program is part of Wal-Mart’s $2.7 billion, two-year investment to provide store associates with more scheduling choices, pay and training.

Addressing the Scheduling Crisis

According to a 2015 study by Montreal-based employee relationship management company WorkJam, 56 percent of hourly employees who work variable shifts rarely receive their schedules more than a week in advance, and 29 percent rarely receive consistent work schedules. The study report, An Inside Look at the Hiring and Scheduling Crisis in the Hourly Workforce, also reveals that 26 percent of hourly workers had quit their previous job because of an inconsistent schedule.

The study also found:

• 57 percent of companies rely on manual processes when scheduling employees.
• 68 percent communicate schedules by posting charts in break rooms or communal spaces.
• 43 percent of employees communicate their availability through written requests.
• 31 percent tell their shift manager over the phone or in person.
• 11 percent tell their shift manager over e-mail.

“The needs of customers are changing, and so are the needs of associates, who want more control and ownership of their schedule and better visibility into available hours,” Wal-Mart spokesman Kory Lundberg told SHRM Online via e-mail.

The company’s new scheduling program is designed to get the right people in the right place at the right time to better serve customers. Wal-Mart reallocates work hours to specific times and departments based on periods of higher customer traffic, ensuring better task management and store preparation.

Employee Schedule Consistency

The scheduling program aims to offer employees consistency with fixed shifts and transparency into available unfilled shifts. Associates without a fixed shift will tell their manager what hours they are “truly and consistently available to work each week” using digital communication tools.

Wal-Mart is also building an app that will enable employees to see all the unfilled shifts in their store and allow them to sign up for hours on a first-come, first-served basis. This move toward “true availability” is a significant shift in how the frontline workforce manages work-life balance.

“The policy takes some important steps to address the crisis of unstable scheduling and understaffing,” said the Organization United for Respect at Walmart (OUR Walmart) in a statement. However, the group noted that without detailing the percentage of the workforce with access to fixed shifts, it remains unclear if the system fully addresses the need for consistent, full-time schedules.