Target, a Minnesota-based company, has decided to give $300,000,000 to its staff in addition to normal wages to support its workers during the COVID-19 outbreak.
The company announced Friday that it will be “raising its industry-leading pay by $2 an hour until at least May 2” for “frontline team members,” those who work in stores restocking shelves and ringing up customers. Some Target employees will also receive other monetary bonuses, and those who are older than 65, pregnant or have underlying medical conditions can now take paid leave for 30 days.
This generous offering comes just one day Target announced plans to make “back-up [child] care will be available to all,” given recent school and daycare closures.
Target CEO Brian Cornell is proud of the the “heroic” work of his employees.
“As I’ve said from the outset, a commitment to help all families is at the heart of Target’s purpose. Our goal is to be here for you and keep navigating through this uncertainty together – and we will do everything in our power to live up to that promise,” he wrote in an open letter.
Minnesota grocers have been in the spotlight for the last several days. Governor Tim Walz recently declared grocery store employees tier 2 emergency workers, entitling them to state-funded childcare during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Walz also mandated the closure of all restaurants, Sunday, a controversial move that placed even more burden on food stores, many of whom have already reduced their hours of operation, implemented curbside pickup or set aside time exclusively for those those who are vulnerable to the virus to shop without potentially infectious crowds.
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However, despite their generosity and reactivity to the COVID-19 situation, many grocery stores face harsh criticism from left-leaning pundits and controversy developed by wreckless social media stunts.
Becky Dernbach, a contributor to the progressive newsite Mother Jones recently published an article asserting that “grocery clerks are often underpaid and underappreciated.” This rhetoric has birthed significant online support for raises higher than those which have already been offered. Some feel that store clerks deserve up to $25 an hour for their work amidst that pandemic.
Groups of teenagers have also been spotted in stores across the nation intentionally coughing on their fellow shoppers and even spitting on produce as “#CoronavirusPrank” trend that’s gained significant traction on the Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok, reports the Daily Caller.
262 Americans have died of COVID-19– less than 1% of those who have been infected, according to National Review, as of Friday. 115 Minnesotans have contracted the disease, according to the state’s Department of Health, as of Friday.
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