Home Depot's $1 billion investment in wages as sales slow took Wall Street by surprise, but paying workers more can pay off for big companies.
Irrespective of Home Depot's strong track record on Wall Street, Morgan Stanley analyst Simeon Gutman said he was somewhat surprised by the $1-billion outlay. "The investment community largely thought Home Depot was already in prime position in terms of wage rates," he said, noting a series of pay increases in recent years. And the fact that the company is anticipating less-than-rosy sales this year was another eyebrow-raiser.
The company also began the year with a new store leadership structure, creating new management positions and increasing the number of managers on the floor at any given time. "This is a meaningful investment that we believe will position us favorably in the marketplace," she said. Market leaders such as Home Depot, Walmart and Target that have scale should be in better positions than mid-size competitors to invest in their labor force, Gutman said. "They're behaving as they should given the tight labor market, showing leadership and not just thinking about a 12-month timeframe. They're thinking about 12 to 36 months.
In addition to the efficiency wage theory, there is significant empirical evidence that paying low wages hinders employees' ability to focus on the job and be productive, said Ton, who expounds on this topic in her forthcoming book, "The Case for Good Jobs."
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