ALTOONA, Pa. -- To further demonstrate its commitment to offering employees a great place to work and a competitive total compensation package, convenience-store retailer Sheetz Inc. said it will invest more than $15 million to raise the wages of store employees across the company without cutting back on hours for full-time employees.
As reported in a McLane Co./CSP Daily News Flash, the company employs more than 17,000 people across more than 500 c-stores.
The minimum wage debate has heated up in recent years, especially in the retail and foodservice industries. Convenience-store retailers come down on both sides.
“While other businesses in the industry might have to cut back on employee hours or new hires as a result of wage increases, Sheetz is working hard to provide full-time hours to as many employees as possible, providing them with an opportunity to earn more and secure health benefits,” said Stephanie Doliveira, vice president of human resources at Sheetz.
“As a family-owned business, we’re committed to attracting, retaining and developing the best people,” she said. “We believe that paying wages at the upper end of the retail scale is necessary to achieve that goal. In addition to paying competitive wages, we provide our employees with increases based upon tenure, access to health insurance, quarterly bonuses, college tuition reimbursement, adoption assistance and paid time off, among many other benefits, continuing to prove that Sheetz strives to be a great place to work.”
Great Place to Work and Fortune magazine recently recognized Sheetz as one of the 20 Best Workplaces in Retail based on the quality of the company’s pay and benefits, opportunities for advancement, support for employees’ personal lives, management ethics and day-to-day respect for staff. They ranked Sheetz as No. 8 on that list.
In November 2015, Fortune said, “The convenience-store chain … offers generous bonus schemes. There are quarterly bonuses for all team members, and 35% to 40% of the company’s pre-tax profits usually go towards these bonuses; in 2013, the company gave out around $40 million in bonus money. … The company also gives employees a 50% discount on prepared foods purchased in-store, and during work hours, coffee and fountain drinks are free.”
Acknowledging that honor, Sheetz president and CEO Joe Sheetz said, “It is our dream for our employees to tell us that they are happier clocking in than clocking out. Recognition like this proves that a companywide effort to build and nurture a positive culture truly pays off. We couldn't have done it without the favorable opinion of our employees and the supportive work environment they create.”
Altoona, Pa.-based Sheetz, with more than $6.9 billion in revenue and operates more than 500 convenience stores in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina. Sheetz provides a menu of MTO (Made-To-Order) sandwiches and salads, which are ordered through touch-screen order point terminals. All Sheetz convenience stores are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
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