Lowe’s To Give Frontline Associates $140 Million in Bonuses

Lowe’s staff are set to see a round of bonuses as the retailer continues to invest in its workforce.  

The home improvement retailer is planning to roll out $140 million in end-of-year bonuses to its frontline workers. 

This month, eligible assistant store managers and other front-line managers and supervisors will receive an end-of-year discretionary bonus of $5,000. Eligible full-time associates will receive $400, and eligible part-time associates will receive $200.

Discussing the news on Lowe’s fourth-quarter earnings call, Lowe’s CEO Marvin Ellison said, “This is our way of saying thank you to hourly associates and assistant managers who serve our customers and make our communities better. As I travel across the country visiting stores and conducting town halls to hear directly from our frontline associates, I'm consistently humbled by their passion, commitment and their expertise.”

Lowe’s also awards stock grants to its store managers and assistant store managers. Since 2018, the company said it has invested more than $3.5 billion in over $3.5 billion in incremental wages and share-based compensation for its frontline workers.

“I would like to start by thanking our frontline team for their relentless focus and execution this quarter,” said Joe McFarland, executive VP of stores. “Their efforts to serve our customers while tightly managing controllable expenses once again resulted in improved customer service scores and strong operating profit performance despite slower sales.”

Salary Shake Ups

Lowe’s is not the only retailer investing significant financial resources into its frontline staff. Walmart hit the news recently by introducing a new initiative whereby high-performing managers could potentially earn over $400,000 a year. Starting in April, eligible managers could receive stock grants valued at $20,000. The company also laid out plans to raise the average salary for store managers from $117,000 to $128,000 a year, with store managers eligible for yearly bonuses of up to 200% of their salary. 

A recent analysis but USA Today revealed that the retail industry ranks No. 8 as the industry where employees are most frustrated about pay overall. Transportation and Logistics ranked No. 9 and Packaged Goods No. 15. 

Retail store managers are among some of the hardest staff to retain, with a 2022 McKinsey study showing that 63% of frontline retail managers were thinking about quitting in the near future.