OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

New York -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Tuesday said it will no longer provide health benefits to part-time associates who work less than 30 hours a week in a move to control its rising healthcare costs. The chain, the nation’s largest private employer, said the decision will impact about 2% of its total U.S. work force.

The announcement follows similar decisions by Target, Home Depot, Walgreens and Trader Joe’s to cut health insurance benefits for part-time associates.  

Mount Laurel, N.J. -- Agilence announced that Coborn's will deploy the Retail 20/20 exception reporting solution to reduce shrink and improve in-store operations.

Aliso Viejo, Calif. - Johnny Rockets has reached its first agreement to distribute private label menu items for home consumption. Blackwood Industries, Inc., based in Orlando, Florida, has been selected to distribute branded hamburger patties and other related products via retail, as of Oct. 1, 2015.  

This comes on the heels of a recent Johnny Rockets announcement to launch Johnny Rockets Route 66 and Johnny Rockets Express restaurant banners.

New York -- Associated Foods Stores president Robert Sigel announced that Zulema Wiscovitch has joined the company as executive VP and chief administrative officer.

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Curbside, a new startup that specializes in same-day pickup from local stores, launched its service on Monday with several retailers on board, including a pilot with Target Corp.

The new service is currently available in 10 Target stores across the greater San Francisco Bay area, including the retailer’s Metreon and Geary St. locations downtown.  

Franklin, Tenn. – Mobile POS technology is growing in popularity among retailers, particularly in the enterprise space, according to the new Mobile POS Software Market Share report from global research and advisory firm IHL.

Bentonville, Ark. – Walmart is expanding its role in health care. The retail giant is teaming up with DirectHealth.com, an online health insurance comparison site and agency, to set up counters in its stores where shoppers can speak with licensed agents about available health insurance options. Walmart’s expanding role in health care comes as drug store chains, including Walgreens and CVS, continue to beef up their own healthcare services.

Framingham, Mass. -- Staples has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the 11th straight year.

The annual Dow Jones Sustainability Indices follows a best-in-class approach, including companies across all industries that outperform their peers in numerous sustainability metrics.