New Safford location co-manager is enrolled in the program
By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – We know Walmart as a giant retailer where one can seemingly pick up both groceries and a variety of goods at any hour of the day. But did you know the company is also assisting its employees with their education?
The Live Better U program allows every one of Walmart’s roughly 1.5 million store associates who have been with the company for at least 90 days to be eligible to earn a college degree from six nonprofit universities for just $1 per day of schooling. The program also covers costs for books and fees.
Michelle Malashock, Walmart’s Director of Media Relations, told the Gila Herald that the program offers the degrees to help develop the company’s associates to remain relevant in a changing economy and help them move up the food chain in the company from entry-level jobs to higher-paying positions.
“Maybe you’re a cashier and you want to be a Java programmer,” Malashock said. “We provide the opportunity for that associate to do so and then they are well-positioned. Not only do they have great store experience, which, frankly, is super relevant to working in the technology home office environment, but then they have that certificate on top of it and then they’re well-positioned to stay with Walmart for their career.”
Since the program was launched nearly one year ago, Walmart has had 104 store associates in Arizona participate in the program who have earned 855 credit hours of college. Nationally, the company has more than 13,000 associates in the program who have completed more than 36,000 credit hours worth more than $17.5 million. Additionally, Walmart has paid roughly $450,000 in books and fees.
There are more than 50 different areas of study which lead mostly to bachelor degrees but also include associate degrees and a few certificate career diploma programs. The program began with just business administration and supply chain degrees but now also offer 14 new technology degrees and certificates.
The Live U Better also offers high school completion and language programs. The high school programs are completely free and include free ACT and SAT prep as well as up to seven college credit hours through the Live Better U’s College Start program for employees to take while still in high school.
Classes are taken online and can be taken at the students’ own pace so workers can be successful while still working their day jobs.
“The goal of this is to be flexible so associates can manage their work and their family commitments on top of school,” Malashock said. “Most of our associates don’t really have the desire to go and sit in the classroom. They actually like the opportunity to learn at their own pace and in their own timeframe.”
That sentiment was echoed by the Safford location’s new co-manager, Abil Zafari, who has balanced his schooling, work, and family life for the past year. Zafari is set to begin his tenure at the Safford location Sept. 30.
Zafari has been with the company for 12 years and started out as a cashier. He is now in charge of half the store (the grocery side) and is just one step below his ultimate goal of becoming a store manager. He is enrolled in the Live Better U program and is headed toward a bachelor degree in business administration. He said he began with Walmart while in high school and after graduation he found balancing work, family life, and college difficult and eventually stopped going to school. The store’s new program has enabled Zafari to go back to school and will be able to complete his degree.
“It’s all online, so it makes it easy,” Zafari said. “The program I chose is at my own pace, so as long as I complete an assignment, quiz, or exam every two weeks, or, at the latest, every 28 days, I continue with the program. When I have a lot of time I work more online classes and get more assignments done so I can get it done faster. And when I get busy and don’t have time I do less, so it works very well with my work.”
Zafari said he feels that the program is an amazing asset to the company and its employees.
“For people who say they can’t afford an education or they’re not able to, this is really an amazing investment, especially for young people who start working at Walmart and they can’t afford to go to school,” he said.
“It’s a really amazing investment that they (Walmart) have made.”
While there is no requirement for those in the program to stay with Walmart, Malashock said there are numerous opportunities for those to move up the ranks within the company.
“Our CEO started out unloading trucks,” Malashock said. “So, it’s just as likely that somebody unloading trucks or serving groceries can grow to become a leader.”
According to Malashock, 75 percent of Walmart’s managing associates started as hourly associates and 300 store managers started with the company while still in high school.
“There is a pipeline of talent that starts at the store level and moves through the ranks and we just think this is going to be another way to enable that and accelerate it and help our associates feel even more prepared to take on those roles,” Malashock said.
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