Sam’s Club layoffs reach 2,300

Around 2,300 workers from Sam’s Club will be axed from their jobs, Wal-Mart said. The news is the chain’s second largest cut after the 2010 layoffs, where 10,000 workers were involved.

Today’s layoffs cover 2 percent of Sam’s Club’s overall workforce of around 116,000 employees in 630 units located in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Middle managers will be affected.

The chain said that the cuts are aimed at salaried assistant managers and a few hourly workers. Sam’s Club said that it wants to be more nimble to better compete with rival stores including Costco Wholesale Corp. and Amazon, the world’s largest online retail company.

Sam’s Club is the latest chain to announce job cuts early this year. Target, Macy’s Inc., and J.C. Penney also announced layoffs.

Sam’s Club spokesman Bill Durling said that the move was right to improve the positioning of the company. “We are trying to rebalance our resources in the field to make sure we are investing in the clubs that have the higher growth potential and balancing resources across the chain,” he told the Associated Press.

Beginning next month, the chain will open 15 or more stores. As for the affected workers, they will still recieve pay for the next 60 days. The 60-day period will also give them ample time to apply for job opportunities at Wal-Mart stores and other Sam’s Club’s operations.