In a sign that hourly wages are rapidly rising, Bank of America just upped the game for everyone else.
The bank announced it will raise its U.S. minimum hourly wage to $25 by 2025. Last year, the company raised its U.S. minimum wage to $20 per hour.
In addition, Bank of America announced that all its U.S. vendors are now required to pay their employees dedicated to the bank, at or above $15 per hour. Today, over 99% of the company’s more than 2,000 U.S. vendor firms and 43,000 vendor employees are at or above the $15 per hour rate, as a result of the implementation of this policy.
“A core tenet of responsible growth is our commitment to being a great place to work which means investing in the people who serve our clients,” said Sheri Bronstein, chief human resources officer at Bank of America. “That includes providing strong pay and competitive benefits to help them and their families, so that we continue to attract and retain the best talent.”
Sheri Bronstein, chief human resources officer
Bank of America’s increase to paying $25 per hour builds on the company’s history of being an industry leader in establishing a minimum rate of pay for its U.S. hourly employees. Since 2010, the company’s minimum hourly wage will have increased by more than 121% (an increase of nearly $14 per hour). In the last four years, Bank of America raised the minimum hourly wage to $15; in 2019 it rose to $17 and in 2020, to $20 — one year ahead of schedule.
Bank of America’s pay-for-performance philosophy reinforces the company’s core values and culture by inspiring employees to do great work, encouraging and retaining talent, and building trust within teams. Its efforts have been recognized by a number of external organizations including LinkedIn and Fortune, as the only financial services company included in Fortune’s “Best Big Companies to Work For” list for three consecutive years.