New York (CNN Business) Fresh off a campaign to get Amazon to raise its minimum wage, Senator Bernie Sanders is now shining his progressive spotlight on Walmart.

Sanders on Thursday introduced a bill, titled the Stop Walmart Act, that would prevent large companies from buying back stock unless they pay all employees at least $15 an hour, allow workers to earn up to seven days of paid sick leave and limit CEO compensation to no more than 150 times the median pay of all staffers.

Calling Walmart the poster child for corporate greed, Sanders noted that the company made $13 billion in profits last year and paid CEO Doug McMillon more than $22 million, or 1,188 times its typical worker, who earned $19,177.

The Walton family of Walmart is the wealthiest family in America, worth $180 billion. Middle class taxpayers should not have to subsidize Walmart's horrendously low wages to the tune of at least $6.2 billion every year. — Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) November 15, 2018

Walmart, which this past February raised its minimum wage to $11 an hour, said it offers competitive wages and benefits, as well as the opportunity to advance and earn higher pay.

"We have increased our starting wages by more than 50% in the last three years and currently have an average hourly total compensation of more than $17.50 an hour," the company said in a statement. "At the same time, we've also added new benefits like paid time off, advanced job training, paid family leave and college for $1 a day."

Read More</s>After his Stop BEZOS Act appeared to help spur Amazon to raise pay for its workers, Sen. Bernie Sanders launched a similar effort Thursday that targets Walmart.

The Stop WALMART Act — introduced by both the Vermont independent and Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat — would block big employers from buying back stock unless they pay all employees $15 an hour. Companies also would have to ensure that their CEO’s compensation is capped at no more than 150 times the median pay of all workers, as well as allow their employees to earn up to seven days of paid sick leave.

The full name for the legislation is the Stop Welfare for Any Large Monopoly Amassing Revenue from Taxpayers Act. It defines big employers as those with more than 500 workers.

“The time is long overdue for the Walton family to pay its workers a living wage,” Sanders said in a statement, referring to the family that owns about half of the retail giant. “If large, profitable corporations like Amazon AMZN, -0.60% and Disney DIS, -1.39% can pay all of their workers a minimum wage of at least $15 an hour, so can Walmart WMT, -0.36% .”

Share repurchases are widely viewed as one of the stock market’s key drivers in recent years. Sanders and Khanna have argued that Walmart should be spending money on pay hikes, rather than on buybacks that “enrich its executives and shareholders.”

The legislation has little chance of getting the support of the Republican-controlled Senate. But it could fare better in the House in January, following last week’s midterm elections in which the Democrats won back control of that chamber.

Sanders and Khanna rolled out the Stop BEZOS Act in early September. That legislation was aimed at taxing corporations for the federal benefits their employees received.

A month later, Amazon.com Inc.CEO Jeff Bezos raised the minimum wage for all the e-commerce heavyweight’s U.S. workers to $15 an hour. Sanders praised the move and said it would be “a shot heard around the world.”</s>U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders is announcing a bill on Thursday that would force big companies to pay their lowest-earning workers before shareholders. The details echo his campaign to get Amazon to pay its workers at least $15 an hour, but this time the main target is Walmart, the reports.

The new legislation, dubbed the “Stop Walmart Act,” would incentivize corporations to pay a minimum wage of $15 an hour, provide workers seven days of sick leave, and cap CEO compensation at 150 times the median employee pay by barring stock buybacks among firms that fail to meet those criteria. A company’s repurchasing of its own shares is a practice that benefits shareholders.

“Amazon did the right thing by raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour. Walmart can and must do the same,” Sanders told the Post.

In response, Walmart said that it has raised pay over the last three years and that its average—but not starting—hourly wage is $17.50, including benefits. Starting pay at Walmart is $11 an hour, not including benefits.

Earlier this year, Sanders also introduced legislation that would make large employers pay taxes equivalent to the amount the federal government subsidizes their workers. Low-paid workers are eligible for federal aid, such as food stamps, to the tune of $150 billion a year. Amazon bumped its starting pay, though it also took away some stock benefits.

Given the Republican majority in the Senate, Sanders’ new bill is more likely to define his own brand than change any laws.</s>Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) is on a mission: to raise the minimum wage for workers at retail stores across America.

Sanders previously led criticism of online shopping retailer Amazon for its failure to pay its workers a living wage, according to reporting from the Verge. Through criticism from Sanders and others, the company eventually decided to change its pay structure, offering all minimum wage employees at least $15 per hour for the work they performed.

“We listened to our critics, thought hard about what we wanted to do, and decided we want to lead,” Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said in October. “We’re excited about this change and encourage our competitors and other large employers to join us.”

Now, Sanders has a new company he wants to see change its ways: Walmart.

The Vermont senator is joining Rep. Ro Khanna (D-California) in introducing a new bill called the “Stop Walmart Act.” The bill would effectively punish large retailers like Walmart if they don’t pay their workers a $15 minimum wage.

Corporations that refuse to do so would be limited from buying back their own stock unless they raised pay for workers. The bill would also require companies like these to give their workers some benefits, like sick leave, according to reporting from Business Insider.

Sanders pointed out that workers at Walmart are struggling to make ends meet while the corporation’s CEOs are doing tremendously well.

Sanders, who ran for president as a Democrat but lost in the primary elections races to eventual nominee Hillary Clinton, cited the changes that happened with Amazon, and how their new guidelines for pay will help workers in big ways.

“Amazon did the right thing by raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour. Walmart can and must do the same,” Sanders said.

Presently, Walmart pays its workers a base wage of $11 per hour. That’s well above the federal guidelines of $7.25 per hour, but many see it as still being too low for a worker, especially one with a family, to survive. At $11 per hour, a Walmart employee working 40 hours per week would make about $22,000 — a rate of pay that’s below the federal poverty level guidelines for a family of four, which is around $24,600 per year, according to reporting from Bloomberg.

According to reporting from MarketWatch, CEO pay at Walmart is exceedingly higher than the median employee’s income. The average CEO for the corporation earns a paycheck that’s 1,188 times higher than that worker’s take-home pay.</s>
• Sen. Bernie Sanders is pressuring Walmart to raise its minimum wage.
• Previously, the senator from Vermont took on Amazon over its pay — and won.
• Sanders will introduce a new bill that will ban stock buybacks for companies that pay workers under $15 an hour.

Bernie Sanders clashed with Amazon over its minimum wage — and prevailed. The online retailer bumped its minimum wage up to $15 an hour.

But the senator from Vermont isn't finished wrangling with major companies over wages. The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that Sanders and California representative Ro Khanna are introducing legislation — the "Stop Walmart Act" — to compel Walmart to boost its minimum wage to $15 an hour.

"Most Walmart retail workers are working for horrendously low wages with minimal benefits," Sanders told the Washington Post. "The wealthiest family in America must pay its workers a living wage, and the Stop Walmart Act will do just that. Amazon did the right thing by raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour. Walmart can and must do the same."

Read more: Amazon just intensified the war against Walmart

Specifically, the bill proposes banning corporations like Walmart from buying back stock unless they raise wages to a minimum of $15 an hour. Markets Insider reported that share buybacks compromised "a solid backbone of the stock market's continued growth."

The bill also demands that such companies provide benefits like a week of sick leave and take steps to tamp down on CEO compensation.

In a statement to the Washington Post, a Walmart representative said "the company has already raised starting wages by more than 50 percent in the last three years."

The retailer's minimum wage was raised to $11 an hour back in January. That's still lower than the hourly wage offered by competitors like IKEA, Target, and Costco.

Business Insider previously reported that the median annual pay of Walmart workers — both full- and part-time — amounted to $19,177 in 2017.

Are you a Walmart employee with a story to share? Email acain@businessinsider.com.</s>In his latest broadside against big business, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is introducing a bill Thursday that would prevent large companies from buying back stock unless their employees are paid at least $15 an hour.

The proposal is aimed squarely at the nation's largest bricks-and-mortar retailer: Walmart, which announced earnings Thursday that beat analysts' expectations though revenue missed forecasts. The legislation is titled The Stop WALMART Act, or The Stop Welfare for Any Large Monopoly Amassing Revenue from Taxpayers Act.

"The Walton family, the owners of Walmart, are the wealthiest family in America with a net worth of about $180 billion. Meanwhile, most Walmart retail workers are working for horrendously low wages with minimal benefits," Sanders said in a statement to CNBC. "The wealthiest family in America must pay its workers a living wage."

After passage of GOP tax cuts, Walmart did increase its starting wage rate for hourly employees in the U.S. to $11 and expand some benefits. Still, the boost falls short of Sanders' target.

The new bill is co-sponsored by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. It would also require large employers to give workers up to seven days of paid sick leave for themselves or to care for a family member. In addition, it caps executive compensation at 150 times the median employee wage. Under the bill, companies with more than 500 workers would face these new restrictions.

Sanders, who identifies as a democratic socialist and caucuses with Democrats in the Senate, is one of the most vocal critics of what he deems unfair business practices and is an aggressive advocate for raising the minimum wage. He proposed a similar bill in September – called the BEZOS Act – aimed at Amazon and has vowed to re-introduce legislation raising the federal minimum wage from $7.20 to $15 an hour when the next session of Congress convenes in January.

Sanders later praised Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos for hiking the minimum wage at the company.</s>
• Sen. Bernie Sanders is trying to pressure Walmart to raise its minimum wage.
• Previously, the senator from Vermont took on Amazon over its pay – and won.
• Sanders plans to introduce a new bill that would ban stock buybacks for companies that pay workers under $15 an hour.

Bernie Sanders clashed with Amazon over its minimum wage – and prevailed. The online retailer increased what it pays its lowest-earning employees to $15 an hour.

But the senator from Vermont isn’t finished wrangling with major companies over wages. The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna of California planned to introduce legislation, called the Stop Walmart Act, meant to compel Walmart to boost its minimum wage to $15 an hour.

“Most Walmart retail workers are working for horrendously low wages with minimal benefits,” Sanders told The Post. “The wealthiest family in America must pay its workers a living wage, and the Stop Walmart Act will do just that. Amazon did the right thing by raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour. Walmart can and must do the same.”

Read more: Amazon just intensified the war against Walmart

Specifically, the bill proposes barring corporations such as Walmart from buying back their stock unless they raise wages to at least $15 an hour. Markets Insider has reported that stock buybacks have been “a solid backbone of the stock market’s continued growth.”

The bill, which The Post noted is unlikely to become law as Republicans control the presidency and the Senate, will also reportedly demand that such companies provide seven days of sick leave and place limits on CEO compensation.

In a statement to The Post, a Walmart representative said “the company has already raised starting wages by more than 50% in the last three years.”

The retailer raised its minimum wage to $11 an hour back in January. That’s still lower than the hourly wage offered by competitors including Ikea, Target, and Costco.

Business Insider previously reported that the median annual pay of Walmart workers – both full and part time – amounted to $19,177 in 2017.

Are you a Walmart employee with a story to share? Email acain@businessinsider.com.</s>Fresh off a campaign to get Amazon to raise its minimum wage, Senator Bernie Sanders is now shining his progressive spotlight on Walmart.

Sanders on Thursday introduced a bill, titled the Stop Walmart Act, that would prevent large companies from buying back stock unless they pay all employees at least $15 an hour, allow workers to earn up to seven days of paid sick leave and limit CEO compensation to no more than 150 times the median pay of all staffers.

Calling Walmart the poster child for corporate greed, Sanders noted that the company made $13 billion in profits last year and paid CEO Doug McMillon more than $22 million, or 1,188 times its typical worker, who earned $19,177.

Walmart, which this past February raised its minimum wage to $11 an hour, said it offers competitive wages and benefits, as well as the opportunity to advance and earn higher pay.

“We have increased our starting wages by more than 50% in the last three years and currently have an average hourly total compensation of more than $17.50 an hour,” the company said in a statement. “At the same time, we’ve also added new benefits like paid time off, advanced job training, paid family leave and college for $1 a day.”

The new legislation marks a change in Sanders’ tactics for pressuring companies to raise their wages. In September, he unveiled the Stop BEZOS Act, which called for levying a tax on large companies equal to the value of the public benefits that their workers receive. A month later, Amazon announced it would raise its minimum wage to $15 an hour, starting November 1. However, it also eliminated bonuses and stock awards for hourly workers.

In a call with reporters, the independent senator from Vermont reiterated his praise of Amazon, saying that he believes every worker impacted by the change saw their overall compensation rise, with some employees seeing huge pay increases of up to 50%.

Sanders has also called out other profitable companies, including American Airlines and McDonald’s, for paying low wages.

The Walmart legislation is the latest progressive effort aimed at improving the lots of low-income and working Americans. Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat who co-sponsored both the Bezos and Walmart bills, are also looking to re-introduce legislation in January to raise the national minimum wage to $15 an hour, from the current $7.25 an hour.

The legislation stands a better chance in the newly Democratic-controlled House than in the Senate, which remains in Republican hands.

President Donald Trump flip-flopped on the idea of raising the federal minimum wage during the 2016 presidential campaign, but his National Economic Council director, Larry Kudlow, recently came out strongly against increasing it.

Democrats are expected to issue a flurry of related bills after the next term starts in January. In addition to raising the minimum wage, members will likely look to strengthen labor rights and lower health care costs.

In the current Congress, Democrats have introduced bills aimed at making overtime available to more workers, providing federal subsidies to make childcare more affordable, strengthening unions, providing paid family and medical leave and piloting a guaranteed jobs program.

While many of the Democrats’ policy efforts next year are expected to wither in the Republican-controlled Senate, some elements may get through in legislation of interest to both parties, such as boosting infrastructure spending, said Ben Olinsky, senior vice president for policy and strategy at the left-leaning Center for American Progress.</s>Senator Bernie Sanders has rolled out legislation aimed at blocking big employers from buying back shares in their companies unless all workers are paid at least $15 per hour. Representative Ro Khanna of California is a co-sponsor.

The Stop Welfare for Any Large Monopoly Amassing Revenue from Taxpayers Act also calls for CEO compensation to be capped at no more than 150X the median salary of all employees.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) is singled out by Sanders and the legislation is being called the Stop WALMART Act for short. "If Walmart can find $20 billion for stock buybacks to further enrich the Waltons, it can find the money to raise the pay of its workers to a living wage," says Khanna in support of the legislation.

While the legislation isn't expected to get anywhere near a vote in Congress (especially the Senate), a similar push by Sanders against Amazon led to the tech giant hiking its minimum wage to $15 per hour across the U.S.</s>U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) announced on Thursday, Nov. 15, that he will unveil legislation that would prevent Walmart Inc. (WMT – Get Report) and other large companies from buying their own stock unless they pay all their workers a minimum of $15 an hour, among other benefits.

The legislation, called the “Stop Walmart Act,” is designed to pressure America’s biggest employer to raise wages for nearly 1 million workers, according to a statement released by Sanders and first reported by the Washington Post.

Specifically, the bill would stop Walmart and other large corporations from buying back their own stock unless they pay all employees $15 an hour, provide seven days of sick leave and prevent CEO compensation from rising more than 150 times above median employee pay.

Sanders’ effort comes in the wake of a similar campaign directed at Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN – Get Report) , which came to a fore last month with the online retail giant agreeing to pay all of its workers a minimum of $15 an hour.

“Most Walmart retail workers are working for horrendously low wages with minimal benefits. The wealthiest family in America must pay its workers a living wage, and the Stop Walmart Act will do just that,” said Sanders, who is introducing the bill along with Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on Thursday.

“Amazon did the right thing by raising their minimum wage to $15 an hour. Walmart can and must do the same.”

More at The Street
US Senator Bernie Sanders proposes the Stop Walmart Act, which would prohibit big employers from repurchasing shares until they adopt a $15-an-hour minimum wage.