The move by the nation's largest retailer and private employer takes effect January 1 and will impact some 30,000 workers, or about 5% of Wal-Mart's part-time work force. Since the rollout of the Affordable Care Act a year ago, many more of the company's U.S. employees and their family members have enrolled in the company's health-insurance plan than it had expected.
Wal-Mart says it now projects increased healthcare costs of around $500 million in the current fiscal year – up from an earlier estimate of roughly $330 million. A senior benefits executive indicated it was engaging an online health insurance agency to help employees shop for coverage. The majority of U.S. retailers have cut back or eliminated health insurance coverage for part-timers in recent years.