SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - The largest employer in the country is waving away a long standing tradition.
Walmart is planning to phase out its greeters at more than 1,000 stores across the country.
The retail giant says it is moving forward with a new role called “customer host” that is more physically demanding.
The hosts will still greet people but must also be able to pass physical exams including lifting a 25-pound box and climbing ladders.
Critics say the move targets their elderly and disabled employees, which make up a significant portion of the company’s greeters.
“I can’t do that,” said Adam Catlin, who has cerebral palsy and has worked as a Walmart greeter for a decade.
Walmart says it is striving to place greeters in other jobs at the company and the title of greeter will be officially eliminated April 26.
“I want to keep my job past April 26 because I have made a lot of good friends and a lot of good memories over the years,” added Catlin.
Walmart has not said how many greeters will lose their jobs but adds it is, “extending the current 60-day greeter transition period for associates with disabilities while we explore the circumstances and potential accommodations, for each individual, that can be made within each store.”
