Employees at 5G leader T-Mobile now make no less than $20 per hour
We'd be very surprised if T-Mobile didn't start accumulating an even larger number of job applications than the amount it has been. On Friday, the nation's second-largest wireless carrier (after Verizon) announced a new company-wide hike in its minimum wage to $20 per hour. In making this announcement, the company says that most of its employees already earn a higher wage than the new minimum.
T-Mobile takes its $20 minimum wage test company-wide
The announcement was made by company CEO Mike Sievert who spent many years as former CEO John Legere's right-hand man before taking over the position after Legere split. Since the man credited with making T-Mobile what it is today left on May 1st, 2020, shares of the wireless provider's stock have risen by 33% to Friday's close of $114.77.
T-Mobile hikes its minimum wage to $20 an hour company wide
The current chief executive says that the company has been testing a $20 per hour minimum wage for the last few months for employees in its Customer Care group and naturally the company saw a 1,200% hike in job applications. And after a year or less with T-Mobile, depending on their jobs, employees are awarded annual stock grants, receive paid time off, and can request tuition assistance.
In a statement, Sievert said, "Every single employee at T-Mobile, even our newest team members just starting to build their skill base, should have a competitive wage. So, we have decided to implement a nationwide minimum pay at T-Mobile of at least $20 per hour. This will now apply to every single employee regardless of role, or full-time or part-time status."
The CEO added, "The truth is, the vast majority of our employees already earn well above this level, especially when including incentive pay. But this move is about inclusion, and we wanted to draw a line that ensures no employee is left behind."
T-Mobile's Mobile Experts now make over $50,000 annually on average with a 35 hour workweek
Currently, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. 29 states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) have a higher minimum in the range of $13-$14, and five states have no minimum wage. The highest minimum wage in the country belongs to Washington D.C. where workers are supposed to be paid no less than $15.20 each hour.
According to AndroidPolice, T-Mobile's new minimum tops the minimum wage paid by employee-friendly Costco (minimum wage of $17 per hour), and Amazon ($18 minimum wage with some areas topping T-Mobile at $22.50 per hour). In a statement, T-Mobile said, "As of December 1, 2021, we ensure all Retail employees earn at least $20/hour, inclusive of base pay and incentives, with the opportunity to earn more! In fact, our Mobile Experts earn an average of $28/hour—that's more than $50,000 per year for a 35-hour work week!"
While T-Mobile has been known for its efforts in eliminating customer pain points, hiking its minimum wage will earn the company a new reputation. The carrier has arguably taken the early 5G leadership in the U.S. thanks to its decision to buy Sprint in a $26 billion deal that was announced in 2018. T-Mobile made the acquisition to obtain the hoard of 2.5GHz mid-range spectrum that Sprint owned.
Mid-range spectrum was a rarity in the U.S. but is a major part of T-Mobile's triple-layer cake system which includes its low-band 600MHz spectrum which delivers nationwide 5G signals at a download data speed of 29.5Mbps according to Opensignal. While mid-band signals can't travel as far as low-band, they are providing users with an average download data speed of 239.3Mbps.
At the time that report was released, T-Mobile's President of Technology Neville Ray said, "Opensignal’s latest report validates what our customers already know – T-Mobile’s differentiated approach to 5G is delivering meaningful 5G experiences now with ever-increasing speeds and expanding coverage. Our two-year lead on building 5G will continue as we add even more Ultra Capacity coverage and expand it to reach 200 million people nationwide this year."
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