In a Hot Jobs Market, Bosses Have to Train Their Low-Paid Staff

  • From Walmart to JetBlue, service employers ramp up programs
  • They got used to hiring talent. Now they have to teach it

An employee arranges merchandise at a Walmart Inc. store in Secaucus, New Jersey.

Photographer: Bloomberg/Bloomberg
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You’d need a cast of thousands to re-enact Black Friday at a Walmart store, so virtual reality comes in handy at the company’s training centers. Employees get to experience a shopper stampede on their headsets, part of a widening national effort that encompasses some 7,000 workers a week.

The retail giant isn’t alone. From hotels to fast food chains, employers in service industries are setting up training programs or revamping the ones they have.