Wells Fargo raising wages to at least $15 an hour

Wells Fargo is announcing that the company’s increased minimum hourly pay rate of $15 for its U.S.-based employees goes into effect in March.

The new rate is an 11 percent increase to the current minimum hourly rate of $13.50 that the company announced in January 2017.

“We’re ensuring that Wells Fargo is a great place to work by offering market-competitive compensation, career development opportunities, and a broad array of benefits,” Wells Fargo President and CEO Tim Sloan said in a recent statement.

Wells Fargo’s Pahrump office is at 520 S. Highway 160.

In addition to the higher pay rate, he said, over the past year Wells Fargo has:Added four additional paid holidays per year;

Enhanced parental, caregiving, and backup adult care paid leave programs;

Announced plans to grant restricted stock awards to approximately 250,000 team members that will vest in two years subject to grant terms.

“These awards are generally equivalent to 50 shares of Wells Fargo stock for eligible full-time team members and 30 shares for eligible part-time team members,” Sloan said.

Wells Fargo also said it is targeting $400 million in donations to community and nonprofit organizations in 2018. The company also announced that beginning in 2019, it will target 2 percent of its after-tax profits for corporate philanthropy.

As part of this expanded philanthropy, targeting $100 million in capital and other resources over the next three years to support the growth of diverse small businesses and $75 million in 2018 to its NeighborhoodLIFT® program, a public-private collaboration focused on sustainable homeownership and neighborhood revitalization.