Wal-Mart, other big names to offer free GED prep course to employees

Dive Brief:

A group of name brand retailers and fast-food restaurant chains will be offering employees free GED preparation and testing, according to the Washington Post.
The move is both altruistic and needs-based for the employers, as the move looks to gain access to a potentially large talent pool of workers who lack a high school diploma and could greatly benefit from getting a HS diploma equivalency certificate.
Participating employers include Wal-Mart, KFC, Taco Bell and Southeastern Grocers, which operates BI-LO, Harveys and Winn-Dixie stores,according to the Post.

Dive Insight:

The program is free for employees (employers pay most of the $300 per GED candidate fee). The course includes online study materials, practice tests and an adviser who monitors candidates, helping keep them "motivated and engaged," according to the Post article.

“GED preparation takes months. We know it’s a challenge ” she said. “Our employees are working a full-time job or, in many cases, two or three jobs,” Krista Snider, managing director of the Louisville-based KFC Foundation, which is funding the program for KFC, told the post. “Many of the people at KFC are primary breadwinners. They have kids and other responsibilities, so something like getting a high school equivalent is not necessarily their top priority.” Snyder estimated that a quarter of the company’s 125,000 employees lack a high school diploma or equivalent.

Brian Poland, director of lifelong learning and talent development at Wal-Mart, told the Post that the retailer "does not track" how many of its 1.3 million employees lack high school diplomas. Plus, education has little to do with job promotions at Walmart. Walmart has offered reimbursement for employees who took the GED test, but few took advantage of the benefit, he added.

Perhaps the extra help and support this time will make the difference for the employees affected by the program.