One Corporations Way of Stimulating the Economy

They're putting more money in their employees paychecks.

Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. announced wage increases effective immediately for all full-time, hourly workers earning up to $13 an hour. For some employees, the pay hike can mean more than a $2 an hour raise.

The company also said it was raising its minimum pay to $10 per hour for full-time, hourly workers, up from whatever the minimum wage is in a state. In Michigan, it is $7.40.

Nationwide, the chain has more than 400 arts and crafts stores, with 15 in Michigan, and the increase will boost the pay of more than 6,900 employees, some by nearly $600 month. In Michigan, 75 percent of their employees are full-timers.

This is a great way to help stimulate the economy and build employee morale at the same time.

It's also nice to hear a CEO say this about his employees:

"Our employees are the backbone of our company, and we believe that giving them the opportunity to share in our success is the right thing to do," David Green, CEO and founder of Hobby Lobby, said in a statement.

"This is part of our continuing efforts to reward our employees for their hard work and integrate them into the growth of our company."

A store spokesperson said they took the action because “they have had a profitable year and want to pass that on to their employees.”

Hobby Lobby has a history of caring about their employees. When the the price of gasoline skyrocketed last year, they gave employees a permanent 25 cent per hour raise to help offset cost of living increases.

Kudos to Hobby Lobby!