Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to lay off 2,300 workers

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is planning to lay off 2,300 employees at its Sam’s Club division.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the move to cut jobs at the stores is so the company can try to make its workforce leaner.

Spokesman Bill Durling said that in total, 2% of the 116,000 Sam’s Club employees in the U.S. will lose their jobs. Employees were notified of the layoffs on Friday.

The Associated Press has reported that the layoff marks the largest since 2010 when the Sam's Club unit let go of 10,000 workers and moved to outsourcing food demonstrations at its stores.

Several hourly employees will lose their jobs and many middle-level salaried manager positions are expected to be eliminated.

"We felt this was the right move to make sure we are positioning ourselves for growing in the future," Durling told the AP. "We are trying to rebalance our resources in the field to make sure we are investing in the clubs that have the higher growth potential and balancing resources across the chain."

The membership chain has had a tough time competing with Costco, BJ’s and online retailers, but Sam’s Club is said to be adding more units in the fiscal year.