 In August 2006, Walmart announced that it would roll out an average pay increase of 6% for all new hires at 1,200 United States Walmart and Sam's Club locations, but at the same time would institute pay caps on veteran workers.While Walmart maintains that the measures are necessary to stay competitive, critics believe that the salary caps are primarily an effort to push higher-paid veteran workers out of the company.In 2008, Walmart agreed to pay at least $352 million to settle lawsuits claiming that it forced employees to work off the clock.