As a “thank you” to its employees for their hard work during the COVID-19 pandemic, Walmart will close all of its U.S. locations for Thanksgiving this year.

The big box retailer has been going the extra mile for its employees since the pandemic began. In addition to closing for Thanksgiving 2020, Walmart gave four bonuses to employees last year.

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Walmart U.S. Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Dacona Smith says their associates have been heroic during the pandemic:

Throughout the pandemic, our associates have been nothing short of heroic in how they have stepped up to serve our customers and their communities. Closing our stores on Thanksgiving Day is one way we’re saying ‘thank you’ to our teams for their dedication and hard work this year. We hope everyone will take the opportunity to be with their loved ones during what’s always a special time.

The company was one of many retailers who were traditionally open on Thanksgiving that elected to close their doors in 2020 to give employees some much needed time off. Target, Home Depot, Best Buy and more gave their employees the day off for the holiday.

Target has also announced that it will be closing its for Thanksgiving 2021. Target said its decision to close for the holiday this year is because the measure was well received by customers last year, which leads me to believe this may be a permanent change.

Walmart will open for Black Friday on November 26, but they have yet to announce store hours. Instead, the company will reveal its plans at a later date.

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