Chipotle Mexican Grill just gave employees another reason to love working there — aside from occasional free food.
Starting July 1, the company will provide all employees with paid time off, free tuition and sick pay, Nation's Restaurant News reports.
The company had previously only offered those benefits to salaried employees.
“It’s an incredible statement by our leadership about how much we want to invest in the best people we have and to keep them with us,” JD Cummings, Chipotle recruitment strategy manager, told Nation’s Restaurant News.
Cummings added that the move should help Chipotle recruit more of its target demographic for new employees: college and high school students.
“If you can’t compete at the bottom in the terms of entry-level wage, what incentive can you build into that process — what path can you create — that’s going to hold your people?” William Espey, Chipotle brand voice lead, told Nation’s.
Chipotle joins other major corporations, including Starbucks and Chrysler, in announcing recent expansions of or additions to tuition reimbursement programs.
According to Chipotle, about 95 percent of its managers are promoted from within the company.
