Walmart offers ASL course to boost customer and coworker communication

Walmart is pushing American Sign Language into the daily rhythm of store work, offering a Live Better U course built around quick, flexible lessons that fit any schedule. The idea is practical, not decorative: give associates a way to communicate better with deaf or hard-of-hearing shoppers and coworkers, strengthen service on the floor, and build a skill that can matter on the job right away.

Walmart says the course is meant to help associates create stronger relationships and more inclusive moments so that every associate and customer feels like they belong. In a company where U.S. associates serve about 230 million customers a week, even a modest amount of ASL can matter fast, whether it is easing a checkout interaction, helping a department run more smoothly, or making a coworker feel more supported during a busy shift.

The ASL course also fits into a broader Live Better U push toward shorter, work-friendly education. Walmart says the program now includes more than 50 skills certificates that associates can complete in about four months on average. The company also says it pays 100% of tuition and books for eligible associates pursuing college degrees, short-form certificates and other education, making the benefit a larger career tool rather than a narrow perk.

Live Better U has grown since Walmart launched it in 2018 as a $1-a-day education benefit and removed that fee in 2021. In February 2024, Walmart said the program had given more than 126,000 associates the opportunity to learn from partner institutions and generated nearly half a billion dollars in tuition savings over six years. The company has also tied the effort to a broader $1 billion investment in career-driven training and development by 2026.

That matters because Walmart says 90% of its U.S. roles do not require a degree, and it has been building pathways into in-demand jobs while removing degree requirements where it can. The company’s wider accessibility and inclusion work includes the President’s Inclusion Council, the inABLE associate resource group, the Accessibility Center of Excellence and sensory-friendly hours in U.S. stores.

For store leaders, the ASL course is a reminder that communication skills are not soft extras in retail. They can change how a customer feels at the service desk, how a team handles a rush and how an associate sees a future inside Walmart, with a skill that is useful both now and in the next step up.