According to an estimate by the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research, if Wal-Mart Stores Inc were to raise the minimum wage for its hourly employees in the United States to $15 per hour from the current $10 per hour, the global retail giant would have to spend an additional $4.95 billion.

Wal-Mart employs nearly 1.5 million people in the United States and is the largest private sector employee in the country. The study states that out of that number, 1.1 million are hourly employees. If Wal-Mart went to $15 per hour, an estimated that 979,000 employees would get an increase, the study shows.

While the labor groups have called the most recent raise by the world’s largest retailer as inadequate, Wal-Mart has raised wages for its hourly workers to $10 per hour earlier this year. While the “Fight for Fifteen” movement has been a topic of discussion even during the U.S. presidential campaign, the labor unions and groups have been demanding a $15 minimum wage.

While the research was released last week, the contents and its results have so far not been reported widely by the media. OUR Wal-Mart, a union-backed group had made a request for the research to be conducted.

The study showed that an annual hike of $4,006 for part-time employees and $5,836 for full-time employees would be made possible if the $15 per hour minimum wage was to be implemented by Wal-Mart.

Rather than internal numbers provided by Wal-Mart, the study used government data and worker surveys. The study simulated the $10 increase in hourly wages to calculate the results for $15 an hour and the $10 increase in hourly wages which was brought into effect earlier this year was considered to be the base of the calculations of the research.

There were no comments made about the results of the research and the wage estimates by Wal-Mart spokesman Kory Lundberg. $2.7 billion over two years have been invested by the company in training, education and higher wages by the retailer, he said.

The retailer generated $482.13 billion in revenue and posted net income of $14.69 billion in the year ended Jan 31, 2016.

“Wal-Mart can easily afford the $15 minimum wage”, based on the retailer’s annual earnings, said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project in an online opinion piece on the study.

“An employee working 34 hours per week at $10 per hour still earns less than $18,000 per year and cannot meet her family’s basic needs on Wal-Mart’s wages alone, even in states with low costs of living,” she said.

(Adapted from Reuters)

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