FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — This week, as part of the festivities that surround Walmart’s annual shareholder meeting, “Eye of the Tiger” blasted through loudspeakers as employees entered an arena at the University of Arkansas. Handpicked by their managers out of Walmart’s work force of more than a million, the employees arrived ready to cheer.

“I think we can sell another three million this year,” said Steve Bratspies, Walmart’s chief marketing officer, as he held up a round pillow with a yellow smiley face, a symbol Walmart has used to signal low prices and one of many emoji pillows it wants to sell. “Can you help me do that?”

Workers certainly have something to cheer about. Average hourly pay has gone up since Walmart announced early last year that it would increase wages to at least $10 an hour for its army of part-time and full-time workers.

But not all employees were as enthusiastic as those in the arena.

The employees more critical of the company say Walmart — the biggest private employer in the United States — has found more subtle ways to keep the reins on its workers’ paychecks. The retailer has cut merit raises, for example, and has introduced a new training program that can keep employees at $9 an hour for as long as 18 months.