More than 281,000 people applied for jobless benefits last week, up 33 percent from the previous week, the Labor Department reported. A million-plus workers are expected to lose their jobs by the end of March as the shock of the coronavirus outbreak intensifies, economists say.
After near-record unemployment in February, any news of job gains is good news. The good news is e-commerce, where demand is growing at an unprecedented pace as millions of people turn to online deliveries.
Amazon is hiring 100,000 employees in the U.S. to meet the growing demand for online shopping, the company said Monday. The company needs more full-time and part-time workers for warehouse and delivery. It plans to raise pay for these employees by $2 per hour through the end of April.
“The tech giant’s decision to go on a hiring spree and boost worker pay shows the dual challenge companies such as Amazon face as they seek to meet surging demand for food and key household items and also take care of employees at the front lines of the pandemic,” Wall Street Journal reported.
Almost 800,000 full and part-time employees as of Dec. 31.
Amazon encouraged employees whose jobs were lost or furloughed due to coronavirus to apply, CNBC reported. “We want those people to know we welcome them on our teams until things return to normal and their past employer is able to bring them back,” the company said.
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Walmart is hiring too. The largest retailer in the U.S. says it plans to hire 150,000 U.S. hourly workers for its stores and distribution centers through the end of May as households stock up and shop online, ABC7Chicago reported. Many of the jobs will become permanent, said spokesman Dan Bartlett. The company is reaching out to the restaurant and hospitality industry which is bleeding workers due to travel bans and lockdowns.
Domino’s Pizza said it is hiring about 10,000 workers in the U.S. to meet rising demand for delivery and carryout. Domino’s put out the call for delivery drivers, pizza makers, managers and truck drivers.
Blue Apron, the meal-kit service, has experienced increased demand in the last week and needs more help filling orders. It said it’s hiring temporary and permanent workers in New Jersey and California.
