Walmart Will Hire 50,000 More Temporary Workers
The retailer is hiring an average of 5,000 associates a day
Like Amazon before it, Walmart is hiring an additional 50,000 temporary workers in its stores, as well as in its fulfillment and distribution centers.
This will bring the total number of new hires at Walmart to 200,000, which is 25,000 more than Amazon has committed to add as both retailers seek help to ease bottlenecks during the coronavirus pandemic.
“We continue to see strong demand in our stores, and at the same time, we want to give our current associates the flexibility to take time off and stay home if they feel more comfortable doing so,” wrote Donna Morris, executive vice president and chief people officer, in a blog post. “In stores and clubs, we’ll continue to hire key roles such as cashiers, stockers and personal shoppers. In distribution centers and fulfillment centers, we’ll hire additional fillers and pickers. And, we’ll also continue adding roles such as more drivers to our fleet.”
On March 19, Walmart said it planned to hire 150,000 employees by the end of May. (It also announced a $300 bonus for full-time hourly employees and $150 for part-time employees. Amazon, on the other hand, has bumped employee pay by $2 per hour for a specified period.)
Morris said the retailer has now made those hires—with an average of 5,000 new associates a day—after receiving more than 1 million applications and working with more than 70 companies that have furloughed workers. In another similarity with Amazon, Walmart said its new employees hail from the restaurant and hospitality industries, as well as other retailers. About 85% are in temporary or part-time roles.
Walmart has instituted an expedited hiring process in which applicants can go “from application to offer as quickly as 24 hours,” she wrote.
“While many of these associates want temporary employment that serves as a bridge during this time, we also expect others to convert to permanent roles,” Morris added.
Walmart recently began airing a TV commercial featuring some of its employees singing “Lean on Me” as a message of hope to the nation.
