Amidst the unprecedented layoffs and lockdowns, some industries are hiring hundreds of thousands of new employees to make up for increased demand. Pizza chains, convenience stores, and giants like Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Walmart (NYSE: WMT) are all hiring. Many companies are particularly targeting those who have been laid off because of the COVID-19.
Amazon announced on March 16 that they would be hiring an additional 100,000 employees in the United States alone as demand from online shopping shoots up during quarantine. The company is looking for full- and part-time warehouse and delivery workers. Through the end of April, pay for employees in the U.S. will be raised by $2 per hour while countries in the E.U. will see a roughly €2 per hour raise. The company is particularly interested in hiring members of the hospitality, restaurant, and travel industries and other workers that may be laid off.
"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.
The online shopping platform has seen an explosion in demand as well as product shortages and extended delivery times.
Walmart is looking to add 150,000 temporary employees to its workforce through the end of May. While the positions are temporary, Walmart says many will become permanent roles. Like Amazon, Walmart is specifically calling for those who have been impacted by COVID-19.
"We know millions of Americans who are usually employed at this time are temporarily out of work, and at the same time we're currently seeing strong demand in our stores," Walmart president and CEO Doug McMillon said in a press release Thursday.
Both Walmart and Amazon also have plans to offer financial assistance to workers. Walmart plans to give bonuses to those who work through the pandemic, while Amazon intends to offer grants to workers affected by the lockdowns.
Grocery and convenience stores are also looking for more workers. Kroger (NYSE: KR) has already hired 2,000 new employees to make up for demand, and they have plans to add another 10,000. 7-Eleven (OTC: SVNDF) announced on Friday that it is looking to hire an additional 20,000 store employees at their more than 70,000 stores across the country.
"This will provide job opportunities and ensure 7-Eleven stores remain clean and in-stock with the goods our customers need during this critical time," said 7-Eleven President and CEO, Joe DePinto.
Delivery services like Blue Apron (NYSE: APRN) and Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) have both announced they will be adding workers as demand for home-delivered meals increases. PepsiCo also plans on hiring workers to deliver their products to locations across the country. Pepsi (NASDAQ: PEP) says they will add 6,000 full-time, full-benefit workers in the coming months.