Amazon Goes On Hiring Spree To Keep Up With Quarantine Shopping

If you're trying to limit your exposure to the public, there's a good chance you've turned to online shopping in lieu of going to a physical store. If you've placed an order through Amazon at any point in the last couple of days, you're likely still waiting for your products to arrive. The company has announced a new hiring spree to help it deal with the surge in demand.

In an announcement on Monday, Amazon revealed that it is hiring 100,000 new employees to keep up with the new shopping demand. As well, the company says that it is increasing pay for employees in the US, UK, and 'many' European countries. According to the company, it has experienced 'a significant increase in demand' in light of the coronavirus outbreak.

The new jobs are in US fulfillment centers and the wider delivery network. The company says that it has both part-time and full-time roles that need to be filled. US workers will get a $2/hour raise; employees in the UK will get a £2/hour raise; employees in many European Union countries will get around a €2/hour raise.

The pay raise will apply to hours worked through April, according to the company, increasing the rate to at least $17/hour in the US. This is an investment of more than $350 million into the company's European, Canadian, and US operations, according to Amazon.

Amazon says that is taking safety and health precautions at its sites, including efforts to promote social distancing among employees. As well, the company is engaging in more frequent and 'enhanced' cleaning, among other things.