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Amazon hiring 100K workers to meet online sales crush in wake of COVID-19

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March 17, 2020

Amazon is hiring on 100,000 workers in a quest to meet the "surge in demand" from online sales as people worldwide are sequestered home in light of the coronavirus pandemic

"We are seeing a significant increase in demand, which means our labor needs are unprecedented for this time of year," wrote Dave Clark senior vice president of worldwide operations in a blog post.

The full-time and part-time roles will be in fulfillment centers and the global retailer's delivery network.

The news comes as an increasing number of retailers are temporarily shuttering stores. Please check here for more news and insight on how COVID-19 is impacting the retail industry.

"We also know many people have been economically impacted as jobs in areas like hospitality, restaurants, and travel are lost or furloughed as part of this crisis. 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," wrote Clark.

Amazon is also boosting hourly pay — an extra $2 an hour for U.S. workers and about the same for those in the U.K. and EU countries.

"This commitment to increased pay through the end of April represents an investment of over $350 million in increased compensation for hourly employees across the U.S., Europe, and Canada," stated Clark.