Walmart to hire 150,000 workers as coronavirus fears grow

(Reuters) – Wholesaler Walmart Inc said on Thursday it would hire more than 150,000 hourly workers in the United States, citing a surge in customer traffic due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Rival Amazon.com Inc. took a similar move earlier this week, announcing it would hire 100,000 warehouse and delivery workers in the U.S. as online orders increase due to the virus outbreak.

Walmart also announced that it will pay a special bonus of $300 to full-time employees and $150 to part-time employees. The company will bring forward the next planned quarterly bonus, it said.

The 150,000 new employees, who will be hired by the end of May, will work in Walmart’s stores, clubs, and distribution and fulfillment centers, the company said. Initially, they will be temporary workers, but many of them will be hired as permanent employees over time.

“Walmart associates have gone above and beyond the call of duty to serve our customers during these unprecedented times,” said President and CEO Doug McMillon.

Fearing quarantines or product shortages, customers stormed stores and emptied shelves. Retailers responded by stocking up on food and hygiene items and assigning employees to work in-store or make deliveries.

Walmart said it was introducing a new process to “drastically accelerate” hiring for key positions such as cashiers and warehouse workers, adding that the usual two-week application cycle would be shortened to a 24-hour process.

(Reporting by Shradha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)