Dollar Tree & 2 Other Retailers Ramp Up Hiring Amid Coronavirus

With the novel coronavirus growing enormously, consumers have largely taken to social distancing to contain the spread. This, in turn, has led to the closure of many retail stores, restaurants, salons and clubs to name a few, thereby raising concerns related to job losses. Amid all the gloominess, news related to additional hiring is surely a breather. Wondering how?

Well, the wake of the fast-spreading coronavirus has spiked up the demand for essentials like toilet paper, disinfectants, masks, gloves, packaged water, infant supplies medicines, groceries and related staples. As a result of the burgeoning demand, retail behemoths like Walmart (NYSE:WMT) , Costco (NASDAQ:COST) , Target (NYSE:TGT) , Kroger (NYSE:KR) and Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR) have to restock their shelves faster than usual.

Also, the increased social distancing has led to higher e-commerce influx. Companies are witnessing a flurry of orders on account of customers’ unwillingness to visit offline stores. At this point, rapid deliveries are required to help people counter hard times. This holds true for online retailers as well as brick-and-mortar players with omnichannel operations.

Certainly, the increased demand calls for a higher number of workers to ensure prompt services.



3 Retailers Adding Force

Amid many companies closing stores due to the virus outbreak, we have Dollar Tree, Inc., which announced plans to appoint 25,000 workers at its namesake and Family Dollar stores and distribution centers in the United States. These will include both full and part-time associates, who are being hired to support the store and distribution center operations at a time when consumers’ demand for essential items is on the rise.

Dollar Tree will hire part and full-time managers for its stores, with flexible shifts for stockers and cashiers. Also, it will appoint order fillers, equipment operators and warehouse associates for its 24 distribution centers. Prior to this, the company had adjusted its store hours for Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores to facilitate proactive cleaning and stock replenishment.

In fact, Dollar Tree is not alone in this initiative. Supermarket giant, Walmart, also announced plans to employ 150,000 new associates, until the end of May, for its stores, distribution centers, clubs and fulfillment centers. The company is particularly speeding up the hiring process for key positions like stockers and cashiers. Apart from this, the world’s largest retailer announced intentions to pay special cash bonuses for its hourly associates employed as of Mar 1, 2020.

A lot has also been brewing up about the e-commerce king, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) , which is seeing increased e-commerce orders with customers keeping indoors. Apparently, the online giant is in the process of employing 100,000 new employees to cater to the burgeoning demand. The company is conducting hiring for its fulfillment and distribution centers. Also, Amazon perked up its hourly minimum wage rate until April, per media reports.

The additional hiring is likely to help these retailers deal better with the increased demand led by the coronavirus, which has infected more than 290,000 people worldwide with the death toll having crossed 12,000.

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