Amazon to hire 1 lakh workers in US amid Covid-19 shutdown

San Francisco: Amazon plans to hire 100,000 new full and part-time staff across the US in its fulfilment centres and delivery network as more and people are relying on online deliveries for their daily needs due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Amazon said it is seeing a significant increase in demand, which means its labour needs are "unprecedented for this time of year".

"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," Amazon executive Dave Clark wrote in a blog post on Monday.

The online retail giant said it will also increase the hourly pay of warehouse and delivery workers in the US, Europe, and Canada.

In the U.S., Amazon will be adding an additional $2 per hour worked through April from its current rate of $15/hour or more, depending on the region, 2 pounds per hour in the UK, and approximately 2 euros per hour in many 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," Clark said, adding that it has taken measures to promote social distancing in the workplace and taken on enhanced and frequent cleaning to keep people healthy.

The number of coronavirus infections in the US climbed to nearly 4,000 with more than 65 people dying of the disease.