Walmart to hire 150,000 workers, give $550 million in cash bonuses amid coronavirus outbreak
ORLANDO, Fla. - Retail giant Walmart is planning to hire 150,000 associates at their stores across the U.S. as the coronavirus outbreak forces businesses to close, resulting in job losses.
The positions will be for Walmart's stores, clubs, distribution centers and fulfillment centers.
In addition to jobs, Walmart says they will be providing their hourly employees with a special cash bonus totaling $550 million to reward them for their hard work. The bonus will come out to be about $300 for each full-time worker.
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“With the demands we are facing, both in our [distribution centers] and fulfillment centers and in stores, here’s an opportunity where we can search capacity, provide jobs to people who may be hurting," Dan Bartlett, Walmart’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs, said. "So, we see that as a two-for-one — it helps us meet the demands we are seeing within Walmart, but it also, hopefully, contributes to easing the pain of this broader economic downturn that the coronavirus has caused.”
The hiring begins now through the end of May. According to Bartlett, they have streamlined the process to do one-day hiring “within hours.”
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Walmart is one of many retailers who have been packed with crowds of people rushing to buy supplies like toilet paper, water and cleaning products. The store recently announced it would be dedicating an hour just for senior citizens to come in and shop.
For the latest on the coronavirus outbreak, check out Coronavirusnow.com