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Amazon said Tuesday it’s hiring 100,000 seasonal employees to assist with increased demand over the holiday season.
The employees will help pick, pack and ship customer orders across Amazon’s network of warehouses in the U.S. and Canada. Amazon will hire the most workers in California, Texas, Maryland, Georgia and New Jersey.
Amazon hired 200,000 temporary workers during last year’s holiday season, twice as many as it hired in 2018.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Amazon has already staffed up its warehouses significantly. It went on a hiring spree in March and April as it faced a surge of online orders.
In May, Amazon said it would offer permanent roles to 70% of the 175,000 workers it hired at the height of the pandemic. Even after it brought on 125,000 warehouse employees, the remaining 50,000 workers will stay on seasonal contracts that are expected to last up to 11 months.
Amazon employed 876,800 people as of June 30, excluding contractors and temporary workers.
The coronavirus pandemic has reshaped this year’s holiday shopping season in a number of ways. Amazon postponed Prime Day to October from mid-July, which kickstarted the holiday rush earlier than ever for many retailers. With coronavirus cases rising in some parts of the country, analysts expect the bulk of holiday shopping to take place online.
— CNBC’s Frank Holland contributed to this report.