Amazon hiring 75,000 workers to handle demand

Amazon announced Monday that it will hire an additional 75,000 workers to handle rising demand driven by the spread of coronavirus.

The online retail giant has already hired 100,000 workers since the beginning of the pandemic as stay-at-home orders and empty shelves at grocery stores drive deliveries.

The company has also raised wages for hourly workers by $2 and boosted overtime pay.

“We 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 and we welcome anyone out of work to join us at Amazon until things return to normal and their past employer is able to bring them back,” Amazon said in a blog post.

However, several workers say the company has not done enough to keep them safe from COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Employees at warehouses across the country have walked out to protest facilities staying open after positive cases among their workforces. More than 60 warehouses have had positive cases.

The company announced last week that it is developing a diagnostic test to determine whether a person has the virus, as opposed to a blood test that could detect antibodies made by the immune system when a person is exposed. 

It has also pledged to increase cleaning and enforce social distancing measures at its warehouses.