The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Walmart beefs up with 150,000 new hires; virus tests to be offered
Scramble afoot to keep shelves stocked as retail demand shifts to food.
Bloomberg
Walmart is hiring 150,000 temporary workers and readying its parking lots for coronavirus tests as the world’s largest retailer girds itself to deal with the unprecedented challenges of the fast-spreading outbreak.
The vast majority of the new employees will work in stores, and many will become permanent staff over time, Walmart said in a statement Thursday evening. The company is also slated to begin virus tests in the Chicago area this weekend, primarily for health-care workers and first responders, in conjunction with medical officials and drugstore chain Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.
“Everything is ready to go,” Dan Bartlett, Walmart’s executive vice president of corporate affairs, said on a call with reporters. “We have the tents. It should be up and running soon.” He said that the company is talking to governors’ offices to get permission to expand testing sites to other states.
Recruiting the jobless
While retailers such as Macy’s and Kohl’s have been forced to close all their stores, others like Walmart and Costco are experiencing a surge in traffic normally seen only around the holiday peak. Walmart’s supply chain was
“catching its breath,” Bartlett said, while its grocery curbside pickup service has been “slammed.” Initial demand for water and paper products has shifted over to food, with many Americans needing to eat all their meals at home as restaurants close.
“We’re trying to find where the new normal is,” Bartlett said. “We’re not sure we’ve hit it yet.” Still, Walmart’s work to keep shelves stocked was praised by President Donald Trump on Friday.
Walmart, the nation’s biggest private employer, with 1.5 million associates, will look to hire people who’ve been let go from jobs in the restaurant and hospitality industries. The company will have plenty of applicants, as filings for U.S. unemployment benefits are poised to surge to a record 2.25 million this week, according to Goldman Sachs Group, while Bank of America said it could be as high as 3 million.
The new hires will be split between Walmart’s 4,750 U.S. stores and its network of about 150 distribution centers.
Bonuses slated
Walmart said all U.S. hourly employees will receive a bonus on April 2: $300 for full-time staff and $150 for part-timers. It will accelerate its next scheduled quarterly bonus payment, slated for May, to late April. The moves together will cost Walmart about $550 million, slightly more than it makes in operating profit in the U.S. each week.