Amazon is offering four-figure 'golden hellos' to new warehouse recruits in a bid to overcome a staff shortage and anticipated boom in online shopping.
New warehouse workers will be handed £1,000 bonuses while the world’s fourth most valuable company is also offering full-time and contract workers immediate starts, flexible hours and pay of up to £11.10-an-hour for daytime shifts, doubling to £22.20-an-hour for overtime.
To be eligible for the cash, new starters have to begin their contracts between now and September 18.
With roles being advertised across the country, including in Swansea, Amazon says it is offering "immediate starts with no experience needed". Interviews are being held virtually to make it easier to meet the demand for "urgently needed" warehouse pickers and packers in the UK.
It is the latest example of firms using incentives to attract staff as they struggle to recruit. Already this summer, hospitality businesses have been forced to shut at peak season because of staff shortages and lorry driver roles are being offered at £50,000 a year amid a UK driver shortage.
Businesses have blamed a perfect storm of Brexit, coronavirus and the furlough scheme for the mounting recruitment challenges. Across the UK, Tesco has also offered a £1,000 incentive to attract lorry drivers while the meat industry is turning to prisoners and former inmates to help plug the gap in staff in abattoirs and processing plants.
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