Amazon com Inc is using higher pay to hire its warehouse employees to pick and pack Whole Foods groceries amid rising demand and a worker shortage.

This move referred to as labor sharing, highlights how the e-commerce giant is reallocating a few of its substantial labor forces to deal with a spike in online sales of groceries, as millions of Americans are stuck at home in the middle of the COVID-19 breakout.

Amazon offers online grocery services through Amazon Fresh from its grocery warehouses, and Amazon Prime Now, which delivers from its Whole Foods stores.

“The Prime Now business has seen a mass increase in volume and is now offering labor share opportunities,” Amazon stated in a message sent out to warehouse employees in Maryland, which was examined by Reuters. Employees in other states where Amazon runs grocery services have gotten comparable interactions, consisting of California, Nevada, and Tennessee.

Employees who are picked to make the switch can make $19 per hour, a $2 raise on top of the pay walking Amazon revealed previously this month. Amazon Fresh positions need operating in a freezer environment, while a Prime Now buyer role requires selecting and loading items for online orders in a Whole Foods store under a tight time frame.

“As we continue to see a significant increase in demand for grocery orders, we are offering temporary opportunities for associates across our fulfillment network to provide additional support,” an Amazon representative stated on late Friday, verifying the action.

Amazon has been doubling down on the grocery market, considering that its $137 billion acquisition of Whole Foods in 2017 has broadened grocery shipment service to over 2,000 cities. Free for Prime customers, AmazonFresh, and Amazon Prime Now promote fast shipment within hours.

Given that the breakout, grocery shipment has ended up being a lifeline for people to get home staples while attempting to prevent stepping outside Grocery buyers on Amazon have often seen products out of stock and shipment windows not available as the business has a hard time to fulfill the increasing need. It has revealed the hiring of 100,000 full and part-time positions throughout the U.S. in satisfaction and shipment networks, consisting of in AmazonFresh and Whole Foods shipment.

Up until now, coronavirus has spread out to a minimum of 17 Amazon warehouses in the U.S., triggering to concern if sufficient safety measures have been taken to safeguard employees on the frontlines.

Grocery stores are competing for workers to fulfill online orders. Walmart, with a fast-growing online grocery business, plans to hire 150,000 employees at stores, distribution, and fulfillment center through May.

“We see a dramatic increase in the use of online grocery shopping,” stated Bill Bishop, co-founder of Brick Meets Click. “Amazon eventually wants to be one of the very dominant distributors of grocery in the United States, and I think they’re looking at this as a period when they’ve got a chance to ramp that up by actions like this.”

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