Amazon to Hire 100,000 Temporary Workers for Holiday Ramp-Up
Amazon.com Inc. is hiring 100,000 seasonal workers — 25% more than last year — as it continues to make online ordering almost as fast as running to the store.
The short-term hires will supplement 90,000 permanent employees at Amazon’s 70 warehouses and shipping hubs around the country to get through the retailer’s busiest quarter, the Seattle-based company said in a statement Oct. 20.
Analysts on average expect Amazon to generate $35.1 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, up 20% from a year earlier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News.
The largest online retailer on Oct. 22 reported third-quarter earnings of 17 cents per share on $25.36 billion in revenue. Net sales rose 23% from the previous year. Analysts projected the e-commerce giant to lose 13 cents per share on $24.91 billion in revenue, according to Reuters.
Amazon has expanded same-day delivery to 12 U.S. cities, requiring the company to build new shipping hubs closer to urban areas. It also is delivering meals from restaurants in Seattle and Portland and has created crafts marketplace Amazon Handmade to compete with Etsy Inc. and EBay Inc. as the retailer seeks new revenue sources.
Amazon’s extensive network of warehouses close to customers puts the company far ahead of retail competitors, Scot Wingo, chairman of e-commerce consultant ChannelAdvisor Corp., wrote in his blog.
As Amazon decreases delivery times and costs, “other retailers are going to struggle to come close,” Wingo wrote.
