Amazon is taking things a notch higher in the competition by conducting a nationwide job fair in hopes of hiring over 30,000 workers as part of the company's aggressive expansion.
The online shopping giant is searching for all kinds of candidates, from computer programmers to inventory personnel. Amazon (AMZN) disclosed that all the jobs offered are regular or part-time with benefits. The hiring is not connected to the normal rise in hiring the company holds in preparation for the Yuletide shopping season.
The job fairs will be held in the following locations: Boston, Virginia, Dallas, Chicago, Tennessee, and its hometown of Seattle on September 17.
By end of the fourth quarter last year, Amazon has hired around 650,000 workers, and this does not include contractual and seasonal employees, its annual report showed, making Amazon the second-largest private employer in the US next to rival, Walmart.
The job caravan could be what the retail giant needs these days. With jobless rates reaching a 50-year low, applicants have more choices and companies must exert more effort to replace vacant posts.
The number of employment opportunities at present is the biggest Amazon has ever provided at any given time. The job fairs will be held in states where the company believes it can search for the most qualified and talented worker. Amazon calls the hiring campaign as "Amazon Career Day."
Just recently, the company announced an undertaking to have a good number of its workforce into tech positions, promising to retrain 100,000 personnel, help them transition into more technical roles, and impart on the new knowledge.
In a statement, Amazon founder and chief executive officer Jeff Bezos said that he enjoins people to start thinking big and "move fast to apply for a job with the company." Bezos added that hired applicants will get to "invent and see Amazon making bolder bets" on behalf of its clients.
Launched as an online bookshop more than 20 years ago, Amazon is now engaged in creating films, voice-powered devices, and plans to send satellites into orbit to provide internet service.
At present, Amazon has over 650,000 staff across continents, and this number is expected to increase: Amazon's headquarters in Arlington, Virginia is seen to hire 25,000 workers in the next decade, as the company expands into other markets, like advertising and healthcare.
