Amazon offers up to $3,000 signing bonus for new holiday hires

NEW YORK — E-commerce giant Amazon is offering signing bonuses of up to $3,000 at certain facilities in the United States as it ramps up hiring for the busy holiday season.

The company — which has boomed during the coronavirus pandemic, with more and more shoppers happy to stay home — expects to hire 100,000 seasonal workers.

Amazon says the deal — which also features hourly wages of $15 to $25.50 — is a "limited-time opportunity in select locations".

The signing bonuses range from $1,000 to $3,000 for jobs posted in company warehouses in several US states from California to Massachusetts.

Amazon also emphasises its commitment to employee safety and a healthy work environment, amid a nationwide surge in virus cases.

But the company owned by Jeff Bezos — the world's richest man — is regularly accused by activist groups of flouting sanitary and safety guidelines meant to protect its workers.

Amazon's incentives come as the unemployment rate in the United States has receded — in October, it dropped to 6.9 per cent, suggesting the labor market is recovering after the high point of layoffs at the start of the virus crisis.

The recovery is of course still dependent on how the pandemic progresses. Several states have reimposed restrictions on movement and business openings to curb the spread of the virus.