Amazon offering £1000 joining bonus to new workers as it battles UK’s recruitment crisis

AMAZON is offering £1,000 ‘golden hellos’ to new warehouse workers as it battles to overcome the combined pressures of the UK’s recruitment crisis and the boom in online shopping.

Alongside the joining bonuses, the world’s fourth most valuable company is 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.

New hires who sign up between now and September 18 are eligible for the cash with interviews being held virtually and no prior experience required.

Full-time and temp contracts are being advertised on the Indeed website for roles in locations in and around London including Croydon, Erith, Enfield, Hemel Hempstead and Luton.

The company’s warehouses across the country from Redruth in Cornwall to Hull in the north-east - including Exeter, Bristol, Birmingham, Milton Keynes, Southampton and Liverpool have also posted ads saying pickers and packers - capable of lifting parcels of up to 50lbs in weight - are “urgently needed”.

Applicants for the tech giant’s ‘fulfillment centre’ in Dartford are offered free shuttle buses from the local train station.

The ads read: “Successful candidates will have a strong work ethic, attention to detail and the ability to work in a fast-paced environment.

“If you’ve worked in a similar setting before, all the better - but most importantly, you’ll bring a true commitment to customer service and a keen desire to help to deliver a first-class Amazon experience.”

A spokesman for the company told the Standard: ““We are currently offering a sign on bonus at a number of locations to attract new permanent and seasonal associates.”

Latest figures from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation suggest that there were 1.65million vacant positions in the UK, with near-record numbers of ads being posted.

Skills shortages as a result of Brexit have been compounded by the ‘pingdemic’ forcing workers to self-isolate, leading to salary hikes of between 20% and 30%  becoming ‘commonplace’ for City roles in tech and law.