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Whole Foods, Amazon enact temporary wage hike in coronavirus response

Hourly associates in U.S., Canada get extra $2; UK workers receive £2 more

Russell Redman

March 17, 2020

4 Min Read
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Whole Foods said that all part- and full-time hourly associates at stores and facilities in the United States and Canada will now receive an additional $2 an hour on top of their current rate until the end of April.Whole Foods Market

In line with parent company Amazon, Whole Foods Market is giving hourly employees another $2 per hour through next month for their extra efforts in serving customers during the coronavirus crisis.

Whole Foods said yesterday that all part- and full-time hourly associates at stores and facilities in the United States and Canada will now receive an additional $2 an hour on top of their current rate until the end of April. In the United Kingdom, part- and full-time hourly staff at Whole Foods will get an extra £2 per hour over the same time period.

Amazon announced the measure on Tuesday for the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and European Union countries. Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods currently operates 487 stores in the U.S., 14 in Canada and seven in the U.K.

“As a grocer, we believe serving customers and the community during this time is essential. Today, Amazon announced that they are providing hourly employees with an additional $2 per hour through the end of April,” Whole Foods said in a statement. “We are joining Amazon in this measure.”

Also on Tuesday, Whole Foods said it’s making some temporary changes in its prepared foods and self-service areas and restaurants to help thwart the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Hot bars, salad bars, soup bars and self-serve pizza areas will be closed, as will self-serve offerings in additional departments, including antipasti and olive bars, acai machines and poke bowls.

Related:Stop & Shop to offer special hours for customers 60 and older

In addition, seated restaurant venues and taprooms will close for in-store dining and offer takeout only. Indoor and outdoor café seating also will be temporarily unavailable.

“This process will be complete across stores in the U.S., Canada and U.K. by Wednesday, March 18. All stores will continue to offer an expanded selection of prepackaged items and full-service chef case offerings,” Whole Foods stated.

Amazon unveiled the wage bonus yesterday in announcing 100,000 new full and part-time U.S. jobs across its fulfillment centers and delivery network to meet the surge in demand from people relying on its online service to avoid going to stores and potential exposing themselves to coronavirus infection, “particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public,” the Seattle-based e-tail giant said.

“We also know many people have been economically impacted as jobs in areas like hospitality, restaurants and travel are lost or furloughed as part of this crisis,” Amazon stated. “We want those people to know we welcome them on our teams until things return to normal and their past employer is able to bring them back.”

Related:Two Kroger Co. store associates diagnosed with coronavirus

Amazon reported that the increased pay through the end of April represents an investment of more than $350 million for hourly employees across the U.S., Europe, and Canada.

“We want to recognize our employees who are playing an essential role for people at a time when many of the services that might normally be there to support them are closed,” Amazon commented. “In the U.S., we will be adding an additional $2 per hour worked through April from our current rate of $15/hour or more, depending on the region, $2 in Canada, £2 per hour in the U.K., and approximately €2 per hour in many EU countries.”

Amazon_Whole_Foods_Prime_Now_grocery_bag_1[1].png logo in a gray background | Amazon_Whole_Foods_Prime_Now_grocery_bag_1[1].png

Prime Now, AmazonFresh and Whole Foods delivery customers can select the “unattended delivery” option during checkout if they prefer not to come into contact with others.

On Wednesday, Amazon also announced that essential items and other high-demand items related to the coronavirus situation would receive priority in distribution and shipping.

“We believe our role serving customers and the community during this time is a critical one, and we want to make sure our customers can get the items they need, when they need them. As COVID-19 has spread, we’ve recently seen an increase in people shopping online which has had an impact on how we serve our customers,” Amazon explained. “So in the short term, we are making the decision to temporarily prioritize household staples, medical supplies and other high-demand products coming into our fulfillment centers so we can more quickly receive, restock and ship these products to customers. We are working around the clock with our selling partners to ensure availability of these essential products and continue to bring on additional capacity to deliver customer orders.”

Prime Now, AmazonFresh, and Whole Foods delivery customers can select the “unattended delivery” option during checkout if they prefer not to come into contact with others. Orders excluding alcohol are eligible for unattended delivery and will be left in a location designated by the customer.

“We’re also working to ensure that no one artificially raises prices on basic need products during this pandemic and have blocked or removed tens of thousands of items, in line with our longstanding policy,” Amazon added. “We actively monitor our store and remove offers that violate our policy.”

For our most up-to-date coverage, visit the coronavirus homepage.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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