Following a frenzy that cleared shelves across Southern California in response to the coronavirus COVID-19, Ralphs and Costco are hiring to deal with increased demand.
Ralphs said it had "immediate openings" available to help keep stores stocked with food and essentials. Shelves have been depleted at markets, including Ralphs, for the past week, with the run on essentials and food taking an extreme turn as the week progressed.
"In the last couple days, we've had an average of 1,300 people waiting out when we open," Woodland Hills Costco warehouse manager Bob Holden said the average is usually 250 to 300 people.
Holden said the plan was to hire 40 more workers in response to the increased demands after people stock up in an attempt to implement social distancing.
"It's absolutely necessary for the volume of business we do we need a certain number of employees with the volume we need certain number to take care of it," said Holden.
Social distancing, a tool to help curb the spread of the virus, asks people to maintain physical space between other people people and also to avoid going to public gatherings and limit public contact. With many heeding the warnings and going well beyond buying what is necessary, supermarkets have been stripped of food and other essentials--particularly toilet paper, water and hand sanitizer.
As there have been no reports of supply chain issues, the shelves should continue to be restocked on schedule. The people who hoarded items early will likely not be returning to markets any time soon, but the items should continue to be replenished and shelves need more restocking than usual, along with extra deep cleaning to mitigate the risk of the virus spreading in stores.
As so, it's not surprising that Ralphs and Costco are hiring.
If you are interested, you can apply for a job at Ralphs by clicking here. Similarly, you can apply for a job at Costco by clicking here.
