Amazon Boosts Worker Pay to Over $29/Hour, Invests $2.2B As Holiday Kicks In

Thursday, Amazon.com, Inc AMZN shared plans to boost the average total compensation for fulfillment and transportation employees in the U.S. to over $29 per hour ahead of the Prime Big Deal Days.

The hike marks an average increase of $3,000 annually for full-time employees who work a 40-hour week as the big holiday season kicks in. The appraisal equals a total investment of over $2.2 billion.

Last week, Amazon raised delivery driver pay to $22 per hour and invested $2 billion following regulatory scrutiny and unionization efforts. The e-commerce retailer had drawn intense regulatory scrutiny over worker safety and pay at its warehouses.

In 2023, Amazon’s U.S. sales reached $12.4 billion on Cyber Monday, marking a 9.6% annual growth and quashing the estimate of $12 billion. The total online sales for Cyber Week reached $38 billion, surpassing the $37.2 billion estimate.

Reports indicated Amazon hired 150,000 full-time, seasonal, and part-time workers for the holiday season in 2022 and 2021. It employed over 110,000 seasonal workers in India ahead of the festive season, the Times of India reports.

Earlier this week, Walmart Inc WMT Sam’s Club shared plans to raise the pay for almost 100,000 frontline associates to over $19 per hour with the potential to earn thousands of dollars annually in bonuses based on years of service.

The retailers’ pay boosts reflect the workers’ importance in tapping the busy holiday season demand. Target Corp TGT is looking to hire 100,000 despite a weaker forecast for holiday season sales.

Price Action: AMZN stock is up 0.03% to $186.93 at the last check on Wednesday.

Photo courtesy of Amazon