If you are one of the 26 million people finding themselves unemployed in the past five weeks of the coronavirus crisis, this list — and the assurance that, yes, some industries are hiring — is for you. Some offer telecommuting; some are for jobs outside the home that put you at a higher risk of coming into contact with the coronavirus. But you can step into some of these jobs almost immediately with little to no experience.
The most obvious place to find work amid the current pandemic is in health care and health services. If you have a background in the field, finding work should be no problem. Nurses, doctors, scientists, and data collectors are in obvious high demand. In addition, drugstores are hiring pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, customer service representatives, and even store associates.
CVS has more than 50,000 positions available across the country, part time and full time, with the biggest demand in Florida, New York, Washington, D.C, California, Texas, Nevada, Illinois, and Hawaii.
Walgreens says it is hiring some 9,500 employees nationwide, part time and full time, most for customer services associates. For those seeking leadership positions, there are openings for shift leads that act as management liaisons and provide customer service.
With more people leaving their homes only for essential items, shipping and delivery jobs are in high demand. Amazon, Walmart, and UPS are three major employers hiring scores of employees for delivery and shipping. Also consider looking on the local level for delivery and courier jobs. Even local breweries are starting to deliver alcohol to customers’ porches. There’s also work to be had in warehouse and fulfillment centers for Amazon and Walmart, but also for smaller retailers with their own operations. Look around your area for opportunities.
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UPS is hiring package delivery drivers with customer service and driving skills and the ability to lift heavy packages and pass a physical exam. These positions start at $21 an hour. Warehouse work for UPS is entry level for up to 20 hours a week, and has been known to bring in around $15 hourly.
Amazon said in March that it wanted 100,000 more workers, then added 75,000 more to that wish list in mid-April. As hiring goes on, many hires are in order fulfillment positions, most in the warehouse category — part-time or full-time positions that start immediately and start at around $15 hourly.
Grocery store workers are also some of our frontline heroes, and the need for them is strong. Pretty much every major grocery chain is hiring for people to stock shelves and staff checkout registers, including Kroger, Safeway, and Meijer. Local grocers are also likely hiring.
Kroger’s parent company has been filling upward of 10,000 positions for its various stores, most starting at $15 an hour. Though the company is moving fast and making hires within a few days of getting an application, as of late April there were 6,676 positions available — many courtesy clerks who bag customers’ groceries. Grocery clerks help customers, inform them of sales, keep shelves stocked, and perform food quality checks. Ecommerce Clerks gather orders for online customers, process payments and coupons, and load groceries into customer cars.
Amazon-owned Whole Foods Market is hiring more than 600 positions across the United States in store positions, all starting at a minimum $15 an hour — but $17 through at least April in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Cashiers check customers out and bag their groceries (though not at locations that have gone online-only during coronavirus demand). Grocery team members maintain displays, prep and stock products, and run inventory checks, among other tasks.
Walmart says it has hired 150,000 workers since March, expediting its hiring process to 24 hours from application to offer, and is looking to hire 50,000 more; around 23,000 were listed online in late April. Almost all positions are temporary, to support already busy stores. Cart attendants collect shopping carts from parking lots and keep them ready for customers, as well as handling some janitorial work such as cleaning restrooms and floors. Fresh food associates keep departments clean and stock shelves with fresh food.
When it comes to grocery work, consider also the third-party companies that deliver the goods. Instacart and Shipt are desperate to hire employees. You can apply, interview, and get hired online without having to go in and meet with anyone — although you will come into contact with people doing the actual job. Deliverers need their own street-legal car, a smartphone, and the strength to lift groceries for up to several hours daily.
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Instacart says it needs nearly 300,000 more employees as demand for its services rise. The full-service shopper position finds products, then delivers them — so you will need a car, auto insurance, and a valid driver’s license.
As a store shopper, you get orders ready for pickup — no car needed. But there are probably fewer of these positions available; before the coronavirus Instacart had only about 12,000 in-store shoppers, as opposed to nearly 130,000 who shopped and delivered, according to Supermarket News.
Shipt, a grocery delivery service owned by Target, has already hired 70,000 shoppers/drivers to handle a surge during the coronavirus pandemic, and says it will double that in coming weeks. Payment varies depending on the order. A car, insurance, and driver’s license are necessary to work for Shipt — and of course a phone to use to communicate with customers through the Shipt app. The company says pay can be $22 an hour or more.
The food service industry has been hit hard by the pandemic, with bars and restaurants closing to sit-down customers indefinitely and leaning on takeout and delivery, even for gourmet meals. But there are some segments where demand is surging, including pizza delivery companies.
Papa John's says it is hiring nearly 20,000 employees, many for delivery. The job requires a driver’s license, a decent driving record, a car, and car insurance.
Personality and people skills are called a must for the part-time or full-time customer service reps Domino’s is hiring across the country. Dominos says it is looking to hire nearly 10,000 people.
Demand is also up for food trucks tracked by apps that also allow online orders. “A lot of neighborhoods are reaching out right now because I think we all crave a sense of normalcy. Bringing a food truck to a neighborhood brings neighbors out in the fresh air and sunshine to wave and say hello from a safe distance,” says Andrea Ciardelli, owner of Hot Mess Food Truck in Columbus, Ohio “We have had to turn down many events and are losing business because we do not have the manpower to keep up with the demand.”
With most schools shifting to virtual classes in a matter of days, the demand for online learning services has surged. Whether summer camps and other seasonal programming will be able to open isn’t known, but if a normal summer isn’t in the books, parents will turn to even more online programming, and more kinds.
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Outschool is an online learning “marketplace” for kids 3 to 18 that typically includes just over 1,000 teachers, but now is calling for 5,000 more. You don’t need to be a trained teacher, but you must have expertise and passion in your chosen topic, and pass a background check. Most teachers make around $30 to $40 per class hour — but it depends how many students are drawn to your independently run class.
Who facilitates the online meetings office workers rely on now? Zoom and other video conferencing apps, and the consultants and other businesses that have latched on to the phenomenon, are hiring customer service reps, virtual meeting moderators, and “embedded” conference room technology support pros to act as a liaison and guide between the client and the equipment they now rely on. Most of these must be found market by market — but might be worked as remotely as the people being served.
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Slack is a telecommunications company looking to hire more than 200 people in two dozen locations around the world, many as “customer success managers” — an account management role where you will identify customers’ business needs and problem areas and coach them on how Slack can help. Experience and a bachelor’s degree are needed.
If you have experience with Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and in some cases overseas services such as Tencent and Sina Weibo, pitch your skills to businesses. As more and more of them are forced to figure out new ways to sell services and products, online marketing on these platforms is in huge demand — and be done from the comfort and safety of your own home.
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Frontline workers with higher job demands and people trying to work from home full time with kids underfoot need help from people able to offer childcare services, especially with flexible hours. But understanding the Centers for Disease Control and Protection guidelines for child care programs that remain open is just as important as finding the right listing on a job board.
The bottom line is that these are unprecedented times, and the perfect time to learn or put together a skill set that will get you more job opportunities. Think outside the box — look around to see what businesses and industries are doing or trying to do, such as at manufacturers of products that are in demand, whether it’s masks or hand sanitizer, and figure out how you can help.