Tesco creates 16,000 permanent jobs as pandemic sees surge in demand for online deliveries

Tesco has more than doubled its delivery customers since March as demand for online deliveries soared in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

Now it is has launched a major recruitment drive with the chain set to hire 10,000 pickers, who select items for customer orders, and 3,000 delivery drivers.

The retailer will also hire staff for a variety of other roles across its stores and distribution centres in the coming weeks and months.

These 16,000 jobs are in addition to around 4,000 permanent jobs which have already been created since the start of the pandemic, Tesco said.

However Tesco said it expects the majority of these roles to be filled by staff who joined the company on a temporary basis in recent months.

Around 47,000 temporary staff joined Tesco during the pandemic, although it is understood that most of these roles have since ended.

Tesco said roles will first be offered to temporary staff still with the business, with remaining vacancies then recruited externally.

Jason Tarry, chief executive officer of Tesco UK and ROI, said: “Since the start of the pandemic, our colleagues have helped us to more than double our online capacity, safely serving nearly 1.5 million customers every week and prioritising vulnerable customers to ensure they get the food they need.

“These new roles will help us continue to meet online demand for the long term, and will create permanent employment opportunities for 16,000 people across the UK.”

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