Online retail giant Amazon is to offer one-off payments of up to £3,000 in order to attract staff in UK regions where there is high demand for labour.
The online retailer is hiring for 20,000 positions across its UK network during the festive season.
Fears over worker shortages have already prompted other firms to warn of problemsin the run-up to Christmas.
Amazon began offering a £1,000 signing-on bonus to recruit permanent staff in some regions in August.
As first reported in the Guardian, the company’s latest recruitment drive has included a £3,000 bonus for full-time workers at sites such as its Exeter warehouse, while in Peterborough, new temporary and permanent workers are offered a sign-up bonus of £1,500.
Pay for the temporary roles starts at a minimum of £10 per hour, rising to £11.10 in some parts of the UK.
Over the past few months, the shortage of workers in a range of sectors has led to delivery delays and waste. Fashion chain Next and supermarket Iceland are among firms warning of potential pre-Christmas disruption.
Some overseas workers have left the UK during the pandemic and also following Brexit. The furlough scheme, which ends this month, has also kept some workers out of the jobs market. (BBC)