Coronavirus: companies that are still hiring right now

The pandemic has caused chaos, but is also creating demand for certain jobs. Here's a look at the companies currently looking to recruit more staff.

It’s an incredibly difficult time for many of us when it comes to work.

Sure, some people can carry on from home, swapping meetings in person for sessions on Zoom, but there are an awful lot of others who are ‘furloughed’, receiving less than usual in their monthly pay packets.

Spare a thought for those too who have lost their jobs as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, or who were already unemployed and now face the difficult situation of trying to find a job at a time when we aren’t supposed to leave the house.

Thankfully, it’s not all bad news, with a host of employers actually actively recruiting at the moment.

So which firms are on the hunt for new employees? And what jobs are they looking to fill?

The in-demand industries

First, let’s take a look at the specific industries that are seeing an increase in demand for staff.

Reboot Digital PR Agency analysed all of the new listings on the Indeed jobs website in the first three days after the nation was told to stay at home which fall within the definitions of ‘essential workers’ as set out by the government.

It found a whopping 21,642 new jobs listed on the site in that 72 hours period. Of those, almost two fifths (39%) fall within health and social care ‒ that’s almost 8,500 listings for doctors, nurses, pharmacists and the like.

This was followed by education and childcare, with more than 4,200 listings (around 20%).

Now let’s take a look at just some of the businesses, large and small, which are on a recruitment drive.

Supermarkets

It’s no secret that demand for deliveries from supermarkets is on the rise, and that’s leading to the nation’s big grocers creating new jobs.

Morrisons, for example, has created 3,500 new jobs, including around 2,500 pickers and drivers, with the rest working in the firm’s distribution centres.

It’s certainly not alone.

Tesco has announced plans to bring in a whopping 20,000 new members of staff to work in its stores over the next couple of months, while deep discounter Aldi is bringing in 9,000 new staff, 4,000 of which will be on permanent contracts.

Asda is also recruiting for 5,000 temporary positions.

Domino’s

You might be a little surprised to hear that takeaway pizza giant Domino’s is still open at the moment.

Not only is it still operating as usual, but it’s also looking to bring in 6,000 new workers to fill roles as delivery drivers or operation managers.

What’s more, the firm said it was particularly interested in hearing from people who normally work in sectors which have been the most adversely affected by the current situation, such as those who work in retail or hospitality.

Lloyds Pharmacy

Parent firm McKesson said it is “urgently” looking to recruit thousands of new roles, with the Coronavirus pandemic leading to an “unprecedented surge in demand” for pharmacy products and services.

Roles range from warehouse staff and drivers, to qualified pharmacists.

Virgin Media

Communications giant Virgin Media is recruiting 500 new call centre staff in the UK.

The new roles will be at existing call centres in Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield and Teesside, with the aim of taking some of the strain off of the firm’s offshore call centres in countries like India and the Philippines.

Chip

Chip is an app that helps you save money automatically, which has recently gained FCA authorisation, and it’s still looking to grow despite the current turbulence.

The firm has had four new members of staff join in the last couple of weeks, all working remotely, while it’s currently recruiting for a host of roles, predominantly in engineering roles.

Care firms

Visiting Angels is a care firm with offices in Sheffield, Berkshire, Hertfordshire and London and is recruiting across all of them.

Dan Archer, managing director, said: “We’ve had an influx of applications from people who, as a direct result of the lockdown, find themselves without work but still want to contribute and make a difference. We’ll be taking on around 100 new staff over the coming months up and down the UK.”

Elsewhere, home care agency Caremark is recruiting 2,000 people across the country to provide care to older and vulnerable people. What’s more, full training is required, so you don’t need any experience.

Members of the Live-In Care Hub are also recruiting a whopping 21,000 live-in carers currently.

Yodel

Never have we been so reliant on deliveries, so if you fancy giving it a go, Yodel is currently recruiting 500 self-employed courier and service delivery partner roles.

Get fruit picking

We are getting into prime berry picking season, but there are concerns that there won’t be enough people picking fruit as a result of the current situation.

British Summer Fruits represents the industry and has a brilliant map on its website detailing all of the farms across the nation that are currently looking for workers, from pickers and packers to forklift drivers.

If you are a business currently recruiting staff, leave a comment below on what roles you are hiring for.