Amazon announced Monday that it plans to hire 150,000 seasonal U.S. employees to help counter an expected surge in holiday demand, and six states are expected to see the lion’s share of the hiring activity.

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The online retail giant confirmed that Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Illinois are among the states that will have the highest number of temporary holiday roles to fill, with average hourly starting pay of $18, sign-on bonuses of as much as $3,000 and an additional $3 per hour depending on the shifts worked, Reuters reported.

The hiring figure represents a 50% increase compared with the roughly 100,000 seasonal workers the online retail giant required in 2020, CNBC reported.

Monday’s announcement comes roughly one month after Amazon committed to hiring an additional 125,000 warehouse workers nationwide with average starting hourly pay of $18.

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According to CNBC, employees will help pick, pack and ship orders at warehouses across the company’s sprawling fulfillment network, a daunting task in 2021 complicated by supply chain disruptions and nationwide labor shortages.

Department store chain Macy’s Inc in September announced plans to hire about 76,000 full- and part-time seasonal workers, while Target Corp said it plans to hire an additional 100,000 ahead of the holiday surge, Reuters reported.

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