米アマゾン、入社時最大３１万円の特別手当　年末繁忙期に備え

【ニューヨークＡＦＰ＝時事】インターネット通販最大手の米アマゾン・ドットコムは、繁忙期であるホリデーシーズンを前に、一部の国内施設の新規従業員について、入社時に最大3000ドル（約31万円）の特別手当を支給すると発表した。（写真は資料写真）
　アマゾンは新型コロナウイルスの流行下で、自宅で過ごすことを好む消費者が増えていることから好況が続いており、季節労働者を１０万人雇用する予定。
　今回の特別手当はカリフォルニア州やマサチューセッツ州など複数州の倉庫の仕事で、時給１５ドル～２５ドル５０セント（約１６００円～２７００円）の有期雇用が対象。金額は１０００ドル（約１０万４０００円）～３０００ドル。
　アマゾンはまた、新型ウイルスの感染者が全国的に急増するなか、従業員の安全と健全な職場環境への取り組みについても強調した。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/11/26-12:16）

E-commerce giant Amazon is offering signing bonuses of up to $3,000 at certain facilities in the United States as it ramps up hiring for the busy holiday season.
The company -- which has boomed during the coronavirus pandemic, with more and more shoppers happy to stay home -- expects to hire 100,000 seasonal workers.
Amazon says the deal -- which also features hourly wages of $15 to $25.50 -- is a limited-time opportunity in select locations.
The signing bonuses range from $1,000 to $3,000 for jobs posted in company warehouses in several US states from California to Massachusetts.
Amazon also emphasizes its commitment to employee safety and a healthy work environment, amid a nationwide surge in virus cases.
But the company owned by Jeff Bezos -- the world's richest man -- is regularly accused by activist groups of flouting sanitary and safety guidelines meant to protect its workers.
Amazon's incentives come as the unemployment rate in the United States has receded -- in October, it dropped to 6.9 percent, suggesting the labor market is recovering after the high point of layoffs at the start of the virus crisis.
The recovery is of course still dependent on how the pandemic progresses. Several states have reimposed restrictions on movement and business openings to curb the spread of the virus.