Company also boosting hourly wages, benefits for workers
Amazon Canada is launching a major seasonal hiring campaign, aiming to recruit more than 7,000 employees for its operations network as the company gears up for the busy holiday period.
At the same time, it's boosting hourly wages and introducing an Employee Prime Benefit to further attract and retain workers.
The recruitment drive will run from October through December, with positions available at fulfilment centres, sortation centres, and delivery stations across the country. Seasonal roles include stowing, picking, packing, sorting, and shipping customer orders.
Amazon has around 46,000 workers in Canada. Previously, Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, said that in the next few years, the employer expects to reduce its total corporate workforce as Amazon sees “efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company."
Enhanced pay for Amazon workers
This hiring initiative comes alongside significant enhancements to Amazon’s compensation and benefits package for frontline operations employees. Effective September 28, the company has increased its average hourly wage for eligible employees to $24.50, representing a 4.3% rise over 2024 wages.
Full-time frontline workers will now earn a minimum annual salary of $50,960. Amazon has committed more than $110 million this year alone to pay increases for customer fulfilment and transportation employees.
In addition to higher wages, Amazon’s step plan compensation model ensures eligible hourly full- and part-time employees receive guaranteed pay increases every six months until their 24-month anniversary, with an additional raise at month 36.
This comes as the cost of employee financial stress to Canadian businesses has soared to $69.5 billion in lost productivity each year, according to the National Payroll Institute. That number is up by $15.6 billion from 2024.
Over half of all workers (51%) admit to spending at least 15 minutes per day thinking about their finances at work, up from 45% in 2024. And nearly one in four say financial stress has impacted their workplace performance.
Employee Prime Benefit
Amazon is also expanding its benefits offering with the introduction of the Employee Prime Benefit. By the end of 2025, eligible frontline employees with at least 90 days of service will receive complimentary access to the full suite of Prime services, including fast and free delivery, exclusive shopping events, Prime Video, Amazon Music Prime, Prime Reading, Prime Gaming, unlimited photo storage, and a free DashPass membership.
The new benefit adds to Amazon's existing workplace benefits package for full-time employees, which starts on day one of employment. These include:
- extended health
- dental and vision benefits that provide additional coverage beyond provincial health plans (including massage therapy, chiropractic treatment, acupuncture, physiotherapy, vision care and coverage for prescription drugs)
- an RRSP savings plan; financial, mental and physical health resources; and more.
Amazon employees with at least 90 days of tenure are also eligible for the enhanced Career Choice program, through which the company pre-pays 100% of tuition, up to a yearly maximum, towards a certificate or diploma in qualified fields of study, including truck driving, data analytics, and cybersecurity.
Eighteen educational institutions across Canada are partnered with Career Choice, including Sheridan College, Algonquin College, Western Community College, and the Toronto Truck Driving School.
“We're proud to offer competitive pay, comprehensive benefits from day one, and a supportive environment where everyone can thrive,” said Chuck Cummings, director of customer fulfilment, Amazon Canada.
