How To Predict When Amazon Warehouses Will Hire Again

If you’re seeking an entry level position at an Amazon warehouse, your options are mostly to become a fulfillment center associate, sortation center associate, or delivery station associate. 

Alex Rodriguez, a T1 Amazon warehouse associate with two years of experience, advises you to keep checking for job openings. “You don't always have to wait until Peak seasons and Holidays,” he insists. 

But, in the unlikely event your search fails to find any open roles – despite living near a fulfillment center, sortation center, or delivery station – then it probably means that Amazon is not currently hiring near your area.

The status quo is bound to change, though. With its warehouse footprint now expanding at the rate of 120 million square feet per year, Amazon could soon be announcing new job openings near you. The company’s rapid growth has led to a steady demand for warehouse associates over the past couple of years – so much so that, by 2021, its employee count in the US alone had surpassed one million. 

Alex happens to be one of those beneficiaries. He explains, “I personally was able to find my job on an off-season hiring date simply by refreshing their hiring page daily until positions showed up for my location.”

If you hope to join him, this article shows you how to determine when Amazon might start hiring again. Follow along as we explore their standard hiring cycles, peak seasons for job openings, and timing considerations when recruiting.

When does Amazon hire warehouse associates?

The company usually ramps up hiring from March to June and again from late September through December – as it gears up for Prime Day and other major holiday events. 

In confirmation, Alex explains, “My facility saw lines of new hires outside the building this past October in anticipation for Halloween and early at the start of the holiday rush.”

You can otherwise predict Amazon’s hiring surges by tracking its expansion. As it opens new warehouses or expands existing ones, they tend to post numerous new job opportunities.

For instance, if Amazon announces a new warehouse in a particular region, it is likely to start hiring several months before the facility's opening. By doing so, it’ll have time to train new employees and have them ready for the launch.

Shane Lynch has been on the job for nearly one and a half years, during which time he has observed that whenever a new building opens, Amazon proceeds to put up job ads on social media, radio, and billboards. 

How often do they hire?

The frequency of Amazon's hiring varies by role and location. 

Pickers, stowers, sorters and other entry-level roles for associates often experience the highest turnover rates, which then translate to continuous recruitment.

In terms of geography, you’ll notice that urban areas with high online shopping volumes record more regular hiring to keep up with the constant demand. Conversely, less populated regions with multiple Amazon facilities may adopt a more calculated hiring strategy – with staff occasionally being redistributed based on demand shifts.

“The difference is especially stark between delivery stations in urban and rural areas,” explains Shane. “Their role as last mile facilities means operations are entirely dependent on the local shopping trends. The same cannot be said for fulfillment and sortation centers, as they both serve multiple regions at once.” 

Market demand is another influential factor. As consumer preferences shift towards online shopping, Amazon may adjust its hiring to maintain its commitment to quick delivery times. 

The COVID-19 pandemic, for example, prompted Amazon to hire extensively to cope with the increased volume of orders.

When is the peak hiring season?

From October to January, Amazon's recruitment intensifies as it preps for the holiday shopping frenzy – through Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the Christmas season.

The mid-year event, Prime Day, also triggers a similar escalation in hiring. Amazon begins recruiting warehouse associates in the second quarter (around April), who then come in to handle the increased influx of orders during the 48-hour sale period. 

You’ll further experience peak hiring seasons during the opening of new warehouses, particularly in the host regions. Take, for instance, when Amazon decided to open its first air hub in Kentucky. This development saw the company advertise 2,000 job positions, resulting in a localized hiring boom. 

When does Amazon hire seasonal workers?

Seasonal roles at Amazon are temporary positions created to supplement the regular workforce during periods of high demand. The contracts can last anywhere from a few weeks to several months, depending on the company's needs.

For example, in 2020, Amazon prepared for a pandemic-driven surge in online shopping by hiring 100,000 seasonal workers in the U.S. Then in September 2021, the company announced plans to enroll 125,000 full and part-time workers across its operations network for the holiday season.

Seasonal hiring is often informed by the company’s forecasting models, which analyze historical sales data, projected consumer demands, and even variables like weather patterns. 

Besides one-off surges like the examples above, every year is guaranteed to witness jumps in demand during these peak shopping seasons:

• Back to school (August)
• Christmas (November-December)
• Prime Day (June - July))

“And if you ever get hired in one of those seasonal recruitments, you could even end up getting elevated to a permanent position,” says Alex. He then adds, “Amazon has this tendency of converting most of its White Badge (seasonal) associates to Blue Badge, usually after just a few weeks or months of service.” 

Justin James, an Amazon Warehouse employee of two years, agrees but then proceeds to caution that there is no way to reliably predict when that might happen. 

When are they hiring again in 2024?

Check if you have new warehouses opening near you

As Amazon gears up for expansion, its 2024 hiring agenda will probably correspond with the launch of new warehouses and distribution centers. Analysts from JPMorgan project the growth spurt could even position Amazon to overtake Walmart as the largest retailer in the US by 2024.

Consider the Windsor (Canada) fulfillment center as an example. Initially planned at 200,000 square feet, it has extended to 300,000 and is on track to be fully operational by late 2024. This is set to spark a hiring spree for both permanent and seasonal roles, especially in preparation for peak times like the Christmas season and Prime Day.

Over in Virginia Beach, Amazon's blueprint includes two new facilities that promise to inject over 1,000 jobs into the local economy. Similarly, Baton Rouge expects a hiring uptick as the Cortana fulfillment center gears up for a mid-2024 launch.

There’s also a new Amazon distribution center coming up in Westo, WI by the end of 2024. It spans 80,000 square feet, most of which will be serviced by local hires. 

Otherwise, think through the peak shopping seasons

If you’re not lucky enough to have a warehouse opening in your local area, you can play the waiting game for one of the upcoming shopping seasons to come around:

• Around April or May2024, ahead of for Prime Day shopping
• In August 2024, just in time for back-to-school shopping
• Through November 2024, ahead of Christmas shopping

And who knows - if a handful of workers leave their job at your local warehouse tomorrow, you might get lucky and find an opening well outside these peak hiring periods.

Why isn't Amazon hiring as many warehouse workers these days?

Although Amazon’s hiring rate has not slowed overall, there are some factors that occasionally eat into the total number of workers they would otherwise potentially hire.

Robotics, for instance, are now involved in processing 75% of customer orders. They’ve been automating many of the manual tasks that were previously being handled by human workers. 

The company also uses AI to predict product demand and strategically stock inventory near customers. This has resulted in over 76% of U.S. orders being shipped from local fulfillment centers, thus minimizing their delivery time. 

The impact of the innovations is not entirely negative, though. While it could mean fewer new hires in the short term, demand is gradually shifting to more skilled roles within the company's warehouses. You’re bound to see more job opportunities for warehouse associates who can collaborate with Amazon’s automations to fulfill customer orders more efficiently. 

“Amazon's Career Choice program itself offers many warehouse workers opportunities to gain the skills necessary to transition into one of the more skilled roles,” explains Justin. 

“Not only will Amazon pay for college tuition for approved schools/ programs, but they also have a myriad of paid training programs in fields like mechatronics, robotics, data centers, and cloud computing,”

Is Amazon hiring right now? 

Yes, it is in various places around the country. As the biggest e-commerce entity on the globe, Amazon is constantly recruiting.

Visit their job portal to explore the latest openings near you and take the first step towards your new exciting career as an Amazonian.