Last updated on August 26th, 2015 at 03:12 pm
Chipotle Mexican Grill announced its first-ever National Career Day, taking place on Wednesday, Sept. 9, with the goal of hiring 4,000 new employees. The hiring event is expected to expand Chipotle’s 59,000-member workforce by nearly 7 percent.
“The economy has been thawing, more restaurants are opening and there are fewer job applicants than there were several years ago,” said Monty Moran, co-CEO of Chipotle.
Chipotle also has added to its benefits, expanding college-tuition reimbursement to all hourly workers, adding paid sick days and increasing the amount of paid vacation it offers.
Chipotle is promoting its upcoming career day with an advertising campaign beginning this week on social media websites and music-streaming service Pandora. It plans to open its nearly 1,900 restaurants three hours earlier than usual on Sept. 9, interviewing candidates until the stores officially open to customers. Some of the new workers will be hired to staff the approximately 200 new restaurants Chipotle plans to open this year, but the majority will fill openings at existing restaurants.
Other restaurants also are making moves to attract more applicants. McDonald’s and Cheesecake Factory recently raised employee wages, and McDonald’s also is helping pay for employees to earn their high-school equivalency degree and take college classes. Starbucks is providing tuition reimbursement and financial aid to employees who enroll in an online bachelor’s degree program.
