People have been queuing at supermarkets around South Holland while stores including Lincolnshire Co-op are looking to recruit to meet demand .
Shelves have been left bare in many shops around the district as people look to stock up after being urged to stay at home where possible by the government.
At Aldi this morning in Spalding, a queue formed after news spread that the shop had received a delivery over night.
The government is advising against panic buying and is urging people to buy only what they need, while some shops have put in rationing measures.
Workers involved in food processing, distribution, sale and delivery have been classed as ‘key workers’ by the government this week meaning their children should still be cared for by the school system after the schools officially close today.
Morrisons, which has a large store in Pinchbeck, has announced it’s taking on 3,500 extra staff nationally to help meet with demand, including expanding its home delivery service.
The Co-op, which has a number of branches in the area, is looking to recruit 5,000 store based roles in the country.
Varied fixed-term and casual contracts are currently available, with scope for these to be made into permanent contracts at a later date.
A Co-op spokesman said: “Lincolnshire Co-op is launching a recruitment drive in a bid to strengthen its team in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
“Issues including the heightened demand for services, school closures and colleagues undertaking self-isolation periods has meant there are fewer team members available to work in front-line outlets.
“The recruitment team are keen to find customer service assistants for food stores and pharmacies. They’re also looking for delivery drivers for the bakery Gadsby’s and to help deliver medication to pharmacies and home delivery patients.
“Anyone interested can fill out the application form (links below). They’ll then have a telephone interview to enable them to start as soon as possible. Many of the roles would suit people from retail or hospitality backgrounds.
“Head of People and Performance Heather Lee said: “All our colleagues are doing a brilliant job – from those on the front-line to those in support and office roles. We’re redeploying people to help our front-line teams too.
“We’re working really hard to keep all our outlets open and serving our communities – but we do want more people to come forward and help boost our workforce so we can continue to do that through the days and weeks to come.”
To apply for Customer Service Assistant roles click here.
To apply for Delivery Drive roles click here.
As reported yesterday, the Addo Food Group are looking to recruit temporary workers in Spalding.
In a recent press conference, Primer Minister Boris Johnson, said: “We will make sure we do everything we can to ensure to keep supermarkets stocked and our economy working.”
