Career
Dive Brief:
Warehouse hiring hit another highpoint in December, with employment in the sector up nearly 9% YoY to reach more than 1.29 million workers, according to preliminary figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
These workers were also working longer hours in the run-up to peak season. Average hours worked reached nearly 43 hours per week for nonsupervisory employees in November, according to the BLS.
The Producer Price Index for the warehousing and storage sector reached its highest point in a decade, after tumbling in the early days of the pandemic, signaling added warehousing costs are being passed along to customers.
Dive Insight:
In the run up to peak season, multiple logistics companies announced plans to bring on thousands — or tens of thousands — of additional employees to help handle the additional volume flowing through their network.
The latest figures from the BLS highlight just how much networks added to their labor capacity, while underscoring the continued importance of labor in an increasingly automated industry.