DHL Express is adding approximately 400 new jobs in the United States due to a double-digit volume increase in shipments compared to last year.
“Inbound shipment volume is booming, particularly from Asia,” said Greg Hewitt, CEO for DHL Express U.S. “Our customers are relying on us to deliver their shipments, whether it’s personal protective equipment (PPE) or home necessities, so we must add staff at our hubs, gateways and on the road to continue providing our customers with excellent service.”
Volumes have significantly increased in recent months due to a spike in online shopping as people stayed quarantined due to COVID-19. Urgent shipments such as masks, gloves and other PPE also contributed to holiday season-like volumes, but these volumes have come without the usual pre-season preparation time for the peak.
“Our challenge this year is that we’re seeing peak volumes in the summer, which is a non-traditional time. We normally have time to prep for peak season,” said Hewitt.
Many of the new jobs will be at the DHL Express Americas Hub (Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport) where the company will take on about 150 extra workers to handle the 30% year-over-year volume increase.
At the Miami International Airport gateway, which connects to the company’s South America, Central America and Caribbean network, about 30 jobs are being added to account for a higher volume than last year. Volume is expected to increase another 22% with the implementation of a new Hong Kong – Los Angeles – Miami flight that commenced in late May. This new flight from Asia, scheduled to run in-bound five times per week, will add approximately 45 more tons of capacity per flight.
Similarly, DHL Express’ gateway at O'Hare International will require more than 50 permanent employees to respond to a 25% volume increase year-over-year in 2020. The company expects shipment volumes to remain high as businesses restock inventory to prepare for re-openings.
The new jobs to be filled in the coming weeks include permanent full- and part-time opportunities in direct management, clearance and gateway operations, pick-up and delivery service, and ramp and sorting operations throughout the U.S. Because of the ongoing risk in spreading COVID-19, DHL will continue to offer options for virtual recruiting and hiring, including remote interviews and online training. Once hired, employees will physically report to work at the designated locations.
While about 80% of the DHL Express U.S. employees work on the frontline, 20% have been eligible to work from home during the pandemic. To protect frontline employees and those returning to the office, DHL Express follows governmental health guidelines for PPE such as masks and gloves, performs intense deep cleanings of facilities, informs its employees of new safety standards, and has modified workspaces by staggering shift times to guarantee proper social distancing.
“As an essential business, we’ve been able to keep working throughout this crisis,” Hewitt said. “At DHL Express, our paramount goal is to keep our people healthy. If you think about it, by preventing the spread of the virus among employees, you keep your people safe and working – and that’s the best way to keep the supply chain open. So, we did everything we could to pivot, adapt, and improvise to ensure that our facilities remain safe and operational.”
