Stop & Shop to hire 5,000 new workers across Northeast

Amid a pandemic and an ongoing omnichannel transformation, Stop & Shop aims to fill more than 5,000 jobs across its stores, distribution centers and e-commerce operations.

The Ahold Delhaize USA chain said Tuesday that openings include store roles in bakery, deli, grocery, seafood, produce, the front end, night crew and online pickup. Also being hired are home delivery drivers and shoppers as well as selectors at distribution centers.

Quincy, Mass.-based Stop & Shop said the available positions are permanent and are located across New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, where the retailer operates more than 400 stores.

The 5,000 new jobs come on top of another 5,000 positions announced at the start of the COVID-19 crisis in March, Stop & Shop noted. Overall, the chain said it has invested more than $121 million in its workforce during the pandemic, including extended health care and leave benefits, access to personal protective equipment (PPE) and other safety measures. 

“As we continue to expand our e-commerce capacity, and work to deliver a great in-store experience, we’re looking for more team members who want to join our business,” Maria Silvestri, senior vice president of human resources at Stop & Shop, said in a statement. “We’re happy to be able to offer professional opportunities with stability for the many whose jobs may have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

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As Ahold Delhaize’s largest retail business, Stop & Shop is a linchpin of the company’s omnichannel growth plan. In 2020 and 2021, the Zaandam, Netherlands-based retailer aims to expand its U.S. online capacity by nearly 100%, including doubling its number of click-and-collect sites from the start of 2020 to 1,400 by 2021. U.S. online sales surged 114.7% to $583 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 27.

Ahold Delhaize also is accelerating Stop & Shop’s store upgrade program. In 2021, 60 more Stop & Shop locations will be remodeled, adding to the 30 remodels expected to be completed this year.

“The remodeled stores are performing well, with sales lifts in line with our expectations,” Ahold Delhaize CEO Frans Muller told analysts in a conference call on third-quarter results. He estimated that sales at the remodeled Stop & Shop stores were doing 3% to 4% better than existing stores on a like-for-like basis amid the pandemic.