The COVID-19 pandemic has left millions of people around the world jobless or with shortened work hours. However, not all is lost.
The buying habits of the general population have changed. Governments and corporations are busy trying to mitigate the effects of the outbreak. Pharmaceutical companies are focusing on finding a cure while the healthcare sector is directing their energy on treating COVID-19 patients.
These factors have opened up new in-demand jobs in these industries. Here are 9 of them anyone can apply for right now.
Distribution Center and Warehouse Handlers
Since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have advised to stay indoors to curb the spread of the disease, consumers are now turning to online shopping to buy their groceries and household needs.
Amazon, for example, is hiring 100,000 warehouse workers to keep up with the significant increase in demand. The same goes for Walmart which has opened 150,000 work opportunities. As for the on-demand grocery Instacart, 300,000 openings are waiting to be filled.
Most of these positions are temporary. Some companies who are currently out of business due to the pandemic are even teaming up with booming businesses to help their furloughed employees.
Personal Shoppers and Store Associates
There is also a demand for store associates who can help keep groceries and convenience stores stocked up and clean. Thousands of personal shoppers are also being hired to help consumers buy what they need during this critical time.
The world’s largest convenience store chain, 7-Eleven, announced that they’re hiring 20,000 people. Albertsons Companies, on the other hand, has 30,000 new positions opened.
CDL Truck Drivers and Delivery Drivers
Of course, someone has to move the products that consumers need from the manufacturing company to the retailers’ warehouses and store locations. Since people are turning to online shopping to buy their needs during this pandemic, someone also has to drop the items to the customer’s house. The same goes for food deliveries.
The change in people’s buying habits has caused a demand for CDL truck drivers and delivery drivers. For truck drivers, a commercial driver’s license (CDL) is a must to show that you have the skills to safely operate large commercial vehicles. For the latter, a valid driver’s license and a clean driving record are typically enough.
Companies that are mass hiring CDL truck drivers and delivery drivers include Kroger, CVS, and food companies like Pizza Hut, Domino’s, and Papa Johns.
Data Specialists
According to a recent economic research report by Glassdoor, there has been an increased number of job openings for data specialists. People who will be hired will be tasked to analyze the data related to the coronavirus. This includes understanding the severity level of the pandemic and examining the economic activity.
Applicants don’t need to have a bachelor’s degree. What the position requires are traits and skills like analytical thinking, detail-orientedness, and adaptability to changes.
Communications Specialists
The same Glassdoor report says that communications specialist openings have increased as well. These professionals are tasked to share coronavirus-related news and information to readers all over the world. One example of a task that you might be asked to do is write about prevention in various languages.
This is a good option for you if you have a bachelor’s degree and communications or public relations work experience.
Transcription Jobs
With everyone staying home, time spent TV watching has skyrocketed across the world. As such, the need for transcriptionists has also risen dramatically to provide subtitles for video content.
As long as you’re a fast typer and native in the language of the content you’ll be transcribing (such as English), that’s sufficient for most companies. Good transcription jobs can pay up to $60 per audio hour.
Teleworking Software Employees
The coronavirus outbreak has led lots of businesses to shift to remote work situations. As such, popular telecommunications and remote meeting software companies are hiring more workers to help deal with the influx of users.
Slack and Microsoft Teams, two of the most popular unified communication and collaboration platforms, have thousands of positions in different locations waiting to be filled. Zoom, the go-to video app for corporations and online teachers, is hiring as well.
Customer Service Representatives
With most people staying, there are lots of questions that need to be answered. These could be things like technical questions, service and delivery inquiries, order tracking – basically everything under the sun.
It’s the customer service representatives’ job to answer these questions. As a work from home job, you only need a stable internet connection and a laptop or computer to apply.
Examples of companies that are accepting candidates include Zoom, Slack, and Walgreens.
Tutors
With millions of students staying at home to avoid further spreading the coronavirus, online learning schools are booming. It’s not just students too. Lots of people are also taking this quarantine time to improve their skill sets, further increasing the demand for online ESL teachers, instructional designers, and virtual learning coaches.
If you’re interested in this type of remote job, check out Outschool and K12, among other companies.
