PURCHASE, N.Y. — PepsiCo will hire 6,000 new full-time, full-benefit front-line employees in the United States amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
The snack and beverage company will also provide enhanced benefits to all U.S.-based employees and additional compensation to the employees who make, move and sell products.
The additional compensation covers more than 90,000 front-line employees of PepsiCo Beverages North America and PepsiCo Foods North America and consists of a minimum of $100 per week for full-time employees over the next month, according to the company.
"With COVID-19 reshaping the way we run our business and live our lives, it's important that we acknowledge the people keeping us steady during turbulent times, notably the heroic work of the millions of doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals around the world," said Ramon Laguarta, chairman and CEO of PepsiCo. "At the same time, there is important work being done in other sectors, including our own, to help maintain the supply of foods and beverages. We couldn't be prouder of our PepsiCo team for the role they play in restocking pantries and refrigerators."
Enhanced benefits include:
- Employees who must quarantine will receive full pay up to a 14-day period.
- Employees who have been assessed by a doctor and are showing symptoms or diagnosed with COVID-19 and employees caring for someone with COVID-19 will receive full pay during the 14-day quarantine period. Sick pay or short-term disability benefits will start after the initial 14 days and will provide a minimum of two-thirds of their pay for up to 10 weeks.
- Employees who work at a facility that must close will receive full pay for up to 12 weeks.
- Employees who are affected by school or day-care center closures with no one at home to look after a child will receive a minimum of two-thirds of their pay for up to 12 weeks if they can’t work from home.
- Employees are eligible for free COVID-19 testing, a reimbursement for child care and access to specially trained mental health professionals.
PepsiCo has also taken steps to protect the health of employees while at work, including increased cleaning frequency of facilities, expanded availability of gloves and stepped-up visitor screening and restrictions.
Giving Back
The PepsiCo Foundation will invest up to $11 million to provide food, water and other critical support to communities around the world affected by COVID-19, the company said.
In the United States, PepsiCo is partnering with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty to deliver 1 million food boxes to students in rural communities. The Food for Good program aims to provide 200,000 meals weekly to students and distribute at least 1 million meals over the next month to affected communities.
PepsiCo has also provided $100,000 to Feeding Westchester. This will support the distribution of shelf-stable meals and fresh produce to people in Westchester County, N.Y.
PepsiCo, Purchase, N.Y., generated more than $67 billion in net revenue in 2019. Its brands include Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana.
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