Job hunters looking for a start in retail with minimal delay might do well to apply to Farmfoods, new research suggests.
The grocer has a faster hiring rate – based on the average length of time between a successful candidate submitting an application and gaining confirmed employment in the post – than any other retailer, according to job site Indeed.
Farmfoods’ hiring rate from 1 March to 31 May this year was five times faster than the average of employers across all sectors, according to Indeed.
Among the ranks of retailers, it was followed in the number one spot by B&M-owned Heron Foods (1.7 times faster than average), Tesco (1.3 times faster than average), and Morrisons, Specsavers and Asda (all 1.25 times faster than average).
Meanwhile, Aldi and Lidl didn’t even make it into the rankings, as they were outside the top 25 fastest-hiring employers across all sectors, according to Indeed. That’s despite Lidl this week listing nearly 400 jobs on Indeed and Aldi listing 3,500, and the pair being the joint-highest paying supermarkets for entry-level store workers.
M&S’s logistics arm Gist also made it into top 25 across all sectors, hiring 2.5 times faster than average, along with pub chain Wetherspoons (1.7 times faster) and McDonald’s (1.3 times faster).
The Grocer revealed in May that Farmfoods had embarked on a major expansion drive, having signed deals to open 24 stores since the start of the year.
The 70-year-old family-run grocer sells brands and own-label across frozen, chilled, ambient and fresh categories. It has been looking for units of between 10,000 and 20,000 sq ft to introduce its latest ‘concept’ store format – featuring a modernised layout and fascia – to new areas, especially London.
The 122 Farmfoods positions listed on Indeed this week include part time retail assistants at a pay rate of £11.54 an hour for over 21s – 10p higher than the national living wage. Full-time positions include retail supervisors at £12.50 an hour, warehouse operatives at £13.80 an hour and store managers on an annual salary of between £31,376 and £44,270.
Aldi and Lidl both pay store workers a minimum hourly rate of £13.65 within the M25 or £12.40 across the rest of the country.
Aldi last week said it would create 1,000 new store jobs by the year end as it opened an average of one new supermarket a week.
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