NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A growing Tennessee-based public company is pushing ahead with what it calls its most ambitious hiring spree ever, coming amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tractor Supply Co. (Nasdaq: TSCO) announced plans Monday to immediately fill 5,000 full-time and part-time positions companywide, including in the St. Louis region. The company, which caters to the farming and agriculture industries, has nearly 1,900 stores and eight distribution centers, spread across 49 states. There are about nine Tractor Supply retail stores in the St. Louis area, but no local distribution centers.
"We have the privilege of being an essential retailer who sells goods that are demand-based and needs-driven," Hal Lawton, Tractor Supply's president and CEO, told the Nashville Business Journal. "Our customers rely on us for the feed for their animals, food for their pets and all the upkeep for their land, farms and really to manage their lives."
Lawton became Tractor Supply's president and CEO on Jan. 13. One part of the company's hiring initiative includes hiring a designated greeter at every store location. Lawton said those greeters will help maintain social distancing and sanitize key customer-based areas like carts and registers.
"We've seen nice results in the business. We also know that we're asking a lot of our team members at this time in terms of sanitation, but also with the increased stress and anxiety they have on them," Lawton said. "A combination of all those factors led us to hiring some additional team members. We're pleased that we can contribute to the broader economy during these times with our hiring efforts."
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