The e-commerce giant is increasing U.S. holiday staffing by 20% compared to the past three seasons. Amazon’s increase in hiring is a standout in a season where retailers are bringing on fewer workers or staying quiet about their plans. The company hires seasonal employees all year long. But, starting on New Year’s Day, a benefit that has typically been given to regular, full-time employees will soon be available to those seasonal workers: healthcare coverage starting on their first day. “That means anyone who joins us in these qualifying seasonal roles now or in the future will have access to healthcare — whether they join us for the holidays or at another point in the year,” J. Ofori Agboka, vice president of people experience and technology, wrote in the announcement.

A new Gartner, Inc. survey1 found that 87% of business leaders expect to increase organization investment in sustainability over the next two years. As packaging professionals, we can help customers reach their sustainability goals while continuing to meet day-to-day business needs. As companies prioritize sustainability, its importance grows across organization departments – all of which have different day-to-day business needs to consider. Understanding customers’ unique motivations and needs will help guide impactful conversations. What are their goals? How do they measure success? What keeps them up at night?

Just a reminder to sign up for the upcoming free webinar, Rethinking Catalogs: New Technology, New Processes, New Economics, to be held on August 10th at 1:00 pm Eastern Time. Lands’ End Creative Director Daniel Hetzer and Inkjet Insight Founding Partner Elizabeth Gooding will discuss how catalog creative and production processes are adapting to new customer attitudes, technical capabilities and economic realities. Takeaways: • How shifting customer attitudes are affecting retail buying patterns • Objective approaches to measuring catalog and direct mail effectiveness • The impact of Covid-19 on cataloging • Trends toward personalization and customization that predate the pandemic and those that can be used effectively and efficiently • Consideration of new strategies for when to print, what to print and how to print. For more info and to register go to: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_6eXQly3hTnmwD8mamsUJhg