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Chipotle is gearing up for a major hiring spree at the end of the month, bringing in 5,000 new workers across the United States—all in one day.
The restaurant chain will be hosting their “National Career Day” on September 28, interviewing up to 100 candidates at each of their 2,000 locations. Chipotle is looking to staff more than 200 new restaurants it plans on opening by the end of the year. Applicants can register on Chipotle’s National Career Day website.
This hiring frenzy isn’t a first for the restaurant. Last year, more than 65,000 people interviewed for positions and 4,000 workers were hired. Currently, Chipotle has around 60,000 full and part-time employees.
This is a huge deal for the company, considering that Chipotle hasn’t been very fortunate as of late. Nearly 10,000 employees are currently suing Chipotle for unpaid wages, stating that, “Chipotle routinely requires hourly-paid restaurant employees to punch out, and then continue working until they are given permission to leave.” Chipotle, of course, denies the accusations.
On top of the class action lawsuit, Chipotle lost more than $26 million earlier this year, making it the first ever quarter loss for the company. Their stock also dropped by a whopping 42 percent. Then there are the 500 people who got E. coli last year from eating at the restaurant. It’s safe to say Chipotle has been dealt a few hard blows. Yet, something must be going right if they are able to open this many new stores with full-time employees. Perhaps it’s because investors haven’t given up on the chain just yet.
For example, Bill Ackman of the Pershing Square hedge fund just bought a 9.9 percent stake in Chipotle, which not only gave the restaurant some much needed money and clout, it raised Chipotle’s stock by 5.6 percent. Ackman said Chipotle was “undervalued” and “an attractive investment.”
If this National Career Day proves successful, Ackman could be right, and America may see Chipotle make the comeback of a lifetime.
