Papa John’s looks to hire 20,000 team members in massive recruiting eventPapa John’s looks to hire 20,000 team members in massive recruiting event

Joanna Fantozzi

Papa John’s International, Inc. announced Wednesday that the pizza chain is looking to hire 20,000 new team members. The Louisville, Ky.-based company will be hosting 800 regional recruitment events in 60 major markets during a national hiring week from Aug. 16-22.

“We’re looking for people who’d eat pizza for breakfast, brunch, lunch, and dinner, and who want to make dinner tables across America even tastier,” Marvin Boakye, chief people & diversity officer at Papa John’s, said in a statement. “Working at Papa John’s is an opportunity to bring your own unique voice and flavor to our table. We are working to build an inclusive culture that reflects the expansive nature of our brand and encourages team members from all backgrounds and experiences to be the best they can be.”

The company specified that they are looking for candidates to be interviewed on the spot with the potential to get hired the same day.

This is the first major hiring event Papa John’s has announced this year, following two major rounds of recruitment — of 20,000 and 10,000 employees, respectively — during the height of the pandemic last year.

In July, Papa John’s announced aggressive recruitment tactics to attract and retain hires – investing $2.5 million in new hiring, referral, and appreciation bonuses for store employees at company-owned restaurants in 2021 in recognition of their hard work during the challenging months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

CEO Rob Lynch also confirmed at the time that the company has made permanent the new benefits rolled out during the pandemic, including expanded health and wellness programs, paid time off and college tuition benefits.

This latest round of recruitment for Papa John’s was announced during a historic, industry-wide hiring struggle for restaurants tied to the latest stage of the pandemic and rising wage demands and operations costs.

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