Domino’s Pizza is giving hourly employees at its company operated restaurants and its supply chain centers one-time bonuses of up to $1,200 this month.
The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based pizza chain said on Monday it would spend more than $9.6 million on the bonuses, which will be given to 11,500 workers. The bonuses do not cover employees of franchisee-owned restaurants. Franchisees operate all but 342 of Domino’s U.S. locations.
Still, the bonuses make Domino’s the latest company to invest in its workforce during a coronavirus that has made hourly workers essential employees, putting them on the front lines during a global pandemic.
Bonuses to frontline workers, special pay increases and, increasingly, higher permanent wages have become commonplace. Last week, for instance, Starbucks said it plans to make sure all of its workers are paid at least $15 an hour within three years, making the chain by far the largest restaurant company to promise to take that step.
Domino’s previously paid a special bonus to frontline workers at its corporate stores and supply chain centers earlier this year. It also provided paid time off to part-time workers impacted by COVID-19.
“We have the honor and privilege of being open and operating throughout the U.S. during the crisis, and we recognize that we could not be doing it without the hard work and dedication of our team members,” CEO Ritch Allison said in a statement.
Domino’s and its franchisees have conducted a “Feed the Need” program in which they’ve donated more than 10 million slices of pizza to first responders, frontline workers and those in need. The company and its operators are also hiring an additional 30,000 people as demand for delivered pizza has skyrocketed during the pandemic.
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