AN extra 120 jobs are being created at Woolworths' distribution hub at Barnawartha North to meet demand from the coronavirus crisis.
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The supermarket chain has been stretched to fill empty shelves from its giant warehouse at Wodonga Council's Logic industrial estate.
"The team...have done a great job ramping up deliveries and stock flow through the facility over the past month to support the needs of the community," a spokesman for Woolworths said.
"We're looking to increase our workforce at Wodonga's regional distribution centre by more than 20 percent, creating up to 120 additional roles.
"This is on top of increases in our existing team's hours to meet soaring demand."
About 400 now work at the hub which runs 24/7.
The new staff are expected to be employed over the next month.
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"The extra team members will allow us to better meet elevated demand and give our existing team the time to rest and re-energise between shifts," the Woolworths representative said.
There has also been a 20 per cent rise in truck movements from the warehouse.
Wodonga-based Ron Finemore Transport, one of two freight companies contracted by Woolworths at Logic, has seen that reflected in the need for more truck drivers.
The company's managing director Mark Parry said 40 new drivers had been hired in the past four weeks.
Trucks normally servicing Sydney warehouses were coming from Orange to take loads from Logic and prime movers due to be traded had been kept to expand the fleet.
National Union of Workers regional organiser Mark Schmidt said he was pleased with Woolworths' response to the COVID-19 crisis.
"They've done a lot with the employees so that if you suspect or think you've got something, even if it's flu, you can take precautionary steps because they've got measures with additional paid leave," Mr Schmidt said.
He said the layout of the meal room had been changed with allocated seats and tables to halt the potential spread of coronavirus.
Fellow NUW organiser Neil Smith noted other measures taken by large firms in the area.
He said Uncle Toby's was taking the temperature of workers and giving them special leave if they were unwell and Saputo was encouraging paid workers over 70 and those over 50 with pre-existing health conditions to stay at home.
But Mr Schmidt said there were some bosses demanding employees gain a full medical clearance to continue working but not prepared to cover the costs involved.
He also said labour hire companies were failing to act to assist their casual employees.