Amazon has started recruiting 200 seasonal workers for its delivery stations in Southampton, as the online retailer builds up its workforce for the Christmas rush.

The roles are listed on Amazon's own jobs site, which says the company is hiring for its delivery stations in the city to help deliver an exceptional experience for customers this Christmas. Applications are open now through Amazon Jobs.

What the Southampton roles involve

The seasonal posts are based in Amazon's delivery stations in Southampton, the final stage of the company's delivery network before parcels reach customers' doors. Seasonal staff help sort, load and move the extra parcels generated by Christmas shopping, when online orders rise sharply.

Amazon says it looks forward to welcoming back seasonal workers who return year after year, as well as new faces joining the team. Many seasonal workers go on to full-time roles with the company after the festive period, according to the jobs page.

No closing date is printed on the Southampton location page, and Amazon has said new seasonal vacancies will be posted weekly from October through December, so applicants should check the individual adverts for the shifts and hours on offer in their area.

Christmas hiring across Amazon

The Southampton recruitment is part of a much larger seasonal hiring drive. Amazon is reportedly set to recruit more than 300,000 additional workers worldwide ahead of the Christmas trading period, marking its first increase in seasonal hiring in three years.

That figure is more than 20 per cent higher than the 250,000 workers the company hired for the festive period in each of the previous three years. The roles span seasonal, part-time and full-time positions across fulfilment centres, sorting facilities and the delivery network.

Amazon has said seasonal employees earn an average of £15 an hour, with average hourly earnings reaching nearly £18. The company operates more than 100 sites across every nation and region of the UK.

How to apply

Vacancies are listed on Amazon Jobs, where applicants can search for roles in Southampton and filter by job type and location. Southampton is one of the largest retail destinations in the South of England, and Amazon's delivery stations there serve customers across Hampshire and the wider south coast. Applications are made online, and candidates should check the individual advert for the hours, shift pattern and requirements of the role they want.

As with any job search, applicants should only apply through Amazon's official jobs site and should never pay anyone a fee to apply for a role or to secure a visa.