Whole Foods' 2,500 open jobs in metro area include some at new Garden City store

Whole Foods Market wants to fill 2,500 permanent and seasonal jobs at stores in the New York City metro area, including a new supermarket that opened in Garden City on Thursday.

The full-time, part-time and seasonal positions include those for in-store shoppers, cashiers and store support, according to a statement from the Austin, Texas-based chain of high-end grocery stores.

"We offer a 20% store discount, starting pay of at least $15 per hour, and flexible scheduling to fit your lifestyle," Whole Foods says on its website.

Minimum wage on Long Island is $13, which will increase to $14 on Dec. 31.

Whole Foods did not respond to Newsday's inquiries about the jobs, including whether the open positions were related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Owned by Seattle-based e-commerce giant Amazon.com Inc., Whole Foods has 508 stores in North America and the United Kingdom, including 487 in the United States.

The grocer is continuing to expand its reach on Long Island over a relatively short period of time, with the opening of a Commack store in April 2019 and the Garden City store Thursday, and the planned opening of a Massapequa location next year.

Whole Foods' Garden City supermarket, which it describes as its Westbury store, is its fifth location on Long Island.

The 57,000-square-foot store, at 867 E. Gate Blvd., is on the site of a former Pepsi bottling plant that was redeveloped by Midwood Investment & Development, a real estate firm based in Manhattan.

Whole Foods signed a 20-year lease with Midwood, the firm said in a statement.

The store is across the street from The Gallery at Westbury Plaza, a 330,000-square-foot shopping center that includes Trader Joe’s, Old Navy, and off-price department stores Bloomingdale's Outlet, Nordstrom Rack and Saks Off Fifth.

"Given its proximity to other retail and commercial options, 867 East Gate Boulevard is an ideal location for Whole Foods Market," John Usdan, chief executive officer of Midwood, said in a statement. "Located in one of the prime retail corridors, Whole Foods Market Westbury will have terrific visibility for its newest location on Long Island and we are proud to welcome the retailer to Eastgate Plaza."

The new Whole Foods includes coffee and juice bars, an in-house bakery and full-service butcher, floral and produce departments, and grocery delivery and pickup, according to a statement from the grocer.

Whole Foods' Massapequa supermarket will be a 38,459-square-foot store, opening in a former Babies R Us space in the Sunrise Promenade shopping center in fall 2021, according to Clifford Sondock, director of leasing at Spiegel Associates, Newsday reported in July. Spiegel is a Jericho-based real estate developer that owns the shopping center.

By Tory N. Parrish

tory.parrish@newsday.comToryParrish1

Tory N. Parrish covers retail and small business for Newsday. She has worked at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Observer-Dispatch in Utica, N.Y.