Global job site Indeed has picked up a strong surge in people looking for a job at Amazon in Australia.

The numbers, gathered before reports this week of a local Amazon launch soon, show searches for jobs in Australia at the global retail giant jumped 1512% this year.

“We’ve been hearing about their much anticipated Australian launch for months now, so it might not come as a surprise that searches for the global retail behemoth surged,” Indeed says.

Indeed, which won’t reveal exact numbers because of commercial sensitivity, says searches for jobs at Amazon in Australia now run into tens of thousands.

Amazon is said to be a notoriously difficult place to work, according to various reports.

A 2015 expose by the New York Times The New York Times described a “bruising workplace” where employees were asked to harshly critique their peers, and those suffering personal crises often pushed out of their positions.

Among the jobs being advertised by Amazon in Australia are a Retention Marketing Specialist, Filed Quality Engineer, Software Development Manager, Research Scientist, Senior in-Stock Manager and Brand Specialist.

The Research Scientist position is for a “talented” person “who is passionate about using data to drive business decisions, define the path for our Network Health products, and improve our processes”.

Amazon confirmed in April this year that it was launching in Australia. It now has a warehouse in Melbourne and has been on a hiring spree.

The US online giant is widely tipped to soon be trading goods via its Australian website, with both its own offering and that of third party sellers.

“All this talk about the retail sector seems to have had a positive effect on Australia’s traditional retailers,” says Indeed.

Searches for jobs at Myer and David Jones are both up 24%, Harvey Norman 65% and JB Hi-Fi 32%.

Job searches via Indeed for work at Amazon are now on level pegging with Myer and David Jones and double that of Harvey Norman.

Amazon’s launch is expected to have a major impact on other retailers in Australia.

UBS has just finished its latest Evidence Lab on Australian Online Retail which includes a consumer survey of 1,008 Australian shoppers, talks with industry players and global case studies.

The study suggests those who sell electronics, apparel and cosmetics are most under threat.

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