Casey’s General Stores will hold open interviews at its more than 2,400 stores on Wednesday and Thursday with the goal of filling 5,000 positions.

The Ankeny-based company has just over 400 positions to fill in Iowa, according to a company spokesperson. The remaining positions are located in the 15 other states the convenience store chain is located.

“We’re looking forward to these events helping us make progress on filling these roles,” Katie Petru, the company’s communications director, wrote in an email.

Numerous businesses across the state have reported difficulty attracting and keeping workers, an issue that was occurring even before the start of the pandemic, which caused an economic shutdown beginning in March 2020. In February 2020, Iowa’s unemployment rate was 2.6% with 45,1000 Iowan’s out of work, according to Iowa Workforce Development data.

In January, Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.7% with 62,700 people unemployed, according to the state agency. The state’s job listing website on Monday had 84,306 job openings.

Casey’s officials are hopeful this week’s open interviews will attract job applicants. A similar hiring event was held in May 2021, according to Petru. “We saw a strong, positive response in Iowa. … We look forward to what we can achieve this year.”

Interested applicants can visit Casey’s stores between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday to fill out applications and interview for a job. Both part- and full-time positions are available.