Dunkin’, a unit of Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc, said on Monday its franchisees are seeking to hire up to 25,000 workers as it prepares for higher demand, with U.S. states reopening after months-long lockdowns to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Canton, Massachusetts-based Dunkin’, which has about 90% of its restaurants open, said new jobs include front-of-counter to managerial roles at restaurants and added that it was committed to diversity and inclusion.

The company is also teaming up with Southern New Hampshire University to offer low-cost online college education to franchisee employees.

The U.S. economy unexpectedly added jobs in May after suffering record losses in the prior month, offering the clearest signal yet that the downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic was probably over, though the road to recovery could be long.

The Labor Department’s employment report on Friday showed the jobless rate falling to 13.3% last month from 14.7% in April, helped by restaurants and bars, which added 1.4 million jobs after losing 6 million in April and March.

Sourced from Reuters, Yahoo News