Chipotle Mexican Grill will hire 20,000 additional employees for the period of March to May as the company gears up to cater to a surge in demand for its so-called "burrito season" during spring.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is seeking to hire more workers ahead of “burrito season” – and it is embracing artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help streamline the process. The company announced the hiring initiative on Wednesday, setting its sights on bringing on board 20,000 more workers for the arrival of its “busiest time of year.”

Shares of Chipotle trade at more than 50 times the company's trailing earnings. This can be justifiable if a business is growing at a high rate. But if things are slowing down, that can lead to investors pursuing other growth stocks instead, which may be growing at faster rates.

As spring approaches, people's thoughts will turn toward green grass, sunny days, the start of baseball, and, according to the fast-food chain, a hankering for burritos that will require its restaurants to boost staffing levels.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is leaning on an artificial-intelligence program called Ava Cado to speed up its hiring process as it launches its largest-ever spring recruitment effort.