As the Christmas season gains momentum and people look to take advantage of the sales, Amazon is aiming to recruit up to 900 seasonal workers across the East Midlands to help cope with the expected demand. The online retail giant is also looking to bring on board around 400 permanent workers in a variety of areas, such as IT, finance and HR by the end of the year.
This expansion of operations will create new jobs in Derbyshire, which in the current climate will be of enormous value. Although the majority of the new jobs in the East Midlands region will be seasonal, and therefore temporary, the plan to increase the number of permanent staff from 3,000 to around 3,400 in other areas outside of packing and delivery jobs will give the local economy a major boost.
This range of high-quality roles will advance the changes taking place in the region, as it looks to increase its potential, building on the existing framework of businesses already using the area as a logistics hub. Amazon owns a 500,000 square foot warehouse, opened last year in Chesterfield, in addition to properties already in place in Sutton and Kegworth.
The Amazon job opportunities themselves will include roles in finance, health, safety, engineering and IT. These roles will have a number of benefits that come with them such as income protection, private medical insurance, employee discounts and subsidised meals. The company is also offering to help with adult education. They are offering to pre-pay up to 95% of any tuition and related costs for national vocational courses.
The timing of this recruitment drive coincides with the rapidly altering landscape of the Derbyshire and East Midlands region as it moves towards establishing itself as a national hub for logistics. Amazon already has a warehouse at the SEGRO Park East Midlands Gateway, a major logistics park located near to East Midlands Airport.
The chief executive of the East Midlands Chamber of Commerce, Scott Knowles, said that Amazon has become ‘a shining light’ for the retail sector that has grown during the time of the pandemic. He went on to commend the benefits of working at Amazon and to emphasise just how keen the Chamber is to promote businesses which have a strong influence on the local economy. Amazon now has more than 2.5 million square feet of warehouse space in the region.
Earlier this year, there was an indication that other large businesses would also be looking to expand their operations in the region as proposals are in the process of being lodged at the North West Leicestershire District Council to begin construction on further warehouses.
