Amazon previously announced that it would create 10,000 roles last year to end 2021 with 55,000 permanent employees. The company now has more than 70,000 employees in the UK, with the additional 15,000 permanent jobs confirmed today in a variety of corporate and R&D functions in Amazon and Amazon Web Services (AWS), including software development, product management, and engineering, as well as the operations teams in our fulfilment centres, sort centres and delivery stations across the UK.
The company offers a diverse range of opportunities for people starting their career or returning to employment. According to new hires in Amazon fulfilment centres surveyed in 2021, more than half were previously out of work or joined directly from education.
Career potential was the top reason for joining Amazon, with 91% of employees surveyed saying that this was important in their decision to join the company. This was followed by 88% of employees stating Amazon’s competitive pay was a key factor, which starts at £10 to £11.10 per hour in the UK depending on the location, more than the UK’s National Living Wage. The third most important factor was Amazon’s benefits (79%), including private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, and an employee discount – which combined are worth more than £700 annually – as well as a company pension plan.
Business Secretary Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP, said: “Amazon’s announcement is testament to the strength of the British economy, with GDP back at pre-pandemic levels, employee numbers at record highs and unemployment falling. With the vast majority of Amazon’s workforce located outside of London and the South East, these additional 25,000 jobs highlight the success of our Plan for Jobs in helping to ensure greater opportunities across the country.”
Amazon UK Country Manager John Boumphrey, said: “We are proud to have created so many new permanent jobs across the UK in the last year. We want to be the employer that helps people take their careers to the next level, whether you’re just starting your first job or making a career change, in every community that we serve across the UK.”
Amazon has invested £32bn in the UK since 2010, and provides some of the most advanced workplaces of their kind in the world, with competitive pay, processes, and systems to ensure the wellbeing and safety of all employees. The company’s continued investment in the UK is a boost for skills development, with more than 1,000 apprenticeships created in 2021, and more than 4,000 Amazon employees enrolled on the unique company-funded Amazon’s Career Choice training programme. Through Career Choice, 1,200 UK employees have studied IT and 1,400 have studied transportation, including more than 1,000 training to become HGV drivers. Amazon works with Accredited Chambers of Commerce across the UK to identify regional skills shortages, ensuring training is focused on local skills shortages.
Jay Colsell, who joined the new Amazon fulfilment centre in Swindon as an associate when the site opened in November 2021, said: “I spent five years in the car production industry doing repairs and quality checks and wanted to go for a team leader role. Then the car plant closed but I secured a job at the Amazon fulfilment centre in Swindon. In just two weeks, I was made a Process Guide, supporting colleagues in their work and I’m also a proxy team lead. I love that there are lots of opportunities to progress, from promotions to apprenticeships and Career Choice. Plus we only work four days a week which gives me more time for boxing and fitness – and with a baby on the way I’ll be able to enjoy more family time than most.”
Throughout 2021, Amazon also continued to actively recruit individuals leaving the armed services, hiring more than 200 veterans and reservists from the Army, Navy and Air Force. In June, Amazon and AWS jointly re-signed the Armed Forces Covenant, reaffirming its commitment to its military workforce. Amazon is again shortlisted for Employer of the Year at the 2021 Ex-Forces in Business Awards, having won this award in 2019 and 2020.
Amazon’s expansion in 2021 also included its first 17 physical stores in the UK: 15 Amazon Fresh food stores in London, and two Amazon 4-star retail stores in London and Kent, which include a selection of top products from Amazon and UK small businesses. Together, these 17 stores have created hundreds of new jobs.
Clieo Stephenson, Senior Store Manager, Amazon Fresh Stores UK, said: “As a store manager, it’s been incredibly rewarding to welcome so many new team members who are excited to work in our Amazon Fresh UK stores. We are able to offer great hourly wages starting at £11.10, in addition to a full benefits package. Employees are also able to participate in programmes that enable them to accelerate their careers and develop new skillsets.”
