Amazon to create 10,000 new jobs in UK

Credit: PA

Amazon is to create more than 10,000 jobs in the UK, a move that will take the company's total UK workforce to more than 55,000 by the end of year.

The online giant also announced it will invest £10 million over three years to train up to 5,000 employees in new skills.

The company will open a parcel centre and four new fulfilment centres, as well as expanding its delivery station network.

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There will be new permanent roles in engineering, human resources, computing, health and safety, finance, and those dealing with customer orders.

A new fulfilment centre will open in Hinckley, East Midlands, this summer, creating 700 new permanent jobs.

A parcel centre in Doncaster will be opened, while new fulfilment centres in Dartford, Gateshead, and Swindon will each create more than 1,300 permanent jobs later this year.

There will also be new roles in corporate offices, web services and operations networks in cities including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Cambridge.

Amazon’s UK country manager John Boumphrey said: “We’re creating thousands of good jobs across the UK from a diverse range of roles with excellent pay and benefits.

“We’re also delighted to be working with the British Chambers of Commerce on a pioneering approach to our Career Choice programme to provide the training, and skilled workers, needed to boost local economies right across the country."

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “Amazon’s announcement is fantastic news and a huge vote of confidence in the British economy, helping us deliver on our commitment to level up across the UK with a whopping 10,000 new permanent jobs."

Shevaun Haviland, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, described the training scheme as "a great initiative" that will "provide a much wider benefit to the community".

“Providing staff with training to plug the skills gaps that exist within the local business community is going to be a key driver to increasing productivity and boosting the economy as the UK recovers from the pandemic," she said.

Amazon said training will be offered through its programme, where it pays course fees for employees who have expressed an interest in pursuing a career outside of the company.