Amazon to open 2 fulfillment centers in Ohio, adding more than 2,500 jobs
Amazon announced Monday it’s planning to open two robotics fulfillment centers in Ohio that will add more than 2,500 jobs to the state.
The e-commerce giant said it plans to open the centers in Akron and Rossford, which will be more than 700,000 square feet each and used to fulfill orders for small items such as books, electronics and toys.
“Ohio has been a great place to do business, serve customers and create jobs; as a result, we are thrilled to develop two state-of-the-art fulfillment centers in Akron and Rossford,” Alicia Boler Davis, Amazon’s vice president of global customer fulfillment, said in a news release. “We're excited to grow our team in the Buckeye state, which now includes more than 8,500 Amazonians, and be part of the larger Ohio community.”
Amazon, along with $15 minimum wage, will be offering full-time employees benefits such as medical, vision and dental insurance as well as 401(k) packages. The company also has programs such as Career Choice which gives workers the opportunity to receive higher education with help on covering tuition costs.
“Since 2010, Amazon has invested more than $5 billion in the state through its customer fulfillment and cloud infrastructure, and compensation to its employees,” the company said in a news release.
Jeff Bezos’ e-commerce company came under fire last week when some workers at a Minnesota fulfillment center went on strike during the Amazon Prime Day sale, one of the biggest online shopping event that lasted two days this year.
An estimated 100 employees at the Shakopee, Minnesota Amazon fulfillment center walked out in protest of what they say are impossible productivity quota demands and unfair labor conditions.
Amazon Senior Public Relations Manager Ashley Robinson told FOX Business the company provides its workers with many of the employee advocates’ demands such as industry-leading benefits, safe working conditions and opportunity for career mobility.
“We think a lot of the people who are protesting outside, if they do show up, are simply not well informed about what it is like here,” she said.
Several politicians, including New York rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have also criticized Amazon for its working conditions. Ocasio-Cortez made headlines in June when she claimed Amazon workers were paid “starvation wages” and had limited access to proper healthcare.
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Amazon boasted about its Prime Day, saying it was the largest shopping event in the company’s history. A record number of people shopped during Prime Day in the U.S.
Fox Business’ Henry Fernandez contributed to this report.
