Amazon adding 1,100 jobs at new Central Jersey facility
ROBBINSVILLE — Amazon has announced that with the addition of a new facility in Mercer County, it is adding 1,100 part-time jobs.
In addition to the fulfillment center, Amazon is opening what it is calling a sort center where packages for customers will be sorted by ZIP code in order to further expedite the delivery process. The jobs will be permanent part-time jobs, according to Amazon spokeswoman Rachael Lighty. The company already employs 3,000 full-time employees at the fulfillment center.
Lighty said the success of the Robbinsville fulfillment center, which was the company's first in New Jersey, is part of the reason the second facility was added. She said in making its decision, Amazon looked at "great local support, which is what we've found in Robbinsville and across New Jersey." They also look where they can assemble the best workforce.
"As we continue to build fulfillment centers that get us closer and closer to our customers so we can provide that great price point, great selection and super-fast shipping speed you're going to see us continue to grow in New Jersey, and that's what's happening here," she said.
Mayor Dave Fried called Amazon a "terrific community partner and corporate citizen."
The Robbinsville fulfillment facility opened in 2014. Since then, the company has opened seven similar facilities across the state, employing around 16,000 full-time workers, Lighty said. That number includes other Amazon locations, including the hub for its Audible brand in Newark. The city has also been named as a possible location for the company's second headquarters.
Amazon also offers full-time employees its Career Choice program, which Lighty said helps train employees for "in-demand jobs, both at Amazon and elsewhere." The company will repay 95 percent of tuition for courses related to "in-demand fields, regardless of whether or not the fields are relevant to a future at Amazon," she said.
"The opportunity to not just have a job, but a career path with the potential to provide an employee with continuing education and long-term security inside or outside the company is an incredible opportunity," Fried said.
In order to hiring the new employees, Amazon is holding a special hiring event at the Crowne Plaza in Plainsboro from Thursday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Candidates who go to the event could be offered a job on the spot, a statement from the company said. Those that cannot make the event can also apply on the company's employment website.