Located at 100 Exploration Drive near Interstate 75 in Park North at Monroe, the $30 million facility will house employees who will pick, pack and ship household consumer goods such as electronics, books, housewares and toys to customers across the region, Woodson said.
“This will be a sortable fulfillment center, so smaller items” will be picked, packed and shipped from there, he said.
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Previously, Amazon said it would use the Warren County facility to do so for larger items such as car seats, sports equipment, patio furniture, gardening tools, kayaks and pet food.
Employees can expect to be paid at least $15 per hour with comprehensive health care from the first day, Woodson said.
The company also has a Career Choice program, which helps train employees for in-demand jobs to expand the choices available in their future career.
Under the program, Amazon pre-pays 95 percent of tuition for courses in-demand, high-wage fields, regardless of whether the skills are relevant to a future career at Amazon, Woodson said.
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“That program is fundamentally about upscaling the workforce and giving a stepping stone for individuals who are pursuing other opportunities outside Amazon,” he said.
Since the program’s launch four years ago, more than 16,000 employees in 10 countries have pursued degrees in game design and visual communications, nursing, IT programming and radiology, to name a few, Amazon said.
Other benefits include disability insurance, 401K with 50 percent match and up to 20 weeks of parental paid leave and benefit programs aimed at giving new parents flexibility with their growing families.
Amazon also provides on-the-job training and advancement opportunities for all its associates, with many Amazon leaders working their way up from various positions held across the company, officials said.
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The project was first announced on in September 2017.
Monroe officials have said Amazon constructing its fulfillment center in the city and creating hundreds of jobs there is “a very big deal.”
“During this process of Amazon coming to Monroe there have continuing discussions … about employee training and working within the community and development and we hope those discussions will continue in the future,” Monroe Vice Mayor Dan Clark previously told this news outlet.
The building, which was completed last August, has sat dormant since then. That’s not unique for Amazon, which routinely does the same at other facilities nationwide until demand increases and staffing needs are met.
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Employees at the facility will join a network of two existing fulfillment centers in the Columbus area (Obetz and Etna) and one scheduled to open later this year near Cleveland (North Randall).
“Obviously we have a focus of getting our buildings as close as possible to our customers and so we’re investing in our infrastructure to continuously improve the customer experience,” Woodson said.
Ohio facilities provide “a dedicated workforce as well as great local support,” he said. “It’s great for Amazon.”
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