Amazon announced plans Wednesday to open a state-of-the-art fulfillment center in Carneys Point — a move that will bring 800 full-time jobs to Salem County.
The site, which will be the 16th fulfillment and sortation center for Amazon in the state, is expected to open in time for the 2021 holiday season.
Carneys Point Township Mayor Kenneth Brown was thrilled to be able to make the announcement.
“This fulfillment center will help our township and Salem County with hundreds of jobs and tax revenue and will help our small business owners recover from the pandemic,” he said. “We look forward to a strong and lasting partnership with Amazon.”
Amazon currently operates 15 fulfillment and sortation centers across the state — in Avenel, Burlington, Carteret, Cranbury, Edison, Florence, Logan Township, Robbinsville, Teterboro and West Deptford. By the end of the year, Amazon also will operate more than a dozen delivery stations — smaller facilities that help with last-mile delivery.
Amazon is expected to be the state’s largest commercial employer — at approximately 40,000 workers — by the end of the year.
Alicia Boler Davis, Amazon’s vice president of global customer fulfillment, said the company is happy to continue its growth in the state.
“For more than a decade, the Garden State and its incredible workforce have been vital to our ability to provide great selection, competitive prices and the Prime services we know our customers love,” she said in a statement. “We are excited to create thousands of new job opportunities — with great pay and great benefits — and remain committed to driving a positive economic impact in the community.”
Starting pay for Amazon employees is at least $15 an hour — and comes with benefits that begin on the first day.
Amazon employees at the more than 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center in Carneys Point will work alongside innovative technologies to pick, pack and ship large items, such as bulk paper products, diapers, sports equipment, pet food, kayaks and larger household goods, the company said.
In addition, Amazon will hire for roles in human resources, operations management, safety, security, finance and information technology.
Amazon recently launched a new fulfillment center and sortation center in Cranbury, creating more than 1,000 new jobs all paying $15 per hour and up.
Continuing its expansion in New Jersey, Amazon is also opening three additional sortation centers across the state throughout the month of October. Two of these sites are located in Burlington and one is in Edison, creating hundreds of full- and part-time jobs. The company said interested candidates can learn more and apply online here.
On top of Amazon’s wages and benefits and up to 20 weeks’ paid parental leave, the company has a Career Choice program, which prepays 95% of tuition for courses in high-demand fields. Since the program’s launch, more than 25,000 employees have pursued degrees in game design and visual communications, nursing, information technology programming and radiology, among others, the company said.
In addition, Amazon has pledged to invest over $700 million to provide upskilling training for 100,000 U.S. employees for in-demand jobs. Programs will help workers from all backgrounds access training to move into highly skilled roles across the company’s corporate offices, tech hubs, fulfillment centers, retail stores and transportation network, or pursue career paths outside of Amazon.
