The Seattle Times reports that Amazon has laid out plans to hire 100,000 full-time employees in the US over the next 18 months, and that "by 2018 it plans to have more than 280,000 full-time U.S. employees, compared with 180,000 at the end of 2016 ... The jobs cover a wide range of disciplines, from developers and engineers who work on cloud computing to warehouse operators who handle millions of packages."
In addition, Amazon said that it estimates that some 300,000 additional jobs have been created in third-party companies because of their ability to use Amazon's online Marketplace as a sales platform.
The story goes on: "A hiring binge by Amazon is nothing new: The company has grown dramatically since its humble origins as an online bookstore, adding 150,000 U.S. jobs since 2011. It is well on its way to becoming the second-largest employer among the Fortune 500, after arch-rival Wal-Mart. As of last fall, Amazon had 306,800 workers around the world, not including temporary hires and contractors."
The New York Times writes that "the Amazon announcement comes as the company is introducing automation that could one day cost jobs. It uses robots in many of its warehouses, though it says they work in conjunction with people instead of replacing them."
The Amazon announcement comes in a month when Macy's said it would close stores and eliminate some 10,000 jobs, The Limited shut down the entire chain, and problems at Sears and Kmart only seemed to deepen. Indeed, there are estimates that bricks-and-mortar retailers have eliminated some 200,000 jobs during the past four years.
The Seattle Times goes on to note that Amazon's announcement is a little out of character; the company traditionally has preferred to fly below the radar as best it can. "Amazon’s louder tune underscores how the U.S. administration, soon to be under a new boss given to mercurial blasts, brings new political-risk challenges to corporate America," the Times writes. "Blazing tweets from the president-elect singling out companies from GM to Boeing have swung stocks and caused fretting in board rooms. Trump’s internet-conveyed wrath is particularly focused on companies that he perceives as exporting U.S. jobs, a common theme during his presidential campaign."
Indeed, Amazon and the Trump campaign clashed before the election, with Trump threatening antitrust actions and tax investigations against the company and owner Jeff Bezos; it probably doesn't help that Bezos also owns the Washington Post, which was so aggressive in its coverage of the Trump campaign that its reporters were banned from official events.
In addition, Amazon said that it estimates that some 300,000 additional jobs have been created in third-party companies because of their ability to use Amazon's online Marketplace as a sales platform.
The story goes on: "A hiring binge by Amazon is nothing new: The company has grown dramatically since its humble origins as an online bookstore, adding 150,000 U.S. jobs since 2011. It is well on its way to becoming the second-largest employer among the Fortune 500, after arch-rival Wal-Mart. As of last fall, Amazon had 306,800 workers around the world, not including temporary hires and contractors."
The New York Times writes that "the Amazon announcement comes as the company is introducing automation that could one day cost jobs. It uses robots in many of its warehouses, though it says they work in conjunction with people instead of replacing them."
The Amazon announcement comes in a month when Macy's said it would close stores and eliminate some 10,000 jobs, The Limited shut down the entire chain, and problems at Sears and Kmart only seemed to deepen. Indeed, there are estimates that bricks-and-mortar retailers have eliminated some 200,000 jobs during the past four years.
The Seattle Times goes on to note that Amazon's announcement is a little out of character; the company traditionally has preferred to fly below the radar as best it can. "Amazon’s louder tune underscores how the U.S. administration, soon to be under a new boss given to mercurial blasts, brings new political-risk challenges to corporate America," the Times writes. "Blazing tweets from the president-elect singling out companies from GM to Boeing have swung stocks and caused fretting in board rooms. Trump’s internet-conveyed wrath is particularly focused on companies that he perceives as exporting U.S. jobs, a common theme during his presidential campaign."
Indeed, Amazon and the Trump campaign clashed before the election, with Trump threatening antitrust actions and tax investigations against the company and owner Jeff Bezos; it probably doesn't help that Bezos also owns the Washington Post, which was so aggressive in its coverage of the Trump campaign that its reporters were banned from official events.
- KC's View:
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Amazon may be louder about its intentions for political reasons, and I don't blame them for that. I suspect that the vast majority of these hires would've happened regardless of who was going to be the next president - the company's strategy of putting more and more warehouses in more and more places as a way of expanding its ecosystem inevitably would've meant hiring more people in the US.
But everybody is louder these days, ignoring the old saying that you can get anything done if you don't care who gets the credit.
