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Amazon fulfillment center at Pontiac Silverdome site opens, plans to hire 1,000 employees

E-commerce giant Amazon said Wednesday its Pontiac fulfillment center at the former Silverdome site has officially opened, with plans to hire more than 1,000 at that location.

The fulfillment center’s opening was part of a broader announcement from Amazon that included its plans to open its first mid-Michigan fulfillment center near Lansing, a sort center and delivery station in the Grand Rapids area and a delivery station in Canton.

“This expansion not only allows us to better serve our customers across the state, but also enables us to boost the local economy and drive more opportunities for job creation,” Alicia Boler Davis, senior vice president of global customer fulfillment for Amazon, said in a news release.

The 823,000-square-feet Pontiac fulfillment center officially opened Wednesday with a few hundred employees, but the company is looking to hire more than 1,000 at this location, said Fred McPherson, general manager of the Pontiac fulfillment center, in an interview Tuesday.

“We’ll be continuously hiring in order to support that customer service,” such as the same-day delivery option, McPherson said.

Jobs at Amazon start at $15.50 an hour and come with benefits, paid time off, training and career growth opportunities, he said.

“From day one, you have benefits available and a great starting wage,” he said. “You can come to Amazon with no prior training or skills and we will get you trained for various job opportunities that we have.”

Still, he said Amazon “is not immune to the challenges of current labor market,” and is offering up to $3,000 sign-on bonuses at the Pontiac fulfillment center to attract employees.

In the news release, Amazon said since 2010 it has invested more than $6 billion in Michigan and has created 21,000 jobs. The company said it plans to add more than 1,500 jobs by the end of the year across all its newly-opened facilities in Michigan, and more jobs in 2022 when its Delta Charter Township fulfillment center opens, along with the distribution center at the old Michigan State Fairgrounds in Detroit, among other facilities.

Posted By: Detroit Free Press on September 8, 2021.  For more information, please click here to read the source article.

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