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Amazon to create 4,000 UK jobs despite market slowdown

Amazon jobs
Image credit: Amazon UK

Internet giant Amazon has said it will create 4,000 new permanent jobs in the UK, bucking the trend of job cuts among some of the UK’s tech firms as companies scale back amid the global market downturn.

The ecommerce company will create jobs at fulfilment centres around the country, along with roles at its Amazon Fresh grocery stores.

Amazon will also recruit for tech roles, such as software development and engineering jobs, at its cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services (AWS).

“We’re continuing to invest in talent right across the UK, from apprentices in Swansea to data scientists in Edinburgh. People join us not just for the wide variety of roles, great pay and benefits, but for the career development opportunities we provide,” said John Boumphrey, UK country manager, Amazon.

Amazon said it will be opening new fulfilment centres in Wakefield and Knowsley as part of its latest UK expansion.

Boumphrey added: “Applicants recognise we are an employer that offers great development potential, and we are proud to have so many employees growing and taking the opportunity to learn new skills that will create paths to new jobs at Amazon and beyond.”

It follows the unveiling of Amazon’s first UK micromobility hub in Hackney, London, to house its e-cargo bikes, walkers and electric vehicles.

According to the firm, it will have a total of 75,000 permanent employees by the end of this year and will be one of the ten biggest largest private sector employers.

While Amazon is ramping up hiring, many tech businesses across the UK and Europe have been making layoffs amid the market downturn and investor capital becoming harder to come by.

This week electric vehicle maker Arrival said it was considering a proposed “business reorganisation” that could see 800 jobs cut.

Meanwhile London-based events platform Hopin has cut 29% of its workforce, its second round of layoffs in five months.

Despite Amazon’s hiring push, the US tech behemoth continues to tangle with British regulators, with the Competition and Markets Authority this month launching an investigation into whether it has been promoting its own products over third-party merchants on its online marketplace.

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