Amazon to add 33K people to corporate, tech roles: report

Amazon said Wednesday it is seeking to hire 33,000 people in tech and corporate positions in the month ahead.

The retail giant said the hiring is different from its typical seasonal staffing ahead of the holiday season, according to The Associated Press.

The hiring comes as Amazon is one of the only companies to see improved business during the pandemic. As demand for online delivery increased, the company saw its revenues and profits reach all-time highs in April and June.

The new positions will be based at the company’s various offices around the nation, including Seattle, New York, Denver and Phoenix. New hires will start off working from home, but the company intends for them to eventually begin office work, according to the AP.

A planned second headquarters in the Washington, D.C., area remains on the agenda, Ardine Williams, vice president of workforce development, told the AP.

Jane Oates, president of the nonprofit WorkingNation and a former Labor Department official, told the AP the company has its future on its mind as well.

“They’re not only looking for the jobs that need to be done today, they’re also looking at what’s next,” she told the AP. The company recently said it plans to retrain up to 100,000 of its workers for jobs in tech departments by 2025.

The company’s handling of the pandemic has not been without controversy, however. Chris Smalls, a former worker at Amazon’s Staten Island warehouse, has claimed he was fired for organizing a walkout to protest lack of protections for workers during the pandemic. The company has claimed he was fired for coming to work despite being told he had been exposed to the virus and should stay home.