AMAZON workers at Darlington's new fulfilment centre will be paid above minimum wage and offered permanent contracts, a North-East politician has confirmed.
Today, the “worst kept secret” in the town was officially revealed as signs and branding went up at the Amazon's first fulfilment centre in the North-East.
This afternoon, the Tees Valley Mayor and leader of Darlington Borough Council met at the newly-created Symmetry Park business site, as 1,000 new jobs went live online.
But speaking to The Northern Echo, Mr Houchen said Amazon had guaranteed that none of its employees would be paid less than £9.50 an hour, or placed on zero-hour contracts in Darlington.
He said: “Everybody knew that Amazon were coming to Darlington, the big 1m sq ft worth of space and shed that Amazon are taking over has been well-known for a long time now.
“But the big difference with the announcement today is that Amazon are now coming in and people can go on the website today – they can apply for jobs to start in the coming weeks.
“Amazon have guaranteed the lesser qualified jobs are going to be a minimum payment of £9.50 an hour so not minimum wage and not zero-hour contracts."
Earlier this year, former MPs Jenny Chapman and Phil Wilson wrote a joint letter to Doug Gurr, head of Amazon UK, calling for the site to deliver well-paid, secure jobs and training opportunities for the town.
On Thursday, Mr Houchen said: “High-skilled jobs are coming, people can log on and see the professional roles, like finance, HR, technicians, operations people, the full shabang.
“It’s a fantastic next step for people in Darlington and the wider area.”
After 18 months of speculation, Amazon UK bosses today confirmed that the international online retailer would move into the site in the new year.
The fulfilment centre, which has been fitted out with advanced Amazon Robotics technology, is expected to allow same-day delivery across the Tees Valley and is future-proofed against new delivery, drone technology.
Heather Scott, leader of Darlington Borough Council said: “It’s a very exciting day for Darlington – it’s been the worst kept secret for quite some period of time.
“The potential of 1,000 jobs to start with, and it’s come at the right time – it’s good news for the whole of the region.
“We’re looking forward to meeting the representatives from Amazon in early January to find out more about how, logistically, how we will be working together.”
Outline planning permission for the next phase of Symmetry Park has been submitted to the council, which plans includes restaurants, a hotel, drive through takeaways, petrol station and pub.
Councillor Chris McEwan, deputy leader of the Labour group at Darlington Borough Council, and deputy mayor, added: “The issue of working conditions has been a reoccurring theme, but I have got some confidence that there will be a large number of high-skilled jobs.”
“I welcome today, it’s good to see the number of jobs coming into Darlington and for that matter, the Tees Valley.”
Newly-recruited workers are expected to take up roles over the next coming weeks as the fulfilment centre nears completion.
- The roles can be found online at amazon.jobs/en/locations/darlington
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