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Amazon plans to hire 6,000 workers for two suburban sites but faces bumpy road
Critics have called for higher pay, more staffing to improve safety
Amazon will start hiring 6,000 workers for fulfillment centers in the suburbs south of Chicago as it expands its distribution network in the area.
Hiring will begin on Sept. 10 for facilities at 7001 Vollmer Road in Matteson and 15924 Western Avenue in Markham before they open in October, according to the Chicago Sun Times.
They will each be able to process 1 million items a day by late November, said Tarun Aggarwal, Amazon’s general manager at the Markham site.
Amazon, which has faced criticism about low pay and worker safety, will offer starting pay of $16 per hour and more for nighttime shifts. Full-time employees will get health insurance, paid maternity leave and company matching to 401K plans. The Seattle-based company plans to hold a career day this month, when it will offer coaching sessions to employees.
The new facilities will be a hub for smaller delivery stations where packages get sent to destinations. They are in addition to 11 sorting and fulfilment centers that it announced last June. Amazon hired 15,000 people in Illinois last year and new warehouses are set to open in Waukegan, Gage Park, Huntley and Humbolt Park this year.
[Chicago Sun Times] — Connie Kim