Amazon To Expand West Midlands Base

Online retailer Amazon is planning to expand its UK workforce by adding 1,000 full-time jobs, including in Rugeley, Staffordshire, over the coming months.

The US-based firm said the jobs will be created across its eight UK customer fulfilment service centres at Doncaster, Dunfermline, Gourock, Hemel Hempstead, Milton Keynes, Peterborough, Rugeley and Swansea Bay.

Amazon, which last week became the latest multinational to be investigated by the European Commission (EC) over its tax affairs, said it has invested over #1 billion at its UK operations and has created over 2,000 jobs in the last two years. It currently employs 6,000 UK staff.

In January the retailer said it would begin Sunday deliveries to seven UK cities - London, Birmingham, Milton Keynes, Oxford, Nottingham, Manchester and Leeds.

The firm added that the permanent roles will start on an average of #7.39 per hour and earn up to #8.90 per hour after two years.

After a year at Amazon all full-time staff receive stock grants, which over the past five years have added an average of 12% to annual base pay.

Earlier this month Amazon became the latest firm to face a probe by the EC to see if its tax affairs comply with state aid rules.

The EC said it will look at a 2003 tax agreement between Luxembourg and the retailer because it said most of Amazon's European profits are recorded in Luxembourg but are not taxed in the state.

The EC suspects that Luxembourg's agreement with Amazon amounts to a distortion of competition.

The US retailer said last week: ''Amazon has received no special tax treatment from Luxembourg - we are subject to the same tax laws as other companies operating here.''