Exclusive: New details on Amazon’s plans for hiring 1,500 Tri-Cities workers
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Amazon coming to Tri-Cities
The addition of two massive distribution warehouses in east Pasco will bring new jobs and new challenges.
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Amazon is expected to announce its hiring plans in less than a month for two massive Tri-Cities warehouses.
The world’s largest retailer is building two distribution hubs in Pasco, just north of Sacajawea State Park, each clocking in at more than 1 million square feet.
The warehouses are to open in September, and the company has given local leaders an idea of what the process and potential partnerships, will look like.
Mike Gonzalez, Pasco’s community and economic development director, told the Tri-City Herald last week that the city had preliminary talks with Amazon in December, including the company’s rough timeline for how it plans to tackle hiring about 1,500 workers.
Their conversations are expected to continue this month, allowing Amazon to bring in key players such as the Tri-City Development Council (TRIDEC) and other municipalities, such as the cities and ports.
Gonzalez said the company plans to release details soon on the timeline for hiring and how to apply for jobs and the associated websites.
Working together
In March, Amazon and TRIDEC will begin recognizing key partners for workforce development, and marketing opportunities.
“By July of this year, employee recruitment should be in full swing,” Gonzalez said. “That’s the game plan, and then in September they plan to open.”
Amazon is among several large employers expanding in the Tri-Cities that will need to bring on workers in the next year or two.
Other large projects include a $500 million expansion by Darigold and a new food processing plant for Reser’s Fine Foods. There also are significant retail projects underway, such as the Broadmoor development in West Pasco, which is looking to bring in a new Costco and outdoor shopping mall.
The projects are expected to create thousands of jobs, and a need to convince workers to move to the Tri-Cities.
Amazon already employs about 500 people at a call center in Kennewick. The 1,500 new workers needed for the warehouses will make the company one of the largest employers in the Tri-Cities.
Amazon expansion
Construction is on track and much of the exterior work is finished on the two warehouses, which will handle different types of products.
The massive buildings are across the road from each other on South Road 40 East, between A Street and Sacajawea Park Road in east Pasco,just west of of Highway 12.
The facility on the east side of the roadway — dubbed Project Oyster — will handle smaller goods such as household items, books, toys and technology.
The warehouse on the west side — or Project Pearl — will house larger items such as furniture, outdoor equipment, as well as large packages of paper goods and pet supplies.
Amazon wasn’t ready to talk about its plans or strategy for hiring in Tri-Cities, but told city officials they expect the training process to take about three days once employees are hired.
The company said they are offering benefits starting on the first day of work, growth opportunities and educational incentives.
Those incentives include paying for most of the costs of school for high growth industries such as nursing and IT. The internal growth opportunities include in-house training for leadership positions and certifications for key areas within the company, including in cloud computing and machine learning.
It is unclear whether they will be offering hiring bonuses in the Tri-Cities, but other Amazon warehouses in Washington state are currently offering recruitment bonuses of $1,000 to $3,000.
All the Amazon jobs in Tri-Cities will be full time, the company said, and will start at $18 an hour. Gonzalez said wages will go up to $22 or $23 per hour.
Washington’s current minimum wage is $14.49.
Finding workers
TRIDEC President Karl Dye said that his organization hopes to build a plan with Amazon and other large companies moving to the area to market to offer incentives to get workers to come to the Tri-Cities.
He estimates that upcoming growth, which includes Amazon and the large Darigold facility, combined with record low unemployment in Benton and Franklin counties will likely mean enticing about 2,000 new workers into moving to the area over the next two years.
The Amazon, Reser’s and Darigold projects account for a combined investment of more than $800 million in facilities in the area.
“We’re trying to connect with Amazon now to sit down and talk about what they’re planning for their hiring, and how we can bring some of these other projects in so that everyone is able to hire,” Dye said.
“How can we all work together regionally? I have to assume Amazon has been through this before, and they know that when they come in and start hiring all these people at once, it has a big impact on the local community.”
With about 2,000 expected Tri-Cities employees between the warehouses and Kennewick call center, Amazon will be firmly in the top 10 largest employers in the Tri-Cities, according to TRIDEC.
Currently Richland School District and Tyson Foods have about 1,500 Tri-City employees, and Pasco School District employs just more than 2,000.
Stephen McFadden, director of the Port of Pasco’s economic development, told the Herald that when Amazon built a fulfillment center in Airway Heights just east of Spokane, surrounding entities and government agencies pooled their resources and spent $500,000 on a marketing campaign.
The effort targeted workers on the west side of the state to check out the quality of life and opportunities in Eastern Washington.
Selling Tri-Cities
Dye said that selling potential hires on the quality of life in the Tri-Cities is going to be key.
He expects effective marketing to convince workers that moving here means more than just a good starting wage.
“We know how great the quality of life is here — the weather, the resources, the amenities,” Dye said. “We know this is a great place to live.”
He said the Tri-Cities is in a unique position because leaders have focused on diversifying growth, focusing on a variety of industries rather than just food production and warehouse work.
Dye said local leaders have been watching areas like Southeast Idaho, which have experienced significant growth but didn’t have the housing necessary to make the area affordable for workers.
Dye believes the biggest obstacle to expanding the workforce is a tight housing market.
He is optimistic that housing will keep up with growth, because the consistent demand for new homes and multifamily housing in the area appeals to developers.
He also pointed to a series of recently announced initiatives by Gov. Jay Inslee that would help develop more affordable housing across the state.
Those proposals include changes to zoning density to allow more multifamily projects, an $815 million investment in transitional and permanent affordable housing and an expected legislative push to expand opportunities for development of middle housing such as town homes and duplexes.
Dye said that Tri-City leaders and developers can get behind these initiatives to stave off the potential for long-term housing shortages
“We need to start working on it now because we don’t want to miss opportunities in the future because of (a housing crunch),” Dye said.
“I don’t know of anyone that’s solved housing in a quick matter. We just have to roll up our sleeves and start working on it, one house at a time.”
This story was originally published January 17, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
