Amazon has announced the opening of their 25th fulfillment center in the nation, which is located in Romulus. The 850,000-plus square foot facility that has roughly 10 miles worth of conveyor belts is expected to push out thousands of packages a day and three million a year.
This is the fourth fulfillment center in Michigan, the other three are in Livonia, Brownstown Township and Shelby Township, but it’s the only one to be fully automated. It’s also the second Amazon facility to open in Romulus, joining the delivery center that opened earlier this year.
Amazon will now be providing around 2,500 jobs in the Romulus area. The delivery center has around 1,000 employees, while the newest facility will require over 1,500 and Amazon is still hiring.
However, there is still a feeling that these facilities will be taking jobs away from residents because big corporations, like Amazon, tend to place pressure on smaller retail stores, which was a topic that Detroit Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib touched on during the facility tour.
“Like any other American, I’m thinking, ‘is that one less job for my resident?’ Of course that is something that comes to mind and that’s why I think it’s important to start catching up really quickly and getting our young people, who in the past could graduate high school and go straight into the automotive industry. How do we have them graduate and come directly into a facility like this?“
Joining Tlaib on the walkthrough was Michigan senator Debbie Stabenow, who is happy to see Amazon providing jobs and great wages, but states the company needs to change the fact that they don’t pay any federal corporate tax.
“I’m very glad to hear that Amazon is starting with $15 an hour as a wage. I think that’s a very important step, but this has to be a balance. I mean, our large employers have to be good corporate sponsors and contribute to the quality of life in michigan, as well as every small business and every working person.”