The facility, called JAN1, will bring nearly 1,500 jobs to the area, news Governor Reeves called a great day for all of Mississippi.
In November 2020, Amazon announced plans for its third fulfillment center in Mississippi. The facility, located in Canton, is Amazon’s first in the state to feature its robotics technology.
On Thursday, Amazon celebrated the launch of the company’s first Amazon Robotics facility in Madison County, Mississippi. Elected officials, key community leaders, and local media were able to tour the facility and hear from Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves along with Amazon leadership on the company’s job creation, economic impact, and innovative technologies.
The facility, called JAN1, will bring more than 1,500 jobs to the area.
Cristal Cole, Amazon’s regional policy manager for the Southeastern U.S., introduced Governor Reeves to the podium and highlighted Mississippi’s successes over the last couple of years.
“As the 65th Governor of Mississippi, Tate Reeves continues to build a strong record as a leader who fights to guard taxpayer dollars, improve educational opportunity, and grow new careers just like the ones we are trying to help build here at Amazon so that Mississippi’s best and brightest can raise their families and thrive across the state,” Cole said.
Cole added that since Reeves was elected as Governor, Mississippi has seen record educational gains, including all-time graduation rates that are far above the national average and nearly $4 billion in capital investment, an overhaul of its state-wide workforce development strategy, historic low unemployment rate, and the largest tax cut and teacher pay raises in this state’s history.
Isaiah Flanagan, General Manager and Site Leader at JAN1, spoke about the building, the workforce, and what they offer as an employer.
Flanagan said that the facility is four stories high with 70,000 storage pods. In regard to the workforce at the facility, the General Manager and Site Leader said that the “real heart and soul” of the business is the people.
Flanagan said that they currently have about 800 employees, but with a few more hundred coming in the next couple of weeks.
Amazon offers employees competitive wages, premium healthcare, paid parental leave, retirement 401K with company match, flexible scheduling options, and more.
“At JAN1 we have three major commitments: the safety and wellbeing of our associates, the willingness to integrate and serve our community, and the empowerment and support of our associates who deliver those smiles for all of our customers,” Flanagan stated. “Very, very excited to show of our wonderful building, our building that was built by Madison County, for Madison County and for the State of Mississippi.”
Following the ribbon cutting ceremony, Governor Reeves noted it was initially said that the robotics facility was going to employ up to 1,000 individuals and now they will employ as many as 1,500 employees.
“It’s very good wages, great benefits, and so it’s a great opportunity literally for thousands of Mississippi families who have the opportunity to get to work and I couldn’t be prouder of the partnership of the local elected officials, the local economic development officials, the state, our federal partners,” Reeves said. “It’s a great day for all of Mississippi, but particularly here for Madison County.”
Governor Reeves went on to say that over the last several years, Amazon has invested over $600 million in the state of Mississippi.
“This is something that, certainly, we should all be very proud of,” Reeves said. “We’re seeing significant capital investment in our state, we’re seeing significant jobs created all throughout our state.”
“We proved over the last several years that Mississippi is open for business,” Reeves continued. “I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish and I’m looking forward to seeing even more of these groundbreaking opportunities. We’ve been doing it all over the state for the last couple of years and we’re going to continue to do so.”
Anne Summerhays
