TAMPA, Fla. — The last six months have been hard for Florida families.
The Department of Economic Opportunities has paid out unemployment benefits to more than 3 million Floridians since March. And since the added $600 federal benefits ran out in July, it has taken a month and a half to get a system in place for half that through the Low Wage Assistance Program.
But there are some jobs coming to the Tampa Bay area. From Venice to Temple Terrace, Lakeland to Lutz, Amazon has been investing in growing its footprint over the last few months. With it's explosive growth during the pandemic, the company is now looking to hire hundreds in the Tampa Bay area, so now is the perfect time to get your resume ready.
"Amazon Career Day is a virtual event really focused on helping those that are looking for jobs," Ardine Williams, Vice President of Workforce Development at Amazon said.
"On Career Day, we will have 1,000 professional recruiters host 20,000 one-on-one sessions. So regardless of your background, whether you're looking for a career at Amazon or not, this is simply a great way to get professional advice on your resume," Williams said.
That resume advice could help you pivot to a new career or find one within the company. And there are quite a few jobs available in the Tampa Bay area.
"I would imagine its in the hundreds of jobs," Williams said, "The kind of jobs we're looking for range from entry level to warehouse safety specialists to on sight representatives to managers which are a great position for veterans."
While airlines and some retailers are still laying off workers because of the coronavirus pandemic, job placement company True Blue says other industries continue to hire such as tech, merchandise stockers, computer support, nurses and food and package delivery.
It's something Pasco County Economic Development CEO Bill Crownan wanted to take advantage of with one of Amazon's newest delivery facilities being built there.
"We're buying things online regardless. We'd rather have those jobs here than somewhere else," Crownan said.
You can also watch a line up of speakers talk about job searching and pivoting careers during the pandemic during the free virtual career day. Here's where you can sign up.
"Update your resume, bring it in and have an expert help you because someone can take a look and help you see things that you may not see yourself," Williams said.
While they have a few hundred jobs available in Tampa Bay, Amazon is currently looking to fill 33,000 throughout the nation. The company says it is planning on announcing 10,000 more job opportunities soon that will include more areas as well.