National Apprenticeship Week: Doncaster apprentice helps Amazon celebrate 1,000 new opportunities for 2024

Amazon offers one of the UK’s top private sector apprenticeship schemes according to the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers, including entry-level placements and more than 230 degree-level apprenticeships in programmes including accounting and data analysts.

Recruitment has now started for more than 30 different schemes, from sustainability to engineering, project management to product buying, and warehouse team leaders to health and safety technicians.

This year, Amazon is also launching new programmes including the digital product manager apprenticeship and the commercial procurement and supply apprenticeship. The range of different apprenticeship schemes reflect both Amazon’s diverse workforce and the communities it serves every day across the UK.

As well as offering hundreds of new roles to external candidates, more than half of the new apprenticeships will be offered to existing employees who will have the opportunity to retrain and gain new skills for an exciting new career path.

In 2023, two thirds (67 per cent) of new apprentices at Amazon were aged 25 and over, an increase of ten per cent year on year, which demonstrates the support apprenticeships provide in helping people pursue new careers.

An apprentice who is currently taking part in the programme is Malina Toarba, from the Amazon fulfilment centre in Doncaster.

Malina is a human resources (HR) associate partner at Amazon. She lives in Doncaster and has been working at Amazon since 2019.

In 2022, Malina started a Level 5 Charted Institute of Personnel and Development qualification through the Amazon Apprenticeship Programme, which she’s due to finish this year.

Malina moved to the UK from Romania six years ago, telling her dad she would study once she got there. Instead, Malina took a job in the fulfilment centre of a global fashion retailer, where she worked until she joined the team at Amazon in Doncaster.

After working in the receive centre for a few years, Malina took on an HR role, knowing little about what it would entail. She found she really enjoyed the job, and decided to look into earning a qualification to boost her progress on the team.

Speaking on the benefits of doing an apprenticeship, Malina said: “I joined Amazon without any qualifications, and now I am a proud apprentice. The apprenticeship has already taught me how to communicate better and has backed up what I do with the theory I’m learning, which helps me to be better at my job.

“The most important thing I’ve learned is about all the HR-related legislation. This is important, as I have a lot of direct contact with employees and want to help them as best I can.”

What advice would Malina give to someone thinking about applying for an apprenticeship? “Don’t think too much about what you do and don’t know about the area you’re going into - if you’re concerned, you can ask questions and receive the support you need.”

Malina wants to continue progressing in her HR career at Amazon, and also one day hopes to open her own business.

Nicola Drury, Head of Skills and Apprenticeships at Amazon, said: “Every year we look forward to recruiting ambitious and enthusiastic apprentices to join our teams working to deliver for customers all over the UK. Whether they’re retraining to begin a new and exciting career, or gaining new skills to take their career in a new direction, we’re proud to provide opportunities for people to find their dream roles.”

The 1,000 new apprenticeships highlight Amazon’s ongoing commitment to creating jobs and training opportunities for people across the UK. Once qualified, apprentices will have the opportunity to work across Amazon’s UK sites including fulfilment centres, delivery stations, sortation centres as well as corporate offices in London and Manchester, and four development centres in Cambridge, Edinburgh, London, and Swansea.

Amazon apprentices work across a wide variety of different schemes in hundreds of teams, from software developers in Prime Video, buyers in fashion, and production in Amazon Studios. This year apprentices could be a solutions architect in Amazon Web Services, a marketer in Amazon Music, or work with cutting-edge technology in operations as an engineer.

Since 2021, Amazon has pledged £8m supporting over 400 SMEs with apprenticeships via the apprenticeship levy transfer service. To date, Amazon has supported over 750 apprentices across a wide range of schemes including adult care, data, dental nurses and broadcast production assistants.

In addition to the apprenticeship schemes, Amazon employees can also take advantage of Amazon’s pioneering Career Choice programme, which pre-pays up to 95% of tuition and fees for courses in high-demand fields, up to £8,000 over four years, regardless of whether the skills are relevant to a career at Amazon.

Competitive pay, comprehensive benefits and a modern, safe and engaging work environment is provided for its employees. The roles pay a minimum of £11.80 or £12.50 per hour, rising from April to between £12.30 and £13 per hour, depending on location, and up to £33,500 a year for degree-level apprenticeships. All employees also receive a benefits package that includes private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, and an employee discount – which combined are worth thousands annually – as well as a company pension plan.

Amazon has been named as a ‘Top Employer UK 2024’ by the Top Employer Institute, one of the world’s most prestigious certifications in the field of human resources management. This award recognises Amazon’s commitment to the development and well-being of its employees. In addition to the UK accolade, Amazon has also been certified as one of the Top Employers in Europe for the second consecutive year. https://www.aboutamazon.co.uk/news/top-employer-2024

Applications are now open for Amazon’s apprenticeship programme. For more information, visit: www.amazonapprenticeships.co.uk