Apple to create 3,600 jobs at new $304 million campus in Texas
Apple is set to more than double the size of its workforce in Texas over the next decade as news emerged of the tech giant’s plans to invest $304 million in a new campus there.
The Austin-based facility will create more than 3,600 new jobs, mainly in customer support, sales and accounting.
“Our operations in Austin has grown dramatically over the past decade from less than 1,000 in 2004 to more than 3,500 today,” Apple spokesman Steve Dowling told Reuters.
As part of the deal, Apple will receive an investment of $21 million over 10 years from the Texas Enterprise Fund, a body set up in 2003 to attract new business to the Lone Star State.
Texas governor Rick Perry commented on the deal in a statement, saying, “Apple is known for its bold innovation and game-changing designs, and the expansion of their Austin facility adds to the growing list of visionary high-tech companies that have found that Texas’ economic climate is a perfect fit for their future, thanks to our low taxes, reasonable and predictable regulations, fair legal system and skilled workforce.”
He added, “Investments like this further Texas’ potential to become the nation’s next high-tech hub.”
The statement also said that the new jobs would support Apple’s growing operations in the Americas.
The news comes as Apple’s worldwide supply chain remains under close scrutiny, with some groups criticizing working conditions at factories overseas where Apple products are manufactured.
The Fair Labor Association is currently investigating Foxconn facilities in China to examine working conditions after reports of problems at the factories. Foxconn employs around a million people, many of whom assemble Apple products such as the iPhone and iPad. The FLA’s investigation is being undertaken at the request of the Cupertino company, with a report about its findings expected later this month.
Last week Apple went on a PR offensive by adding a page to its website with a slew of stats about how many US-based jobs the company has had a hand in creating.
As well as its new offices in Austin, Apple also has plans to build a futuristic spaceship-like campus in Cupertino as its new head office, big enough for around 13,000 workers, though the 2.8-million-square-feet facility will unlikely be completed until at least 2015.
[Image: Kurt De Bruyn / Shutterstock]
This article was originally posted on Digital Trends
More from Digital Trends
App economy creates nearly half a million US jobs
Coroner’s report released regarding the death of Steve Jobs
At 5th Avenue Apple Store, fans and passersby remember Steve Jobs
