Amazon to create 100,000 full-time jobs in U.S. by 2018

Amazon will create 100,000 full-time jobs in the United States with full benefits over the next 18 months, the tech giant recently announced in a statement.

The Seattle-based company says the positions are for workers across the country and across all skill and experience levels. Most of the positions will be at fulfillment centers, including new ones under construction in California, Florida, New Jersey and Texas. The new employees will also work in areas such as cloud technology, machine learning and advanced logistics.

"Innovation is one of our guiding principles at Amazon, and it’s created hundreds of thousands of American jobs," Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement. "These jobs are not just in our Seattle headquarters or in Silicon Valley — they’re in our customer service network, fulfillment centers and other facilities in local communities throughout the country."

Amazon has quickly ramped up its workforce over the last few years, as it pushes to open up more fulfillment centers to get packages out to its customers more quickly. In 2011, Amazon had 30,000 full-time employees in the U.S. At the end of last year, it employed 180,000 people.

As part of the hiring spree, Amazon says it will also hire an additional 25,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years. Amazon says it plans to train 10,000 active duty service members, veterans and military spouses not employed by the company in cloud computing. Amazon is increasingly emphasizing convenience of its retail service, such as Same-Day Delivery options, as its edge on pricing dulls with the introduction of state sales taxes.