Alorica Inc., a customer service management provider in North Sioux City, will add 400 new workers to its payroll, with 100 starting immediately.
The company and the South Dakota Governor's Office of Economic Development announced Friday that North Sioux City will soon be home to the Cingular International Care Program.
Looking to begin filling the jobs to serve Cingular, Alorica is targeting new hires for a Dec. 11 training class. It will host "Career Empowerment Events" at 7 and 9 a.m. and at 1 and 6 p.m. at the Alorica center in the Gateway Business Park at 300 Centennial Drive.
No reservation is necessary and facility walk-ins are encouraged.
"These events will include comprehensive information for applicants as well as group interviews," Alorica's human resources manager Jo Prince said in a statement. "Many candidates will receive an offer of employment prior to leaving the event."
In addition to the contact center's Career Empowerment Events, Alorica will be accepting applications through its employer Web site at www.Aloricajobs.com. Job applications may also be completed in person at the North Sioux City facility for those unable to attend the scheduled events.
The company has hired 200 workers since its launch in late October and is on track to its goal of creating 1,000 new jobs in Siouxland during the next two years.
Alorica site director Mike Freeman, said the remaining 300 jobs will be added as quickly as possible. The training session is five weeks long and the classroom allows 125 to 130 to be trained at one time. "We're trying to do it at a controlled pace," he said, "doing a better job in the end."
Freeman said the starting pay is $9 an hour with performance based raises leading up to $10 an hour. "It's a nice wage for our area," he said.
Kory Menken, executive director of the North Sioux City Economic Development Corp., called the announcement "tremendous for North Sioux City and southeast South Dakota." He said it is further proof of Alorica's commitment to growing in South Dakota.
"This is a great testament to the North Sioux City workforce," said Richard Benda, secretary of the Department of Tourism and State Development. "In just a few months, the South Dakota branch has proven itself as a dedicated and strong player in this national company."
Menken said Cingular is a "quality-driven company" and that Alorica will be taking care of its top corporate clients.
"They'll be hiring top employees, as well," he said. He said the influx of so many new jobs could put upward pressure on wages in Siouxland, where the unemployment rate is currently low.
"That's the nice thing about capitalism and the competitive market," he said. "Alorica has a very strong benefits package, too."
Menken, who was involved in talks with both companies several months ago, said the process has a side benefit.
"This is helping put us on the map with these large companies," he said. "We met with Cingular representatives who had never been here before . It's nice they can go back to Atlanta, New Jersey and Seattle and tell people about our state.
"It's always good to get people out from the coast to see what we have. And the work ethic out here -- we can't promote that enough," he said. "We hear that from all our out-of state companies."
Alorica Inc. is headquartered in Chino, Calif., and provides a full range of customer service management services in more than 10 locations, with nine of them in the United States.
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