Amazon's economic impact in Canada: How we're investing in local communities

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Since 2010, we’ve made direct investments in our Canadian operations of more than $25 billion (CDN). This includes both capital expenditures (such as the fulfilment centres and data centres we build) and operating expenditures (such as the jobs we create in Canada). These direct investments create a ripple effect through the economy, as the firms that supply goods and services to Amazon expand and associated household spending increases. Keystone Strategy, an independent economics consulting firm, estimates that Amazon’s investments contributed an additional $24 billion (CDN) in value-added effects to the Canadian GDP between 2010 and 2021.

Investing in local infrastructure

Amazon's current footprint in Canada encompasses more than 65 different corporate and logistics sites. In the last year alone, we have opened two new fulfilment centres and three sortation centres. We have opened more than 20 delivery stations across the country since 2021. In June 2022, we celebrated the latest expansion of our Toronto Tech Hub, which now includes three permanent offices spanning close to 500,000 square feet in the heart of downtown. In Vancouver, we’re preparing for the launch of The Post, which when fully complete will add close to 1 million square feet of office space over a full city block downtown. Teams working at our Tech Hubs—including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Alexa, Prime Video, and Amazon Music—help create new features and services that customers around the world can enjoy.

AWS has announced plans to open the new AWS Canada West (Calgary) Region, which will consist of three Availability Zones (AZs) at launch and join the existing AWS Canada (Central) Region in Montreal, which also consists of three Availability Zones.

Creating jobs

Amazon is a major engine for job creation in Canada, with a local workforce that has grown to more than 40,000 people. In 2021 alone, we paid more than $2 billion (CDN) in wages to Amazon employees in Canada.

We offer opportunities to people with a wide range of qualifications, from entry-level positions across our logistics network to jobs for early-stage professionals and experienced specialists in fields such as software development, linguistics, logistics, human resources, and IT. Our state-of-the-art facilities offer local employees a great working environment, opportunities for professional development, competitive salaries, and rewarding benefits.

All employees regardless of tenure or seniority receive a competitive salary and benefits package, which includes comprehensive health benefits starting on day one with no waiting period and RRSP matching. Base pay for associate roles starts at a minimum of $19 an hour. All eligible full-time fulfilment network employees have access to Amazon Career Choice, an innovative program uniquely designed to help upskill people who are interested in pursuing a future in a high-demand field by covering up to 95% of tuition fees.

In addition to our direct job creation, our investments indirectly support a large number of jobs in our Canadian supply chain and across the network of sellers who have used our technology and services to grow their businesses through increased sales within, and beyond, the country. Keystone Strategy’s economic research estimates that companies in Amazon’s supply chain (for instance, construction companies building our logistics sites) supported more than 70,000 additional jobs in 2021 thanks to having Amazon as their customer.

Enabling Canadian small businesses

Since 2003, Amazon.ca has made its virtual shelf space available for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to reach millions of customers, build their brands, and grow their businesses. SMBs are the backbone of the Canadian economy, creating jobs and driving innovation. Amazon invests in logistics, services, programs, tools, and features that allow SMBs to scale and connect with more customers, establish and build their brands, and pursue their ambitions. Amazon’s investments are paying dividends for our more than 40,000 Canadian selling partners:

In 2021, the total sales of Canadian selling partners in Amazon’s stores increased by more than 20% year over year.
In 2021, Canadian sellers sold almost 100 million products to Amazon customers (200 every minute).
More than 4,000 Canadian selling partners had over $100,000 in sales, up more than 16% year over year.
In 2021, Canadian sellers created more than 50,000 jobs in Canada thanks to sales from Amazon customers.

Investing in sustainability

We are also using our size and scale to make a difference for the planet. Amazon was the first signatory of The Climate Pledge, which we launched together with NGO Global Optimism. That means we are committed to becoming net-zero carbon across our entire global business by 2040—a decade ahead of the Paris Agreement’s goal. We are working towards these goals by taking immediate action across our business operations, including energy usage, transportation, and packaging.

Packaging plays a critical role in the customer-delivery experience, and we are committed to delivering products safely and sustainably. For example, Amazon recently launched its paper padded mailer in Canada to help reduce packaging waste. Developed by the scientists, engineers, and technicians at Amazon’s packaging and materials lab, Amazon’s paper padded mailer is a curbside recyclable packaging solution optimized for weight, flexibility, and impact resistance. It can be placed in the same recycle bin as regular paper or boxes; for most customers, this is their curbside single-stream recycling bin. The mailer is made of four layers of paper and a cushioning material that protects products during shipping. The cushioning material was specifically designed to easily separate from the paper, in the same way that print inks and other paper coatings are removed during the paper-recycling process.

Amazon has announced two renewable energy projects in Canada, both in Alberta. Once complete, these projects are expected to bring Amazon’s renewable energy investment in Canada to more than 450 megawatts (MW), which is expected to supply our operations with more than 1 million megawatt-hours (MWh) of renewable energy per year.

Total tax contributions in Canada

As we continue to make investments in our Canadian operations and our growing workforce, we pay taxes that fall in two different categories:

Directly incurred taxes: The taxes that are directly incurred and payable by Amazon in Canada include corporate income tax and payroll taxes.
Indirect taxes collected and remitted: The taxes we collect from our customers and other third parties that we remit to the federal and provincial tax authorities. They include the federal goods and services/harmonized sales tax and provincial sales taxes in Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia.

Below we’ve outlined our contribution for the full year 2021:

Our total tax contribution (combining directly incurred and indirect taxes) was $2.1 billion (CAD).
Our total directly incurred taxes were $431 million (CAD). Employer taxes accounted for the largest proportion of these taxes.
The indirect taxes we collected were an additional $1.6 billion (CAD) as a result of our business activities in Canada.

Based on a 2022 analysis from PwC comparing Amazon’s 2020 Canadian tax payments with PwC’s separately prepared Total Tax Contribution (TTC) survey of 69 of Canada’s largest businesses, Amazon ranked in the top 20 of the survey respondents for taxes borne, and top 15 for taxes collected. Amazon Canada also ranked within the top 15 for the overall total tax contribution.

We are proud to continue investing in Canada, and we are committed to keep contributing to the Canadian economy, serving our customers, creating jobs, fostering innovation, and unlocking new opportunities for Canadian businesses.