Jobs Created for Apple in Colorado Springs No Longer Needed

Colorado Springs was gearing up for an extension to their job base as Apple (News - Alert) had apparently put plans in place for a technical support center. The center was expected to help customers with their iPhones and iPods.


This planned expansion into the Colorado Springs area was considered to be a significant boost for the local economy and the job market. Now, those who were finally beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel are being forced to look for jobs elsewhere.

While workers had already been hired by a third-party company on Apple’s behalf, it has been reported that the technology giant decided to cancel the project and notified workers who were stunned by the news.

A number of the proposed jobs were expected to be home-based, providing opportunity for certain workers who needed such flexibility in order to hold a decent paying job. The cancellation of the project not only eliminates that opportunity, but could easily create hardship for those who were counting on their new job.

It has not yet been made clear if Apple ever even committed to opening the center in Colorado Springs, which would have employed 500 workers initially and 850 when the center was in full operation. The company isn’t talking, and it’s no wonder considering the poor perception that such a move leaves in its wake.

According to one of the would-be workers, it was unclear whether recent Apple ads in The Gazette inviting online applications for work-at-home technical customer service representatives were related to the support center.

Given the response that these ads generated, it is clear that the demand for such positions in Colorado Springs is significant. Whether or not the local infrastructure, economy or labor pool proves strong enough to attract larger market players remains to be seen.

While an Apple spokesperson has declined comment, Colorado Springs Economic Development Corporation President, Mike Kazmierski, said he was unaware of any Apple initiatives in Colorado Springs.

Such a statement indicates that Apple never was completely on board with such a proposal, if there ever was one at all. This type of fumble could have a far-reaching impact on the local job market, building distrust among the labor pool.

Could it be possible that New York-based Volt Information Sciences recruited and hired workers for Apple before the technology company even made the final decision on the Colorado Springs center? The company has yet to confirm or dispute the claim.