Microsoft Adding More Iowa Jobs
It's no secret that the latest hotly-contested elections leave a lot of issues on the plate of whoever comes out victorious. The job market is always at the top of the list and with the derecho and pandemic leaving many workers behind, there's good news for people in or willing to move to Central Iowa.
Tech giant Microsoft will reportedly add to its fleet of data centers in West Des Moines, and bring new, well-paying jobs to Iowa.
There are currently three data centers there and the Des Moines Register reports 2 new ones are in the works. Between the two new data centers, they will add about 50-75 workers at $75,000 a year, according to West Des Moines Community and Economic Development Director Clyde Evans. The way Microsoft chooses its locations is based on the pool of available skilled workers, so if you are one, you'll want to be in Des Moines two years from now. It's also based, according to Microsoft spokesperson Luke Marcoe, on "access to fiber-optic networks, reliable power, and relatively inexpensive utilities" as well as proximity to customers.
The plans are yet to be approved by the West Des Moines City Council, but it seems all but a formality, according to KCCI. Groundbreaking is planned next September with completion of the work being done in Fall 2022. These new buildings will offer space for additional servers in the company's cloud computing operations, according to the Register.