A man from Swansea who works in operations shares his secret for success during Learning at Work Week 2025 (12th-18thMay) to celebrate his career journey, achieved through the lifelong learning programmes at Amazon.
Each year, the Learning at Work Week programme is run by charity Campaign for Learning. The charity works with organisations across the UK to arrange events, stimulate curiosity in the workplace and support organisational goals by engaging employees in continued learning.
This year’s theme, ‘Get Connected’, highlights the social aspect of lifelong learning at work, with a focus on how collaboration between colleagues can support their learning and professional development through understanding and empathy.
Luke Mogford, who works at the Amazon fulfilment centre in Swansea, has used Amazon’s training and development pathways to further his professional goals.
One of the pathways Luke has taken advantage of to progress his career is Amazon Career Choice. The programme, which has been running at Amazon since 2012, supports participants by covering up to 95% of tuition and fees for courses in high-demand fields, with an available amount of up to £8,000 over four years, regardless of whether the participant proceeds to pursue a career at Amazon.
There are many pathways for progression within Amazon Career Choice, including associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees and certificates. Software development, English language classes, accountancy and HGV driving are just some of the courses on offer and are designed to help employees build careers at Amazon or elsewhere. This means that eligible employees are given the opportunity to gain the skills and qualifications needed to follow their career aspirations, whatever they might be.
Luke, who used Career Choice to help land his role in operations with Amazon, has shared his experience to inspire others to elevate their own career using the Amazon Career Choice programme.
Luke works on the receive team at the Swansea fulfilment centre. After completing a CIPD level three HR course through Career Choice in November 2024, Luke applied for a level two apprenticeship as a supply chain warehouse operative, with a view to starting an operations role at the fulfilment centre this summer.
“Funnily enough I found out about Career Choice through my phone,” Luke said.
“On my A-to-Z app – Amazon’s internal app for company resources – it suggested I ‘expand my career’ with Career Choice. After working in HR for a while I felt like I wanted to know more about the role, so I applied. Now I’m going for a place on the Amazon Apprenticeship programme too, which will open even more doors for my career.”
Luke first started working at Amazon in Swansea in September 2019 and was made permanent in August 2020. He followed in the footsteps of his father, who also worked at the fulfilment centre.
“My father worked for Amazon in Swansea before he retired – he was a packer and then moved across to receiving and cross-dock. We even had a few shifts together. I always started earlier, and he was on the later shift, so it was quite funny; as I was coming in he was coming out!”
What first drew Luke to pursue a career at Amazon was the structure, and the opportunities to progress.
“It was something with a bit more routine and structure,” Luke said. “My previous job was stock-taking with a company. The role involved travelling up and down the country, which felt a bit all over the place, so I wanted something based in one place.”
Career Choice appealed to him due to its wide range of courses.
“With Career Choice, I loved the fact that my learning wasn’t just limited to Amazon, but was on a much broader scale of HR. It really opened my eyes to the world of HR, to know and understand what other companies do, and then being able to make links between them and what we do at Amazon.”
“The most important thing I learned during my time on the Career Choice course was confidence,” Luke continued. “Doing this course has given me the tools to succeed, particularly when applying for other roles within Amazon. Before now, I would’ve second-guessed whether I could do what they’re asking for in a role, whereas now I have the confidence to go and put myself forward.
“If I’m not successful I can take the feedback, not get discouraged and continue work on improving for the next round. My main advice to anyone who is interested in Career Choice would be to give everything a go – if something is right for you it may also challenge you, but if you want to develop, go for it! If it’s not to be, keep trying, take the feedback and try again.”
Luke plans to take the learnings from his upcoming apprenticeship one day at a time and go from there.
“I’m looking forward to the challenges it will bring,” he said.
Amazon employees receive competitive pay and comprehensive benefits. The minimum starting pay for frontline operations employees is between £13.50 and £14.50 p/h, depending on location. For those with 36 months service, this is £13.75 and £14.75p/h, depending on location.
Amazon has invested £550m in increased pay for operations employees across the UK since 2022, representing a 35% increase in the hourly rate in just two years. Additionally, from day one, all employees are offered a comprehensive benefits package including private medical insurance, life assurance, income protection, subsidized meals and an employee discount. Together, these benefits are worth more than £700 annually, and employees can take advantage of Amazon’s company pension plan.
Amazon has been named as a ‘Top Employer UK 2025’ by the Top Employer Institute, for the second year in a row, one of the world’s most prestigious certifications in the field of human resources management. This award recognises Amazon’s commitment to the development and well-being of its employees. In addition to the UK accolade, Amazon has also been certified as one of the Top Employers in Europe for a third consecutive year.
In 2025, Amazon ranked in second place on LinkedIn’s Top Companies list — an annual list that identifies the most sought-after large companies to work for and grow your career in the UK. Using data from LinkedIn’s 900 million members, LinkedIn’s Top Companies list is designed to help professionals identify the best companies to grow their careers.
To find out more about a career with Amazon, visit Amazon Jobs.