The organisers of the London 2012 Olympics have said that the construction of the Olympic Park will create jobs for 30,000 workers.
The BBC reports the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) as saying that the current workforce of 3,315, of which 23% are local residents, would increase during 2009 as building work accelerates, eventually reaching a peak of 11,000 in 2010. New jobs created this year will include bricklayers, carpenters, electricians, security guards, engineers, plumbers, scaffolders, machine operators, and administrators and support staff. The ODA says that 7,000 people have already worked on the site.
UK Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell told the BBC, “The investment of £6.1 billion in east London is precisely what east London needs, what London needs, what the country needs at this time because it is creating jobs.
“One out of 10 of all the people working in the Olympic park are either an apprentice or they are people who are being trained, therefore leaving a legacy of skill.”
ODA Chairman John Armitt said that, at the half-way stage of the construction process, the work was “right on track”.
