Covington, Ga. — About 1,500 new jobs are coming to Georgia.
Officials say biopharmaceutical giant Baxter International Inc. is the biggest manufacturing facility to locate in Georgia since the economic downturn.
On Wednesday morning, leaders broke ground on Baxter’s newest plant in Covington located in Newton County.
Gov. Nathan Deal and Baxter CEO Bob Parkinson were among the leaders who joined the ceremony, Channel 2’s Richard Elliot said.
Officials said the state will train employees for the 1,500 jobs as part of the state’s workforce program. But the training will mean that other pharmaceutical companies or healthcare industry companies will now look to locate in Georgia because there will be a pool of trained workers.
“What this does is not only provide Baxter with the kind of employees they need from day one, but it begins the process of developing a work force that will sustain this industry and its companion industries for many, many years to come,” Deal said.
The plant itself won’t begin full operations until 2018, but Baxter’s CEO said they are filling some positions now.
Elliot will share details about Baxter job openings and its projected economic impact on Channel 2 Action News at 6.
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Channel 2's Richard Elliot contributed to this report. Follow him on Twitter @elliotwsb
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