A Look at the Types of Jobs Amgen's Promise to Trump Will Bring

A Look at the Types of Jobs Amgen's Promise to Trump Will Bring February 3, 2017
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – During a meeting with President Donald Trump, Amgen Chief Executive Officer Robert Bradway announced the company intended to hire approximately 1,600 employees. But, what kind of jobs will they be?

Will they be in product manufacturing—which are the types of jobs Trump has sought in his call for pharma companies to bring manufacturing back to the United States? Will they be in sales, as the company is likely to ramp up marketing efforts for the anti-cholesterol drug Repatha, PCSK9 inhibitor? Amgen won a legal victory over rival drugmakers Sanofi and Regeneron that could eventually block sales of their cholesterol drug Praluent in the United States for up to 12 years. A judge’s decision has been appealed by both companies. Should the decision be upheld on appeal, Amgen’s Repatha would be the sole drug of its type available in the United States. Repatha was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last year to treat two rare genetic diseases known for high LDL-C, as well as patients who have atherosclerotic CV disease. Repatha received an additional boost this week when the company announced data showing it reduced the risk of heart attacks, strokes and cardiac death in heart disease patients.

During a call with investors this week, Bradway said the job additions had been part of Amgen’s plan for 2017. Bradway said the planned hires are a reflection of the company’s “ongoing confidence and the attractiveness of the environment here in the U.S. and of the outlook we have for long-term growth,” according to a Biopharma Reporter article. While Amgen is planning to hire this year, it appears those jobs won’t be in bio-manufacturing. During the call, Biopharma Reporter noted that Chief Financial Officer David Meline stressed the company’s efforts to streamline its manufacturing process, which were first announced in 2014 and led to the culling of approximately 4,000 jobs that year.

Following Bradway’s initial announcement about the jobs, company spokesperson Kristen Davis told the Los Angeles Times the hires would include “workers who will bring new skills to Amgen, as well as those required to address attrition and other needs.” Amgen’s website currently shows multiple job openings across the United States.

Amgen currently has three U.S. manufacturing sites: one in Thousand Oaks, one in Woburn, Mass. and one in West Greenwich, R.I. The bulk of its manufacturing is handled in offshore plants in Puerto Rico, The Netherlands, Ireland and Singapore, according to the report.

So, what types of jobs will Amgen hire for this year? Bradway was not clear about that, according to the report, but he did say the company will use “incremental hiring” to support a “mass of product launches across different geographies.” Bradway also said some of the jobs would support its neurology franchise and investments in bone health, Biopharma Reporter said.

While Amgen’s job additions may have been planned for some time, the Trump administration will certainly tout them as a policy victory. Investors are also responding favorably. Since Bradway’s announcement share prices have climbed to a high of $159.75 on Thursday. In pre-market trading, shares are up to $164.97.

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