A TEAM member from the Amazon fulfilment centre in Dunfermline is sharing his story in celebration of Pride Month.

Alongside his personal Pride Month celebrations, John is sharing his story to showcase Amazon’s #ProudToBeMe campaign in honour of Pride Month.

John Aitken, a general manager’s assistant at the Dunfermline fulfilment centre, attended a performing arts college and worked in entertainment on cruise liners in Los Angeles and Australia before returning to West Fife.

Having discovered a passion for managing teams whilst working on the ships, John found an opportunity to study a business management apprenticeship at Amazon.

John’s favourite thing about working at Amazon is the opportunities.

“I’ve been given so many opportunities during my time at Amazon, such as working in lead roles and then stepping up to an area manager role. I love to try every new challenge that comes along and Amazon is the place to do that,” he said.

John is also the site ambassador and regional lead in Scotland and Ireland for the Glamazon team, Amazon’s LGBTQIA+ affinity group, and plays a part in the community engagement side of the team.

“With my performance background, I’m the go-to guy for charity and site events," he explained. "From having interest in Glamazon to approaching the team and becoming involved, it all grew quite naturally and organically until I took the role as regional lead.

"It was very much taking every challenge as it came and it’s been the best experience for me.”

John said Amazon is very supportive to the LGBTQIA+ community.

"They offer a range of programmes to help employees internally," he said. "From policies in the past that are now improving, to pronoun inclusivity, Amazon goes the extra mile to create an inclusive environment.”

Pride is a big event in John’s calendar, and he gets involved in a lot of events both through Amazon and outside of work. This year, he is organising workshops for the Dunfermline site to educate team members on pronoun inclusivity, touching on identification.

The Glamazon team will also be attending the Edinburgh Pride march.

He added: “Pride is a moment to reflect and look back on how far the LGBTQIA+ community has come, from the civil riots to where we are now – it’s incredible.

"There are still inequalities, but Pride Month allows us to take a moment to understand the journey and that’s something I try to keep true to heart.

“That moment of standing there as a gay man makes you feel so at home with where you are and what you’re doing, especially when your workplace is as supportive as Amazon. We’ve all got journeys to take, we’ve all had journeys to get to where we are, but the journey that we still have to come is incredibly exciting.”

Ceysa McKechnie, Head of Glamazon in the UK, added: "We are incredibly proud to have John as a member of Glamazon in the UK. Amazon believes that equality is a driver of innovation, and we strive to create environments that are inclusive to all employees regardless of their gender identity, sexual orientation or expression.

"It’s great to hear stories like John’s that inspire others to be accepting and inclusive to all colleagues in the workplace.”