Anthony Jackson had his eye on Oxford Pharmaceuticals for a long time.

The drug manufacturer first caught Jackson’s attention in 2014 when Oxford first announced it would build a $29.3 million manufacturing facility in Birmingham and again when it broke ground in 2015.

Anthony Jackson, Warehouse Operator at Oxford Pharmaceuticals

With a background in warehouse operations at a Huntsville drug manufacturer that had experienced mass layoffs, the Birmingham native was sure a job at Oxford was in his future. So he took a chance and struck up a conversation on Facebook with Jefferson County Commissioner David Carrington, who asked for Jackson’s resume and passed it to John Schultz, president of Oxford Pharmaceuticals and a veteran of the pharmaceuticals industry in Alabama.

“I really didn’t take him seriously because he’s a politician and I’m a real person,” joked Jackson.

But two days later Jackson was sitting in Oxford’s temporary office at Innovation Depot interviewing with Schultz and his team and he was hired on the spot.

Today, Jackson is a warehouse operator for Oxford and he got a chance to meet Commissioner Carrington face-to-face when the company unveiled its new facility in Jefferson Metropolitan Park Lakeshore in August, where Governor Robert Bentley cut the ribbon.

“I’m happy to have played a small role in Jackson getting the job he dreamed of and am excited for the 200 other workers Oxford will hire over the next few years, as it ramps up its operations here,” said Commissioner Carrington.

Governor Bentley cuts the ribbon at Oxford Pharmaceuticals

Oxford is working through Alabama’s premier workforce training program, AIDT, to hire and train potential workers. Currently the company is seeking people to fill positions in:

What is Jackson’s advice for those seeking a position with Oxford, other than seek out a helpful politician?

“Our field is very particular and we have to follow every rule,” he said. “You have to be safe, particular and attentive. Pharmaceuticals is a very serious field.”