Kroger added 1,500 jobs for Virginia in 2014

(WSLS 10) - Kroger created approximately 1,500 jobs in Virginia in 2014, and now is the 21st largest employer in the state with more than 12,000 associates. 

Officials say most of the new jobs are in stores, ranging from full time department heads to part time courtesy clerks.

Kroger operates 62 stores in Hampton Roads, the Richmond Region and western Virginia. In addition, the company employs several hundred people in its distribution center in Salem, its regional office in Roanoke and Westover Dairy in Lynchburg.  

Report: Kroger opens fuel center in Roanoke, creates jobs

In the Mid-Atlantic region, which includes West Virginia, North Carolina and small portions of Tennessee, Kentucky and Ohio in addition to Virginia, Kroger employs approximately 17,500 associates, officials say. 

Across the nation, Kroger says they've added nearly 25,000 jobs last year. Over the last seven years, Kroger says they've created more than 65,000 jobs. This figure does not include increases due to the company's mergers. Kroger and its subsidiaries currently employ nearly 400,000 associates.

Last year Kroger says they hired more than 6,000 veterans. Since 2009, the company has hired 29,000 veterans.