Thousands of new jobs coming to Universal Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. — Governor Rick Scott was at Universal Orlando on Friday morning to announce that the company's growth and expansion will create more than 3,000 jobs in 2014.

Universal Orlando officials said the nearly 3,500 jobs will be permanent and will include managerial, professional, culinary, high-tech and guest services positions.

The jobs can be attributed to expansion at the theme park. Park officials recently announced eight new CityWalk venues, the new Cabana Bay Beach Resort and Diagon Alley, an expansion of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Diagon Alley, which is being built inside Universal Studios, will be connected to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure by a passenger train.

Scott also announced the latest tourism statistics and said almost 95 million visitors came to Florida last year. He touted his job creation platform during his years in office and said for every 85 tourists, one job is created.

"I'm very appreciative of the private sector. We've cut taxes 24 times. We're going to cut another $500 million in taxes," Scott said.

The governor said roughly 1 million Floridians currently work in tourism and the tourism industry is continuing to grow.

Officials said hiring for the new Universal positions begins immediately. Click here to apply for jobs at Universal Orlando: Universal jobs

WFTV