When Caitlin Kolba reported for her first day of work at St. Luke’s University Health Network this week, she became the Network’s 20,000th employee.

“I wanted to apply to St. Luke’s after talking to other people who worked there,” said Kolba, 32, of Bethlehem Township, who is now employed as a clinical social worker in the extended acute care unit at St. Luke’s Sacred Heart Campus in Allentown. “Job satisfaction is very high. There are so many opportunities for growth.”

After living in Virginia for nearly two decades, Kolba returned to the Lehigh Valley, where she grew up until age 11. While working at an independent practice in Allentown over the past couple of years, she came across many St. Luke’s employees, all of whom spoke so highly of the Network that she became convinced that St. Luke’s must be a very special place indeed.

She said she felt like she hit the jackpot when she received her job offer. “I immediately called my best friend to tell her because I was so excited.”

Founded in Bethlehem in 1872, St. Luke’s has 15 campuses and more than 300 outpatient sites. The network is headquartered in the Lehigh Valley and overseen by a board of trustees comprised of Lehigh Valley residents.

With annual net revenue of $3.5 billion, it is provides jobs across 11 counties in two states.

“St. Luke’s remarkable growth over the years is the result of the trust earned from the communities we have served over the course of our 150-year history,” said Rick Anderson, president & CEO of St. Luke’s. “This growth has provided the opportunity to attract employees drawn not only to our culture but also to our competitive salaries and benefits. St. Luke’s is a caring organization that continually demonstrates St. Luke’s employees are our network’s most important asset.”

Some milestones for the network:

• The number of employees surpassed 5,000 in 2002 – Bethlehem Steel’s last full year in existence and the year St. Luke’s became the first hospital in Pennsylvania to offer robotic surgery.

• The 10,000th employee was hired in 2016 when the Monroe Campus opened.

• The workforce grew to 15,000 employees by 2019, shortly after Blue Mountain Health System and Sacred Heart Healthcare System joined St. Luke’s.

As St. Luke’s celebrates employment of its 20,000th employee, the Network’s Human Resources Department continues to process numerous job applications for hundreds of opens positions, including many for nurses.

“Demand for St. Luke’s award-winning health care is the catalyst for the Network’s continued growth, providing the opportunity to welcome even more employees, attracted by competitive salaries and benefits, into the St. Luke’s family,” said Evan Ochs, St. Luke’s Senior Vice President of Human Resources. “We also enjoy a culture of respect and caring, making St. Luke’s the most recognizable health care employer in the area.”

St. Luke’s has many openings for direct care roles including nurses, radiology technicians, respiratory therapists and patient care assistants. Non-clinical roles include administrative roles, leadership positions, information technology analysts, inventory control specialists, distribution center associates and sterile processing technicians.

Job openings are listed at: www.slhn.org/careers.