4 ms·

I hope enough people vote yes. The way FC workers are treated is not ok. It's the main blemish on a company I otherwise respect. "Other companies treat FC staf

by simsla 6y ago

I hope enough people vote yes. The way FC workers are treated is not ok. It's the main blemish on a company I otherwise respect. "Other companies treat FC staff like shit too" is not an excuse. Disclaimer: Work for Amazon (corp / tech side). Opinion my own, obviously.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
lotsofpulp 6y ago
> "Other companies treat FC staff like shit too" is not an excuse. How is this not an excuse? Most people would switch to Walmart/Target/Bestbuy or any other retailer if the price on Amazon is higher.
- criddell 6y ago
  I wonder how price sensitive Amazon shoppers actually are. I know I buy from there mostly because of the low friction and wide selection. I rarely check prices.
  - lotsofpulp 6y ago
    I'm assuming the people working at Amazon are capable of figuring that out, and since the prices on Amazon are not higher than the other retailers, they have concluded their customers are price sensitive. Otherwise Amazon is leaving money on the table by not already charging higher prices, which is a bet I would not make.
    - Bedon292 6y ago
      I have many times found things more expensive on Amazon than other sources. Most of that I put down to shipping being factored into their prices, vs added in at the end for online retailers or just being aggregated across the whole inventory of physical retailers. But a big factor is time to me is time. I can get this thing for $2 cheaper at the store, but then it would be a dedicated trip out for something I can have on my doorstep in the morning.
- simsla 6y ago
  It's not just about wages. I think Amazon has actually made great strides by raising their minimum wages to $15/h. According to US stats the monetary benefit from unionising is about +11% on average. By offering twice the federal minimum, it's possible that Amazon is already above that. Now, you can argue that minimum wage should be higher still, but that's a separate discussion. I don't think we should pretend that FC jobs will ever be super high paying or enviable jobs, but there are other ways to improve worker conditions. e.g. In some FC's, people allegedly have to walk for 20 minutes to reach a toilet. That's easily fixed. Making sure people don't have to choose between feeding their families and casting a vote in the election is another example. In general, even for a low skill job, pressure shouldn't be so high as to burn people out. I think some FCs might actually have decent worker conditions. Others don't. As you alluded to, a company has financial interests that may not align with worker interests, which is why I think this needs to be approached in a structural way. Like Bezos himself once said: "Good intentions don't work; you need good mechanisms to make anything happen."
  - lotsofpulp 6y ago
    >which is why I think this needs to be approached in a structural way. The answer is federal legislation. How break time, overtime after certain # of work hours in a day, parental leave. If we want people to have a certain quality of life at work, I don't see any purpose directing any energy at certain large employers. All efforts should be direct to politicians, who we can vote in, to provide that quality of life at work.
    - simsla 6y ago
      I do agree that a top-down approach is preferable, but in the meantime I still see self-organising and collective bargaining as a good thing.
      - lotsofpulp 6y ago
        The down side is politicians can point to whatever pittance the workers win in their negotiations and say market forces are working.
plandis 6y ago
Amazon used to offer corporate employees the opportunity to work in an FC for a few days. Have you done that program? If so how were the working conditions?

by simsla 6y ago

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

lotsofpulp 6y ago

> "Other companies treat FC staff like shit too" is not an excuse. How is this not an excuse? Most people would switch to Walmart/Target/Bestbuy or any other retailer if the price on Amazon is higher.

criddell 6y ago
I wonder how price sensitive Amazon shoppers actually are. I know I buy from there mostly because of the low friction and wide selection. I rarely check prices.
- lotsofpulp 6y ago
  I'm assuming the people working at Amazon are capable of figuring that out, and since the prices on Amazon are not higher than the other retailers, they have concluded their customers are price sensitive. Otherwise Amazon is leaving money on the table by not already charging higher prices, which is a bet I would not make.
  - Bedon292 6y ago
    I have many times found things more expensive on Amazon than other sources. Most of that I put down to shipping being factored into their prices, vs added in at the end for online retailers or just being aggregated across the whole inventory of physical retailers. But a big factor is time to me is time. I can get this thing for $2 cheaper at the store, but then it would be a dedicated trip out for something I can have on my doorstep in the morning.
simsla 6y ago
It's not just about wages. I think Amazon has actually made great strides by raising their minimum wages to $15/h. According to US stats the monetary benefit from unionising is about +11% on average. By offering twice the federal minimum, it's possible that Amazon is already above that. Now, you can argue that minimum wage should be higher still, but that's a separate discussion. I don't think we should pretend that FC jobs will ever be super high paying or enviable jobs, but there are other ways to improve worker conditions. e.g. In some FC's, people allegedly have to walk for 20 minutes to reach a toilet. That's easily fixed. Making sure people don't have to choose between feeding their families and casting a vote in the election is another example. In general, even for a low skill job, pressure shouldn't be so high as to burn people out. I think some FCs might actually have decent worker conditions. Others don't. As you alluded to, a company has financial interests that may not align with worker interests, which is why I think this needs to be approached in a structural way. Like Bezos himself once said: "Good intentions don't work; you need good mechanisms to make anything happen."
- lotsofpulp 6y ago
  >which is why I think this needs to be approached in a structural way. The answer is federal legislation. How break time, overtime after certain # of work hours in a day, parental leave. If we want people to have a certain quality of life at work, I don't see any purpose directing any energy at certain large employers. All efforts should be direct to politicians, who we can vote in, to provide that quality of life at work.
  - simsla 6y ago
    I do agree that a top-down approach is preferable, but in the meantime I still see self-organising and collective bargaining as a good thing.
    - lotsofpulp 6y ago
      The down side is politicians can point to whatever pittance the workers win in their negotiations and say market forces are working.

plandis 6y ago

Amazon used to offer corporate employees the opportunity to work in an FC for a few days. Have you done that program? If so how were the working conditions?