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You don't need laws to enforce this change or behavior, you just need the Amazon drivers to show solidarity and unionize. They can demand (and get!) far more c

You don't need laws to enforce this change or behavior, you just need the Amazon drivers to show solidarity and unionize. They can demand (and get!) far more change than the government will ever legislate. The threat of a strike and labor action is far scarier to Amazon than nosey lawmakers that can just be silenced with enough campaign donations.

mschuster91 3y ago
> You don't need laws to enforce this change or behavior, you just need the Amazon drivers to show solidarity and unionize. They can demand (and get!) far more change than the government will ever legislate. The problem is, with jobs that do not require more than a driver's license and the ability to read names you are a fungible cog in the giant machinery of Amazon. It's a job that virtually everyone with a half working body can do: no need for special training, certifications, not even language - here in Germany, it's been reported that the Amazon phone app their delivery people use has like at least half a dozen languages. Fine, you go on strike with your colleagues? Your official employer won't pay as he can't because Amazon pays shit, barely enough to keep the lights on. You keep striking. Amazon will just terminate your employer's contract. Your employer shuts down. Amazon finds someone else willing to start up a "delivery company", and that person finds another bunch of people desperate to make a pittance.
- qbasic_forever 3y ago
  Amazon won't find other people in this labor market--the service sector has been absolutely on fire with hiring, employment, and wage growth now and throughout the pandemic. Letting COVID rip has killed and disabled millions of workers and put tons of pressure on service jobs.
  - mschuster91 3y ago
    Amazon maybe not, but their contractors? If in doubt they'll just use undocumented people like farms do all the time. They got caught multiple times doing that in Germany and Austria, no reason to believe the situation in the US with massively more pervasive labor exploitation would be different. It's funny, Amazon always says "we expect that our partners comply with laws and regulations", and yet they absolutely have to know that their "partners" have to skirt the law to survive on their extremely low package rates. Hell, they probably have enough data from the delivery smartphones to be able to easily detect labor law violations (overtime beyond 10h, no / not enough long breaks). [1] https://www.ln-online.de/lokales/stormarn/bad-oldesloe-neun-illegale-unter-amazon-paketboten-TXROLBMLTILVDOV4VYBR4CHEZM.html https://www.ln-online.de/lokales/stormarn/bad-oldesloe-neun-... [2] https://rp-online.de/nrw/staedte/moenchengladbach/moenchengladbach-grosseinsatz-vom-zoll-bei-amazon-in-rheindahlen_aid-58200187 https://rp-online.de/nrw/staedte/moenchengladbach/moenchengl... [3] https://winfuture.de/news,114164.html https://winfuture.de/news,114164.html [4] https://www.tonight.de/koeln/schwarzarbeit-bei-amazon-razzia-in-troisdorf-bei-koeln_184856.html https://www.tonight.de/koeln/schwarzarbeit-bei-amazon-razzia...
- FireBeyond 3y ago
  > The problem is, with jobs that do not require more than a driver's license and the ability to read names you are a fungible cog in the giant machinery of Amazon. Right. Where I am, Amazon was running ads that literally said: "Need a job? Pass a background check? Apply today, start tomorrow, no interview required."

mschuster91 3y ago

> You don't need laws to enforce this change or behavior, you just need the Amazon drivers to show solidarity and unionize. They can demand (and get!) far more change than the government will ever legislate. The problem is, with jobs that do not require more than a driver's license and the ability to read names you are a fungible cog in the giant machinery of Amazon. It's a job that virtually everyone with a half working body can do: no need for special training, certifications, not even language - here in Germany, it's been reported that the Amazon phone app their delivery people use has like at least half a dozen languages. Fine, you go on strike with your colleagues? Your official employer won't pay as he can't because Amazon pays shit, barely enough to keep the lights on. You keep striking. Amazon will just terminate your employer's contract. Your employer shuts down. Amazon finds someone else willing to start up a "delivery company", and that person finds another bunch of people desperate to make a pittance.

qbasic_forever 3y ago
Amazon won't find other people in this labor market--the service sector has been absolutely on fire with hiring, employment, and wage growth now and throughout the pandemic. Letting COVID rip has killed and disabled millions of workers and put tons of pressure on service jobs.
- mschuster91 3y ago
  Amazon maybe not, but their contractors? If in doubt they'll just use undocumented people like farms do all the time. They got caught multiple times doing that in Germany and Austria, no reason to believe the situation in the US with massively more pervasive labor exploitation would be different. It's funny, Amazon always says "we expect that our partners comply with laws and regulations", and yet they absolutely have to know that their "partners" have to skirt the law to survive on their extremely low package rates. Hell, they probably have enough data from the delivery smartphones to be able to easily detect labor law violations (overtime beyond 10h, no / not enough long breaks). [1] https://www.ln-online.de/lokales/stormarn/bad-oldesloe-neun-illegale-unter-amazon-paketboten-TXROLBMLTILVDOV4VYBR4CHEZM.html https://www.ln-online.de/lokales/stormarn/bad-oldesloe-neun-... [2] https://rp-online.de/nrw/staedte/moenchengladbach/moenchengladbach-grosseinsatz-vom-zoll-bei-amazon-in-rheindahlen_aid-58200187 https://rp-online.de/nrw/staedte/moenchengladbach/moenchengl... [3] https://winfuture.de/news,114164.html https://winfuture.de/news,114164.html [4] https://www.tonight.de/koeln/schwarzarbeit-bei-amazon-razzia-in-troisdorf-bei-koeln_184856.html https://www.tonight.de/koeln/schwarzarbeit-bei-amazon-razzia...
FireBeyond 3y ago
> The problem is, with jobs that do not require more than a driver's license and the ability to read names you are a fungible cog in the giant machinery of Amazon. Right. Where I am, Amazon was running ads that literally said: "Need a job? Pass a background check? Apply today, start tomorrow, no interview required."