Tired, Filthy, and Overworked: Inside Amazon’s Holiday Rush
2 years ago

Tired, Filthy, and Overworked: Inside Amazon’s Holiday Rush

Wired  

Tyler Hamilton has optimized his every waking minute. On his drive to the Amazon fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minnesota, he stops at Wendy’s to buy two bourbon bacon burgers, two large chilis, fries, and a drink. As holiday shopping reaches a climax this week, Amazon’s two-day Prime shipping remains one of the few options left for desperate shoppers still hoping to order online. It’s a notoriously exhausting and demanding time for workers at the company, where the period between Black Friday and Christmas day is known as “peak season.” During peak, Amazon requires that workers add a full 10- or 11-hour shift to their already demanding weekly schedules, multiple employees told WIRED, and penalizes those who do not by removing a day of unpaid leave for each missed extra shift. Amazon spokesperson Steve Kelly says that although the holidays are Amazon's busiest time “the health and well-being of our employees is our top priority.” Productivity expectations do not increase during peak, he says, and workers should take any workplace concerns to their manager.

Amazon Work Workers Hamilton  shift  work  unpaid  filthy  amazon  week  inside  employees  rush  holiday  workers  safe  tired  overworked  amazons  peak  working

History of this topic

Amazon Prime Day is a major cause of injuries for warehouse workers, Senate review says
5 months, 3 weeks ago

Amazon Prime Day is a major cause of injuries for warehouse workers, Senate review says

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Amazon’s popular Prime Day sales event has been “a major cause of injuries” for warehouse workers who pick and pack customer orders at the e-commerce giant’s facilities across the United States, according to a report released Tuesday by Sen. Bernie Sanders. The report, which draws information from a year-long Senate committee investigation into Amazon’s safety practices and …

Nearly 90% Amazon India workers don’t get enough time for bathroom breaks, survey finds
5 months, 4 weeks ago

Nearly 90% Amazon India workers don’t get enough time for bathroom breaks, survey finds

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Nearly 81 per cent of Amazon India warehouse employees …

Amazon India Warehouse Workers Allege No Relief Provided Even for Menstrual Pain
6 months, 2 weeks ago

Amazon India Warehouse Workers Allege No Relief Provided Even for Menstrual Pain

The Quint  

According to him, in most warehouses across India, the Factories Act is violated. On wages, he stated that the salary of a regular worker at an Amazon warehouse in Haryana, after deducting benefits as per labour laws, amounts to Rs 10,088 per month. However, she works around 50 hours per week, whereas Indian labour laws specify a limit of 48 …

Pain, exhaustion rampant among Amazon warehouse workers, study says
1 year, 2 months ago

Pain, exhaustion rampant among Amazon warehouse workers, study says

LA Times  

A truck arrives at an Amazon warehouse in the Staten Island borough of New York. The data suggest “injury and pain at Amazon are far more widespread” than previously known, said Beth Gutelius, research director at the center and a leading expert on logistics and warehouse work. Amazon spokesperson Maureen Lynch Vogel said the report was “not a ‘study’ — …

After over-hiring, Amazon to lay off 20,000 employees in coming months: Report
2 years, 1 month ago

After over-hiring, Amazon to lay off 20,000 employees in coming months: Report

Hindustan Times  

Amazon is planning to size down its workforce by laying off 20,000 employees in the coming months reportedly after over-hiring during the pandemic. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy earlier wrote an open letter to employees informing about job cuts. Then Amazon CEO Andy Jassy wrote an open letter to employees giving information about role eliminations and cost-cutting measures. “We communicated the …

Amazon eyes 125K more hires, $18+ per hour average salary
3 years, 3 months ago

Amazon eyes 125K more hires, $18+ per hour average salary

Associated Press  

Amazon wants to hire 125,000 delivery and warehouse workers and said Tuesday that it is paying new hires an average of $18 an hour in a tight job market as more people shop online. Last week, package delivery company UPS promised to handout job offers in 30 minutes after candidates apply for many of the 100,000 holiday workers it plans …

On eve of Black Friday, Amnesty pushes Amazon on workers’ rights
4 years, 1 month ago

On eve of Black Friday, Amnesty pushes Amazon on workers’ rights

Al Jazeera  

Amazon should not risk the health and safety of its employees to meet Black Friday shopping demands, Amnesty International warned on Thursday, accusing the online retail giant of clamping down on employees’ right to demand better working conditions. In a report called “Amazon, Let Workers Unionize!”, the human rights group said Amazon has undermined workers’ attempts to unionise and bargain …

Amazon workers say Prime Day rush breaks pandemic safety vows
4 years, 2 months ago

Amazon workers say Prime Day rush breaks pandemic safety vows

LA Times  

Amazon warehouse workers allege in a court filing that in the run-up to Prime Day, the company has been hassling employees about productivity and warning that slowness could get them terminated. “Amazon has not been honest and forthcoming,” employees at a warehouse in Staten Island, N.Y., told the judge handling their lawsuit, which alleges that the company’s “oppressive and dangerous” …

Prime Day, peak season and the pandemic: Amazon warehouse workers brace for the months ahead
4 years, 2 months ago

Prime Day, peak season and the pandemic: Amazon warehouse workers brace for the months ahead

CNN  

CNN Business — Amazon is gearing up for one of its largest shopping events of the year, which is set to begin Tuesday. Following basic Covid-19 virus precautions, such as maintaining six feet of social distancing, can prove increasingly difficult in certain parts of Amazon ’s facilities as more workers are on-site and as the volume of packages increases, six …

It is time Amazon heeds the demands of its workers
4 years, 8 months ago

It is time Amazon heeds the demands of its workers

Al Jazeera  

The company should spend its record-breaking profits not on sleek PR campaigns but on workers’ benefits. While blue-collar workers and impoverished communities certainly need financial help amid the coronavirus pandemic, Bezos’s donations and PR stunts are nothing less than an attempt to whitewash the horrendous track record on worker’s rights in his companies. This has led to Amazon workers’ protests …

Amazon Puts New Grocery-Delivery Customers On Hold As Demand Explodes
4 years, 8 months ago

Amazon Puts New Grocery-Delivery Customers On Hold As Demand Explodes

NPR  

Amazon Puts New Grocery-Delivery Customers On Hold As Demand Explodes Enlarge this image toggle caption Jeff Chiu/AP Jeff Chiu/AP Amazon is putting new grocery-delivery customers on a waitlist — among several new measures the retailer is trying to keep up with a crush of demand for food deliveries during the coronavirus pandemic. "We are temporarily asking new Amazon Fresh and …

Some Instacart, Amazon workers strike as jobs get riskier
4 years, 9 months ago

Some Instacart, Amazon workers strike as jobs get riskier

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — Some Instacart and Amazon warehouse workers walked off the job Monday demanding greater safeguards against the coronavirus, even as both companies are speed-hiring hundreds of thousands of new workers to handle a surge in delivery orders. Online grocery-delivery service Instacart and Amazon say they are working to equip their workers with sanitation gear and have taken steps …

Amazon hikes overtime pay for workers in US
4 years, 9 months ago

Amazon hikes overtime pay for workers in US

India Today  

As people are stuck at home during this coronavirus outbreak, there is a natural increase in online shopping. As the virus spreads across the US, Amazon also has offered unlimited unpaid time off to encourage employees to stay home if they do not feel well. Bezos in his statement also said: "We’ve implemented a series of preventative health measures for …

Amazon to hire 100,000 workers as online orders surge on coronavirus scare
4 years, 9 months ago

Amazon to hire 100,000 workers as online orders surge on coronavirus scare

Live Mint  

Amazon.com Inc on Monday said it would hire 100,000 warehouse and delivery workers in the United States to deal with a surge in online orders, as many consumers have turned to the web to meet their needs during the coronavirus outbreak. Like Amazon, U.S. supermarket chains Albertsons, Kroger and Raley's have sought new hires to staff busy sections and fulfil …

Amazon To Hire 100,000 Workers To Meet 'Surge In Demand'
4 years, 9 months ago

Amazon To Hire 100,000 Workers To Meet 'Surge In Demand'

NPR  

Amazon To Hire 100,000 Workers To Meet 'Surge In Demand' Enlarge this image toggle caption Scott Olson/Getty Images Scott Olson/Getty Images Amazon says it plans to hire 100,000 new workers for warehouses and delivery service in the U.S. as more people turn to online shopping for supplies as they're isolated at home during the coronavirus outbreak. Those positions include both …

’Monday blues’ is real, and it can impact your Amazon delivery: Study
4 years, 10 months ago

’Monday blues’ is real, and it can impact your Amazon delivery: Study

Live Mint  

New York: Monday blues not only affects employees returning to work after the weekend but also impacts Amazon package deliveries as the supply-chain performance gets hurt, say researchers. Oliver Yao, a professor of decision and technology analytics in Lehigh University's college of business found that process interruptions that occur when operations are shut down over the weekend, along with human …

At Amazon Warehouses, Speed Comes At A Price
5 years ago

At Amazon Warehouses, Speed Comes At A Price

NPR  

At Amazon Warehouses, Speed Comes At A Price Most of the Amazon warehouses analyzed in a recent study found that worker injury rates exceed the industry average. From member station KUER in Salt Lake City, Sonja Hutson reports on one such Amazon warehouse. But for former Salt Lake City warehouse worker Derek Parker, that magic wore off with a shoulder …

Amazon workers strike as ’Prime’ shopping frenzy hits
5 years, 5 months ago

Amazon workers strike as ’Prime’ shopping frenzy hits

Live Mint  

San Francisco: Amazon workers walked out of a main distribution center in Minnesota on Monday, protesting for improved working conditions during the e-commerce titan's major "Prime" shopping event. "We know Prime Day is a big day for Amazon, so we hope this strike will help executives understand how serious we are about wanting real change that will uplift the workers …

Amazon workers plan Prime Day strike despite $15-an-hour pledge
5 years, 6 months ago

Amazon workers plan Prime Day strike despite $15-an-hour pledge

Live Mint  

Amazon.com Inc. warehouse workers in Minnesota plan to strike during the online retailer’s summer sales extravaganza, a sign that labor unrest persists even after the company committed to paying all employees at least $15 an hour last year. In Europe, where unions are stronger, Amazon workers routinely strike during big shopping events like Prime Day and Black Friday. The pledge …

Amazon workers plan Prime Day strike at Minnesota warehouse
5 years, 6 months ago

Amazon workers plan Prime Day strike at Minnesota warehouse

LA Times  

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc. warehouse workers in Minnesota plan to strike during the online retailer’s summer sales extravaganza, a sign that labor unrest persists even after the company committed to paying all employees at least $15 an hour last year. “Amazon is going to be telling one story about itself, which is they can ship a Kindle to your house in …

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