Amazon working conditions

[s1962a]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

[Muzzer79]

It’s beyond frustrating when a worker uses the fact that Jeff Bezos is a billionaire as justification why they should get £15 an hour

Jealousy - pure jealousy. Perhaps if you’d had the foresight, intelligence, appetite for risk and the will to stick it all on the line, you’d be a billionaire too.

The cost of living crisis is not Amazon’s fault.

And Amazon don’t employ slaves. They monitor productivity which, funnily enough, not very productive people don’t like…..

[Biggy Stardust]

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

They have the option to look for better paid work elsewhere.

[ZedLeg]

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

[Muzzer79]

ZedLeg said:

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

You think £29k a year for unskilled work is a good idea?

[ZedLeg]

Muzzer79 said:

ZedLeg said:

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

You think £29k a year for unskilled work is a good idea?

You do a picking packing job for a week and tell me it's a minimum wage job. I'm not saying that £15ph is the number, I was just curious to see whether the assertation that it was too much is based on anything.

[ZedLeg]

CheesecakeRunner said:

ZedLeg said:

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

That amount has been requested because that’s what Americans who do the same job get paid.

What the U.K. staff fail to note, is the U.K. staff get free healthcare, lots of holiday, and other benefits.

The American staff get bugger all.

That doesn't have anything to do with their salary though.

[ReallyReallyGood]

Surely when these employees signed the contract of employment these things were made clear? They didn't have to sign it.

They can go and find their £15/hr picking job elsewhere.

[ro250]

ZedLeg said:

Muzzer79 said:

ZedLeg said:

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

You think £29k a year for unskilled work is a good idea?

You do a picking packing job for a week and tell me it's a minimum wage job. I'm not saying that £15ph is the number, I was just curious to see whether the assertation that it was too much is based on anything.

There are lots of jobs which are physically demanding which pay minimum wage (and I believe Amazon pay above minimum wage anyway). There's a good reason why these sort of roles have productivity tightly monitored.

I really don't understand the mentality of people who work for a private company striking over pay. Get a job somewhere else if you think they don't pay market rates.

[ZedLeg]

ro250 said:

ZedLeg said:

Muzzer79 said:

ZedLeg said:

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

You think £29k a year for unskilled work is a good idea?

You do a picking packing job for a week and tell me it's a minimum wage job. I'm not saying that £15ph is the number, I was just curious to see whether the assertation that it was too much is based on anything.

There are lots of jobs which are physically demanding which pay minimum wage (and I believe Amazon pay above minimum wage anyway). There's a good reason why these sort of roles have productivity tightly monitored.

I really don't understand the mentality of people who work for a private company striking over pay. Get a job somewhere else if you think they don't pay market rates.

Amazon drives market rates as everyone in ecomm has to compete with them to an extent. They are heading a race to the bottom for the whole sector imo.

[55palfers]

I heard an interview with a GMB rep this morning.

He said that if Bezos gave £90K to every employee he would still have more money in the bank than he had pre-covid.

Sanity check?

[ReallyReallyGood]

55palfers said:

I heard an interview with a GMB rep this morning.

He said that if Bezos gave £90K to every employee he would still have more money in the bank than he had pre-covid.

Sanity check?

Or he could give them £0 and have even more. I'm not really sure what point that GMB rep is making, that Bezos is rich?

[ro250]

55palfers said:

I heard an interview with a GMB rep this morning.

He said that if Bezos gave £90K to every employee he would still have more money in the bank than he had pre-covid.

Sanity check?

I'm sure that'd be a real boost for productivity.

And they'd all be moaning they have to pay 40% tax...

[survivalist]

ZedLeg said:

Muzzer79 said:

ZedLeg said:

s1962a said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-64384287

I'm conflicted on this one. Part of me thinks it's unreasonable to monitor staff in the way that they do, but the £15 per hour pay request seems unreasonable too. Given the money amazon make, surely they can treat their staff better? Or maybe thats why profits are so high.

Why does the £15ph pay request seem unreasonable.

Yes, part of the reason that Amazon is so profitable is that it treats staff like st and doesn't pay them enough.

You think £29k a year for unskilled work is a good idea?

You do a picking packing job for a week and tell me it's a minimum wage job. I'm not saying that £15ph is the number, I was just curious to see whether the assertation that it was too much is based on anything.

They didn’t say it was a minimum wage job, they said it was unskilled.

Unskilled jobs tend to be lower paid precisely because a large number of people can do them. If people want to earn more then gain a skill that is in short(er) supply.

[ZedLeg]

I'd be curious to see whether they have any sort of training programmes for people to get forklift certified etc. That would be a good way for people to learn new skills and get more money.

[wisbech]

ro250 said:

There are lots of jobs which are physically demanding which pay minimum wage (and I believe Amazon pay above minimum wage anyway). There's a good reason why these sort of roles have productivity tightly monitored.

I really don't understand the mentality of people who work for a private company striking over pay. Get a job somewhere else if you think they don't pay market rates.

It's a free market - they are perfectly entitled to do this. "You don't get paid what you are worth, you get paid what you negotiate".

[Promised Land]

Biggy Stardust said:

They have the option to look for better paid work elsewhere.

So do train drivers, ambulance drivers, school teachers…….

[Grumps.]

Promised Land said:

Biggy Stardust said:

They have the option to look for better paid work elsewhere.

So do train drivers, ambulance drivers, school teachers…….

Yes but it's easier to go on strike.

[off_again]

ReallyReallyGood said:

Surely when these employees signed the contract of employment these things were made clear? They didn't have to sign it.

They can go and find their £15/hr picking job elsewhere.

In general, I agree with that sentiment. If a job at Amazon fits, why not? But, the problem is that Amazon tends to vacuum up pretty much all comparable employment opportunities in the local area. Its not always the case of course, but here they have a nasty habit of setting up distribution and picking warehouses in low employment opportunity areas - they know that they are likely to get local grants and support and that any job is a good job. Again, while this is a good idea overall, it doesnt fix the underlying problem. If you dont have a choice, you can end up getting stuck.

Of course, I think it was Hessletine that said it, you can get on your bike. But for a lot of people, its not that easy. And the Amazon business model is somewhat predatory. The same can be said for Dollar General, Walmart and others. But where does a government step in and where do they unduly influence? We want cheap crap delivered to our doors in 2 days, someone somewhere has to do the graft......

[ro250]

Promised Land said:

Biggy Stardust said:

They have the option to look for better paid work elsewhere.

So do train drivers, ambulance drivers, school teachers…….

But many of those roles aren't unskilled.