Amazon plans high school hiring push amid warehouse labor shortage: report

[Owen Lucas]

It’s a good entry level job out of high school working in an air conditioned warehouse. I suggest the young adults take advantage of educational benefits.

Additionally, if you have Amazon Warehouse or McDonalds on your resume for any decent period of time, to me that would indicate you can handle a stressful environment and have motivation to work, especially if promoted. Great way to start a career.

 

[PandaBear]

I don't know why Amazon does this, they already have a 150% yearly employee turnover rate. IMO Amazon would be better served by taking the necessary steps to improve their employee relations so that they keep the trained employees they already have. For one thing, they need to take a look at how they micromanage their employees. Employee satisfaction and retention isn't all about pay and benefits (but that is how Amazon is approaching solving their problem).

I think the 150% turnover is including seasonal worker in the warehouse.

The engineer side of things, they do keep their people with a carrot (you always vest your stock in 3rd and 4th year and any new stock you get is the same, 3 year out vesting), so as long as the stock keeps growing they will be frustrated but want to stay. The house of card would collapse if the stock tank after Bezo and Jassy die though, faster than you know it.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Working for Amazon is really hard work-according to some whom have worked there and stories online. It's my experience that the definition of "hard work" is left open to interpretation to those under 21 or so. That's about as nice as I can make my point.

Seems like normal warehouse work?

 

[CKN]

Seems like normal warehouse work?

I have been in PLENTY of warehouses where no body is moving fast. It takes much more than it should to pull a simple order.

 

[Wolf359]

I don't know why Amazon does this, they already have a 150% yearly employee turnover rate. IMO Amazon would be better served by taking the necessary steps to improve their employee relations so that they keep the trained employees they already have. For one thing, they need to take a look at how they micromanage their employees. Employee satisfaction and retention isn't all about pay and benefits (but that is how Amazon is approaching solving their problem).

This is basically the end result of burning through all the employees that would want to work for you. Eventually you run out of potential employees. They basically chew people up and spit them out. Lots of injuries, they have a way higher injury rate than other places. Then they also have automated HR, miss the productivity threshold once and HR automatically fires you by computer, no meeting with HR. They've since relaxed that. Probably because they were burning through too many people. Bezos also thinks that if you want to work there long term, there's something wrong with you so the system set up to flush people out after a few years. I think they also relaxed one of their rules where if you were fired, you're now eligible to work there again.

 

[skyactiv]

Does Amazon pay a living wage or do the workers qualify for section 8 at my expense?

 

[K-Man]

Does Amazon pay a living wage or do the workers qualify for section 8 at my expense?

The company starts at $15/hour. But the long-term employees will explain the company cut some popular benefits a couple of years ago to raise the pay for everyone to that rate.

 

[K-Man]

By the way, Skyactiv asked a legitimate question. Some localities have decided not to encourage companies paying at or near the standard federal minimum wage of $7.25/hour to build and open facilities because the employees end up having to get food stamps and other welfare to get by. The state ends up paying more to support the employees than it gets from the company in taxes.

 

[wag123]

This is basically the end result of burning through all the employees that would want to work for you. Eventually you run out of potential employees. They basically chew people up and spit them out. Lots of injuries, they have a way higher injury rate than other places. Then they also have automated HR, miss the productivity threshold once and HR automatically fires you by computer, no meeting with HR. They've since relaxed that. Probably because they were burning through too many people. Bezos also thinks that if you want to work there long term, there's something wrong with you so the system set up to flush people out after a few years. I think they also relaxed one of their rules where if you were fired, you're now eligible to work there again.

They have also relaxed their hiring policy when it comes to Cannabis use.
The biggest problem they are having with their hiring is because all of the former employees they have churned-through are telling everyone they know how bad they are to work for (Dell Computer went through this 20 years ago). Consequently they are having to go after highschool students who don't know what they are getting themselves into. I'm not saying that this is necessarily a bad thing for unskilled highschool students. It can be a good life lesson for them.

 

[CKN]

Does Amazon pay a living wage or do the workers qualify for section 8 at my expense?

IF you are in Southern California and make $100,000.00 a year you are not rolling in the dough....

 

[alarmguy]

Does Amazon pay a living wage or do the workers qualify for section 8 at my expense?

Sadly they pay too much but that is the employment problem at the time, worker shortage.
I suspect they will continue to modernize to a point where very little workers needed.

Just because the voters created a section 8 isnt the fault of the company that voters created it. Voters create it, let them pay for it. Simple stuff, dont complain after you vote for it.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Sadly they pay too much but that is the employment problem at the time, worker shortage.
I suspect they will continue to modernize to a point where very little workers needed.

Just because the voters created a section 8 isnt the fault of the company that voters created it. Voters create it, let them pay for it. Simple stuff, dont complain after you vote for it.

Curious... Why do you think they pay too much? Those people work hard! Far harder than I did as a programmer anyways.
For any profession, the market determines prices, wages, etc.

 

[alarmguy]

Curious... Why do you think they pay too much? Those people work hard! Far harder than I did as a programmer anyways.
For any profession, the market determines prices, wages, etc.

It was just a tongue-in-cheek remark to a sarcastic post about a living wage and someone having to pay taxes for section 8.

Amazon pays more than double the minimum wage and benefits for packing boxes.
A job like this and at that pay level is unprecedented until recently, it’s an entry level job with no education requirement.

No one is entitled to any living wage, it’s up to you to educate yourself and make yourself desirable to a company.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Does Amazon pay a living wage or do the workers qualify for section 8 at my expense?

I don't know if it's regional or nation wide, but what they pay here in Upstate NY is pretty reasonable...

 

[Malo83]

Around here WM starts you off with a decent wage and it goes up, live in a rural area and cost of living is not high as compared to the rest of the state. When I worked at the local WM DC we were getting annual dollar raises.
https://www.glassdoor.com/Hourly-Pa...does a Distribution,can range from $19 - $23.

 

[dlundblad]

Working for Amazon is really hard work-according to some whom have worked there and stories online. It's my experience that the definition of "hard work" is left open to interpretation to those under 21 or so. That's about as nice as I can make my point.

I was doing “hard work” in elementary school bailing straw and doing farm work.

What’s Amazon’s requirement? You must be able to stand all day and lift 30 lbs in a fast paced environment? Yep, that’s hard.

I say good on Amazon if they can find jobs for kids willing to work. I’d rather work there than a fast food place.

 

[Dave Hess]

The company starts at $15/hour. But the long-term employees will explain the company cut some popular benefits a couple of years ago to raise the pay for everyone to that rate.

If Bezos can get on his G700 private jet and fly half way around the globe to pick up his brand new $850M super yacht…… they can pay a little extra and better benefits.

Full Disclosure:
I own a few shares of Amazon.

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