[ad_1]
Amazon spends $ 700 million to improve workers' professional skills.
Amazon announced Thursday that it would invest the money in the recycling of 100,000 US workers, which represents about one-third of its US workforce. The initiative will expand until 2025 and the programs will allow workers to access "technical and not highly specialized roles" in offices, warehouses, retail stores, and elsewhere. . Participating workers do not have to stay at Amazon
AMZN, + 0.50%
If they follow the training, notes the company.
The training program is presented as Amazon's vision for the future, with automation becoming more and more common in all kinds of workplaces. But society could devote its time and energies to more immediate problems, critics say. The online retail giant could also afford to raise wages, improve working conditions and change its attitude toward unionized workers, they say. Here are some of the other priorities of the company, according to workers' rights advocates.
When Amazon planned to make the city of New York one of its two HQ2 sites last year, the company sparked fierce criticism for its so-called anti-unionism over the years. At one point, the company even had a video explaining to workers how to spot impending unionization, according to media reports of a video leaked. In February, he pulled back from his New York City projects, claiming he had the support of local residents, but not some state and city politicians. The Seattle, Washington-based company is going ahead with its plans for its Crystal City, Virginia campus.
Lawrence Mishel, Labor Market Economist at the Left Economic Policy Institute, told MarketWatch that Amazon "should be neutral in the face of collective bargaining". He added, "I think it's important to have the voice of the workers in what's going on."
A spokesperson for Amazon said the company was already offering what the unions claim. "We offer excellent job opportunities with peak pay and comprehensive benefits." The spokesperson said an "open door policy" encourages employees to send their comments, questions and concerns directly to their employees. management team. We firmly believe that this direct connection is the most effective way to understand and meet the needs of our workforce. "
Working conditions
Amazon Prime Day – the annual bonus bonanza – runs July 15 and 16, and it's obviously a busy time for the retailer. But in Minnesota, workers are considering a six-hour work stoppage in a warehouse (or, to use the term "distribution center" used by Amazon), to protest the harsh working conditions they describe. This is the latest claim that working for Amazon can be difficult, especially in warehouse jobs where some workers would have urinated in bins to meet deadlines.
"Testing the physical limits of hundreds of thousands of workers as if they were trained triathletes is not the right approach. Amazon must understand that human beings are not robots. "
Stuart Appelbaum, president of the syndicate of retail, wholesale and department stores, said the Prime Day was taking place over two days this year, but with a shipping policy of one year. day that essentially doubles the pace of the warehouse workers.
"Testing hundreds of thousands of physical limit workers as if they were trained triathletes is a bad approach," Appelbaum said in a statement. The company needs to hire more workers than to push its employees. "Amazon must understand that human beings are not robots," he said.
"Whenever someone thinks of Amazon and work, you have to think about the quality of the work," Mishel said. In addition to the recycling effort that he applauded, he said the company could inject money in better conditions. "Amazon is a considerable force and therefore defines a model. He has the power and the profits to do better. "
Amazon's work environment is secure and reinforced by good wages, said the spokesperson. The opportunity to train for higher-paying jobs through the recently announced program is another reason why Amazon was a great place to work and build a career, she added.
Better wages
When Amazon announced its "Skills Development Investments" at no cost to workers, the company reported that this situation came just after the minimum wage of $ 15, parental leave and a 401 (k).
Amazon announced last fall that it was raising the minimum wage of all US workers to $ 15. Senator Bernie Sanders – a Democratic presidential candidate who knows how to meddle with the company – has termed it a "shot gunshot around the world" (the federal minimum wage is 7.25 dollars from the hour.)
But Mishel said that Amazon could inject more money into wages, because workers at the lowest echelons do not necessarily have to earn a minimum wage. "Since when does paying a minimum wage become flattering if it's your current salary?", He said.
According to documents filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the average American worker at Amazon earned just over $ 34,000 a year in 2017. The median household income was $ 61,372 in 2017.
According to documents filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the average American worker of Amazon earned just over $ 34,000 per year in 2017. As an indication, the median household income was $ 61,372 in 2017, according to US Census Bureau data, although households may include more than one salary.
Mishel said that he supported the retraining efforts because there was "no idea of eliminating workers". Amazon used this reconversion to complete the automation, he said. "When companies change the way they produce and automate, that's a good sign when they're investing in the worker as well."
Everyone is not in agreement.
The president of the United International Union of Food and Trade Workers, Marc Perrone, said Amazon's president and founder, Jeff Bezos, had a clear vision: "He wants to automate every good job, It is Whole Foods, Amazon warehouses or stores stores. Amazon is injecting money on a problem that he has created and thinks in one way or another that he deserves applause. "
The recycling initiative has paved the way for more lucrative jobs and a valuable skill set, said the Amazon spokesperson. Good wages are important, but so are benefits and a good career path – everything the company has proposed, she said.
[ad_2]
Source link