[ad_1]
An employee packs a box at the Amazon Distribution Center in Robbinsville, New Jersey, in June. (Bess Adler / Bloomberg News)
The salary increase will affect 250,000 Amazon employees and 100,000 seasonal employees hired on Amazon sites during the holiday season. It will affect full-time and part-time workers, as well as employees of Whole Foods Market, and will come into effect on November 1 st.
"We listened to our critics, thought about what we wanted to do and decided to lead," said Amazon's executive director, Jeffrey P. Bezos, in a statement. "We are excited about this change and are encouraging our competitors and other major employers to join us."
[Amazon is doling out raises of as little as 25 cents an hour in what employees call ‘damage control’]
Bezos also owns the Washington Post.
Over the years, Amazon has been criticized for its poor working conditions in its warehouses, the hubs that the company has set up nationwide for rapid delivery of online shopping.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) Recently criticized Amazon, saying the company was not paying a "living wage" and leaving some dependents on safety net programs such as food stamps and Medicaid. He attacked Bezos, the richest person in the world, and introduced a bill called the "Stop BEZOS Act" to tax Amazon and other big employers to recover the money. cost of public benefits paid to employees.
Amazon has challenged the critics.
President Trump also raised concerns about Amazon and Bezos.
In its announcement on Tuesday, Amazon announced that it would push for an increase in the federal minimum wage, which is $ 7.25 for a decade. The online giant is the country's second-largest private employer behind Walmart. Last month, it became the second publicly traded company in the country to be valued at more than $ 1 trillion.
"We will work to get congressional support for an increase in the federal minimum wage. The current rate of $ 7.25 was set nearly a decade ago, "said Jay Carney, executive vice president of global business. "We intend to advocate for a minimum wage increase that will have a profound impact on the lives of tens of millions of people and families across the country."
[Thousands of Amazon workers receive food stamps. Now Bernie Sanders wants the company to pay up.]
The Obama administration had called for raising the minimum wage to $ 10.10, but the proposal came to nothing during a period of divided government. Many business and conservative groups argue that $ 15 an hour is too high, especially in areas where the cost of living is lower.
Other companies have also undertaken to increase their wages, especially in this tense job market. Target announced earlier this year that it would raise its minimum wage to $ 12 an hour and plan to increase it to $ 15 by 2020. Walmart raised its minimum wage to $ 11 in January. Facebook has also increased the minimum wage for its contract employees (cleaning staff, food services and similar) to $ 15 per hour, while Costco now pays $ 14 per hour.
Amazon said Tuesday that all employees, including those already earning $ 15 an hour, will benefit from salary increases because of its new policy. The Post announced last week that Amazon had begun to grant wage increases of 25 to 55 cents an hour to workers at its distribution centers across the country. The median worker in Amazonia received $ 28,446 last year, according to documents filed by the company, which is about 13.68 dollars an hour.
Read more:
On holiday, "the War of Talents", retailers offer turkey dinners and haircuts to attract temporary workers
Toys R Us owners reserve millions of dollars for workers laid off after bankruptcy
Amazon Distributes Increases of Just 25 cents an Hour in What Employees Call "Damage Control"
[ad_2]
Source link
