
Amazon: Staff told to work overtime as virus spikes demand - NoB4Mouth
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51921916
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CivBase
I doubt Amazon warehouses represent a significant transmission vector and what
little threat there may be is largely outweighed by the good these warehouses
are doing to help with the situation.

I also doubt Amazon employs many elderly or high-risk individuals as warehouse
workers. I also doubt they would refuse to make exceptions for those workers.

Right about now, I'd just be happy for the job security because the coming
recession is going to be rough.

~~~
crooked-v
> I doubt Amazon warehouses represent a significant transmission vector

Well, we know that COVID-19 can survive up to 24 hours on cardboard. That
actually gives a simple way to avoid outgoing spread: make sure items don't
begin shipping, or don't leave the truck, for at least 30 hours from
packaging.

It means no 2-day shipping, but I think even "fast" shipping times are at
something like a week for most people right now, so that's not much of a
problem.

~~~
djsumdog
> Well, we know that COVID-19 can survive up to 24 hours on cardboard

Do you have a source for that? Nicholas Christakis (John Hopkins MD,
infectious disease specialist) said on most surfaces, SARS-cov2 (the virus,
COVID-19 is the disease) can survive an hour. He did mention it depends on the
environment (it would only survive a few minutes on copper surfaces for
example), so is cardboard able to hold the virus along longer? Is there data
on this?

~~~
jszymborski
I think we just don't know yet. The WHO has this to say:

"It is not certain how long the virus that causes COVID-19 survives on
surfaces, but it seems to behave like other coronaviruses. Studies suggest
that coronaviruses (including preliminary information on the COVID-19 virus)
may persist on surfaces for a few hours or up to several days. This may vary
under different conditions (e.g. type of surface, temperature or humidity of
the environment).

If you think a surface may be infected, clean it with simple disinfectant to
kill the virus and protect yourself and others. Clean your hands with an
alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and water. Avoid touching your
eyes, mouth, or nose."

[https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-
coronaviruses](https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses)

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greentrust
The same people shaming Amazon and Fedex are probably the same people buying a
ton of goods online for delivery and getting upset about the delays.

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wiredone
Knowing how many people rely on Amazon for their purchases, it seems like
they're doing the right thing to keep everyone moving during this craziness.

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makecheck
Hopefully they are also putting in strong guards to ensure that these extra
shipments truly are life-saving supplies.

My worry is that (if local store shelves are any indication) they’re just
shipping paranoid people 800 rolls of toilet paper. And it’s terrible that
warehouse employees will be basically strained to the breaking point to make
up for selfishness and uneducated masses.

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Apocryphon
> Amazon said it would increase hourly wages by $2 in the US, £2 in the UK,
> and €2 in Europe. The company said it expects the pay rises expected to cost
> it more than $350m (£285m).

Seems like they could afford to pay them more.

~~~
tathougies
They're also likely making more now than before as more people switch to
online shopping.

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ouid
No, Amazon is providing an absolutely critical service in this time.

~~~
Red_Leaves_Flyy
Wal-Mart, Sears, Costco, target, dollar general, Sam's Club, etc could do the
same thing. FedEx, ups, and USPS aren't beholden to Amazon. Likewise, how hard
would it be for grub hub and the like to detail their drivers to make last
mile deliveries from local stores? I'm serious. Is it 1000 work hours or
10,000,000? Hell if I get laid off I'll need work and slinging boxes out of my
suv is as easy as it gets while providing a valuable service in a crisis.

~~~
traskjd
“FedEx, ups, and USPS aren't beholden to Amazon”

You might have missed the memo there.

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dlgeek
Dupe:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22604866](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22604866)

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techaddict009
As per this article:
[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/coronaviru...](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/coronavirus-
amazon-suspends-delivery-shipments-stock-price-a9406951.html)

Amazon is suspending shipment of all products except daily staples and
medicines.

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planetzero
Most people during the depression wouldn't have complained about getting paid
to work too many hours.

~~~
djsumdog
It's backbreaking work. Most people still complain, but work because they have
to. It's not a choice for many.

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aabeshou
okay but they're only raising wages by $2. It's disgusting. Jeff Bezos makes
millions of dollars an hour.

no bootlicking responses please

~~~
wiredone
Why is it disgusting? They gave everyone a wage increase, and they already pay
above minimums.

Also, Jeff doesn't _make_ millions an hour, he gets paid in stock. Stock is
not cash, and is not a form of liquidity. In addition, $AMZN has dropped 20%
in the past month, so by your math he's been "losing" money.

Get off your high horse and get real - there's about to be a recession, and
they're hiring people who are out of a job AND paying them extra while they
ensure people have a way to get vital goods while staying indoors and
minimizing spread.

This whole "they're evil" bs is tiring and lazy.

~~~
aabeshou
no, what's tiring and lazy (and yes, evil) is the idea that the peons at the
bottom should be grateful for what the people at the top, who hoard 99% of the
world's wealth, can get away with paying them. $15/hour is hardly living
large, and a $2 bump is insulting

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Kunigaikstis
So you're saying Amazon has a toxic work culture? What a surprise

~~~
natalyarostova
(Disclaimer: I work at Amazon).

We have a world class supply-chain. This is a moment when the US, and the
world, 100% must have a functioning supply chain. I'm proud of the work we're
doing to keep things running under unusual stress.

~~~
asdfasgasdgasdg
I don't work at Amazon, but I'm incredibly grateful for its existence right
now and the work it is doing. I can't help but think that almost everyone in
the American populace feels likewise, except some politically motivated
grousing from certain groups.

~~~
jschwartzi
Yeah I'd be the first guy to take a crap on Amazon, but you're right about
this. We need a functioning supply chain or we'll have civil unrest soon and
having a company taking care of that at a time when nearly everything else is
closing is good. I also really appreciate the few stories of them cracking
down on profiteers since resource scarcity is a big part of why people feel
stressed out right now.

