This alleged rehearsal is in a verbal exchange with a worker at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island. They asked to remain anonymous for business reasons, but Insider verified their identities and work with documents. The following was amended for reasons of duration and clarity.
Being a warehouse clerk near Prime Day is insane.
I’m a “warehouseman” in an Amazon warehouse, which means I scan stock and pack it onto quick shelves. About a week before Prime Day, we made sure to start the shift with the empty pods. The pods are the shelves on which the pieces are stacked. The “pickers” take those capsules while we work.
There are more people running than in general because there are mandatory and voluntary overtime. Mandatory overtime is 10 hours, the equivalent of one shift, and voluntary overtime is six overtime. I have a reduced schedule, so I work 36 hours a week. , but with mandatory and voluntary overtime, I will work a maximum of 52 hours a week.
People buy a lot of adult costumes and Halloween stuff.
Many other people also buy clothes and toys. Therefore, other people start their Christmas shopping as soon as possible. GI Joes and Barbies are popular this year.
We still have two 15-minute breaks and forty-five minutes for lunch. Supervisors don’t replace anything. It’s the same program, prior to Prime Day, only with many more paints and intensity. You know that you are logged for many hours, for many days. (Editor’s note: Under New York State law, off-site staff are entitled to a forty-five-minute meal break for shifts longer than six hours. )
It has more tension because Prime Day orders are usually “responsive” or urgent orders. Commands are classified as reactive or non-responsive, which tells us which command to prioritize. Non-incoming orders will have to be mailed. , however, there is no hurry.
I once gained two pallets of reagents, which I had to unload and pack to ship before my shift was over. That meant I had to do it very quickly. If you do not, the formula deactivates the article, so we can not The procedure is longer. This blocks the whole procedure and the consumer will not get their belongings. If this happens, the supervisor may write to you. If you are criticized for poor productivity, it can lead to a layoff.
Productivity depends on the parts that are in the containers or on each pallet, whether the parts are small or medium. Because there are more people working in the Prime Day warehouse, workstations can be affected, which also affects the speed at which you finish each of the pallets.
The south side of the construction is terrible: there are twice as many paints due to higher orders and lack of help unpacking. If you paint on this side, you usually don’t have a water spider. The water spider is the guy who places his pieces on the pallet and opens the boxes. The south side does not normally have a water spider and this does not replace the Prime Day period. If you’re on the south side, you’ll just get the boxes or containers and want to open the boxes and load the things before doing the same packaging task above as a setback.
The water spider does not have time to make the south side because it works on the east side. So if you’re there, you’re pretty lonely. south aspect and they’re pretty fucked up.
I have virtually no leave for health problems on the first day. There’s no way out of that. Workers can take paid vacations, but I don’t have more.
A normal daily shift comes and I feel like I’m killing my ankles for more money. Now we have to wear safe shoes as part of the protection protocol. Amazon provides the shoes, but the challenge is that they cause pain and there is no support. My doctor gave me special arches that I put on my internals, and they become more comfortable.
We have to wear the shoes when we enter the building. They’ll say, “Oh, do you have your protective shoes?”If you don’t have them, they’re going to let you in, but they’re going to scan your badge and then tell you to put on your protective shoes right away. I think they’re going to end up writing that other people don’t have them. You can get a doctor’s note and get a waiver, and then come with your own shoes, but I haven’t done it yet because I’ve been too busy.
When I’m tired, I don’t forget that we get paid on time and in part and that money is good. Unfortunately, pain is not.
Amazon spokesman Sam Stephenson told Insider: “The protection and well-being of our workers is our most sensible priority, and that’s why they’re encouraged to use the other licensing features we offer when they’re not feeling well. “
“Safety shoes are vital and for this reason, we are offering workers $110 credits so they can choose from more than 700 brands and styles to find the right ones for them. In addition, we organize on-site shoe testing to help workers find the right footwear for them,” Stephenson added.
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