Why you should try to avoid shopping at Amazon

[kevo]

http://www.theguardian.com/technolo...azon-insider-feature-treatment-employees-work

 

[Notters]

This'll be popular with Bozza.

 

[Ninja Elephant]

Doesn't affect how I feel about Amazon. I shop there for the stuff, not for their treatment of their staff, which is none of my concern.

Sorry if that's a bit honest for some people, but I literally couldn't care less. There's more going on in the world. Those people are employed, it could be a LOT worse. Trust me.

 

[Nibble]

They work in a warehouse of course they are on Min wage. They are lucky to have the work. 50 hrs a week is **** all if you want to get ahead in life. Too much money worries myself to worry about somebody having to work for a living in 21st century Britain. I'll go where it's cheapest I'm afraid.

 

[Beach Hut]

Amazon provides a consumer service selling products as do Apple, Starbucks, M & S etc.

If they were crap at what they do they would not be trading.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Doesn't affect how I feel about Amazon. I shop there for the stuff, not for their treatment of their staff, which is none of my concern.

Sorry if that's a bit honest for some people, but I literally couldn't care less. There's more going on in the world. Those people are employed, it could be a LOT worse. Trust me.

Nice

 

[yxee]

Why does this mean I shouldn't shop at Amazon? Surely the more I buy, the higher fraction of seasonal staff will be offered full time jobs.

That article is just rhetoric. So they have to walk around quite a lot to earn a paycheck. Write to your MP about labour laws if you find it so distasteful.

 

[Beach Hut]

The government should increase minimum wage. It is nowhere in line with the cost of living. Everyone over 25 should be earning at least £10/hour.

Amazon are just playing by the rules, the government are to blame for allowing it to happen.

And you think this would not happen under labour ?

If you increase the minimum wage I suspect they would need to be more people made redundant.

 

[yxee]

The government should increase minimum wage. It is nowhere in line with the cost of living. Everyone over 25 should be earning at least £10/hour.

Then the prices of every labour intensive good/service in the country would double, increasing the cost of living further. I guess the solution to that would be to increase the minimum wage to £15/hour.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

If you increase the minimum wage I suspect they would need to be more people made redundant.

This argument was used, and ill founded, when the minimum wage was first announced.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Then the prices of every labour intensive good/service in the country would double, increasing the cost of living further. I guess the solution to that would be to increase the minimum wage to £15/hour.

Not necessarily.

 

[Beach Hut]

This argument was used, and ill founded, when the minimum wage was first announced.

Agreed however if you start pushing it up then surely there is a point where a company becomes unprofitable ?

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Agreed however if you start pushing it up then surely there is a point where a company becomes unprofitable ?

It's my view that if a business cannot afford to pay its staff a decent living wage then it's not a sustainable or viable business. Interestingly when this topic was discussed before this view was shared with a couple of the prominent right-wingers on this site.

 

[Commander]

The government should increase minimum wage. It is nowhere in line with the cost of living. Everyone over 25 should be earning at least £10/hour.

Amazon are just playing by the rules, the government are to blame for allowing it to happen.

Why should you earn more because you are over 25? Why would anyone doing unskilled work bother to try to push themselves and get ahead in life if they were already earning at least £10 an hour? If everyone earnt more then prices would just go up anyway, surely?

 

[KZNSeagull]

Agreed however if you start pushing it up then surely there is a point where a company becomes unprofitable ?

Amazon is unprofitable. Investors are waiting for massive returns which may never come. Then what happens?

 

[Nibble]

Minimum wage needs to be higher, rent control needs to be introduced, taxes on low earners needs to be less, but no government is going to make themselves poor and unpopular with big business by doing these things. We all want cheaper living. Want into one hand, shit into the other, see which one fills up first. There is only one way you're gonna survive this government and that's get a job. You go into the benefit system and you may a s well give up.

 

[Alex Alex Dawson oo! oo!]

Agreed however if you start pushing it up then surely there is a point where a company becomes unprofitable ?

Isn't Amazon UK barely profitable currently?

 

[Nibble]

It's my view that if a business cannot afford to pay its staff a decent living wage then it's not a sustainable or viable business. Interestingly when this topic was discussed before this view was shared with a couple of the prominent right-wingers on this site.

This. Completely.

 

[Beach Hut]

Isn't Amazon UK barely profitable currently?

No idea, is it a UK company or another one registered elsewhere for tax purposes

 

[Nibble]

Why should you earn more because you are over 25? Why would anyone doing unskilled work bother to try to push themselves and get ahead in life if they were already earning at least £10 an hour? If everyone earnt more then prices would just go up anyway, surely?

Because when you are over 25 you have more fiscal responsibility in all areas of life.