Amazon Has Turned a Middle-Class Warehouse Career Into a McJob
Despite a starting wage well above the federal minimum, the company is dragging down pay in the logistics industry and bracing for a fight with unions.
Many Amazon warehouse employees struggle to pay the bills.
Photographer: Victor J. Blue/BloombergAmazon.com Inc. job ads are everywhere. Plastered on city buses, displayed on career web sites, slotted between songs on classic rock stations. They promise a quick start, $15 an hour and health insurance. In recent weeks, America’s second-largest employer has rolled out videos featuring happy package handlers wearing masks, a pandemic-era twist on its annual holiday season hiring spree.
Amazon’s object is to persuade potential recruits that there’s no better place to work.