By Rudy López/Interfaith Worker Justice
This year might be the first Cyber Monday that you can order something online and have it delivered in just a few hours.
That’s because online retailers like Amazon are employing an army of delivery drivers to bring your order to your home or office with almost no turn-around time.
This might sound like a great deal for consumers. But if you happen to be one of Amazon’s delivery drivers, there’s a huge catch.
Despite wearing Amazon’s uniform and reporting to Amazon warehouses for assignment, these drivers are classified as “contractors.”
As “contractors,” Amazon drivers have to use their own car, pay for their own gasoline and insurance, and cover any wear-and-tear to their vehicle. These workers aren’t eligible for overtime or any of the benefits that other Amazon workers are given. When you add all these costs up, Amazon drivers make significantly less than the minimum wage.
Classifying an employee a “contractor” is a notorious form of wage theft and it’s costing Amazon drivers millions in due wages.
SIGN THE PETITION: Tell Amazon to stop classifying its delivery drivers as “contractors,” reimburse the drivers for vehicle expenses, and ensure that every worker is paid in full.
Amazon already has a dubious record as an employer. From forcing its warehouse employees to work in extreme heat with no air conditioning to a corporate culture that some have called emotionally abusive.
But committing wage theft on such a massive and systemic scale is simply unconscionable.
Add your name to the petition to Amazon and demand they pay their delivery drivers fairly for every hour they work.
As our consumption habits evolve, we must remain vigilant in defending the rights of those who perform the work that make these new services so convenient. Amazon is one of the biggest companies on the planet. Let’s make sure they do the right thing and pay their delivery drivers a fair wage.
As always, thank you for your commitment to worker justice.
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The PBS NewsHour On Amazon’s Punishing Workplace Culture.
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Links and video inserted by The Beachwood Value Added Affairs Desk.
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Comments welcome.
Posted on November 30, 2015