I will cheerfully shit on Amazon every day, which is why shit articles like this piss me off. Amazon does plenty of real harm, but articles like this give this make people think "well, if this is their workplace mistreatment, then it's not that bad."

It is that bad, but this isn't an example of that. This could happen anywhere, to anyone, even the most ethical company/co-op/whatever on the planet. They handled it well. So let's go after them for actual shit instead.

No access to water or toilets for an hour and fifteen minutes is a lot if you really need either.

You're not wrong, I work for the government and if our utility services shut off for more than an hour I think we go home. People are saying that time without water would suck but I mean they are pissing in bottles and shitting in buckets. Does that make it right, no. But unless you have a medical emergency an hour fifteen is not going without water.

See, the real trick amazon does is that no one is ever without a drink.

because if the water goes out, the workers can just pick up the piss bottles from the previous shift who had to piss in the aisle since they arent allowed to go to the bathroom.

Just imagine how many pissy fingerprints and straight piss might be on those packages your getting, having plenty of time to dry between boxing and delivery.

Yes but amazon has shown a history of not giving a shit about its workers

The article says the water went out at 3:00, not 3:45. The shift ends at 4:45, again from this article. That's nearly 2 hours without drinking water or toilet facilities. That's a fairly long time.

Your also wrong about the next shift and the notification. Again, in this article....

The issue continued during the day shift. ‘They emailed dayshift workers at 7 AM to not come to work when the starting time is 7:45 AM, so many were already on site or on their way to work,’ explains Hannah.   

They sent an email, not a phone call, 45 minutes before the shift started. I'd be surprised if any of the employees checked their email at the last minute before leaving for work. It goes on to say that many employees come from a town an hour away. The email was sent while many employees were already on their 1-1.5 hour commute. The. They told them just go home.

Then, at 12:30, they messaged the employees that the water was on and they needed to be back at work in half an hour or they would not be paid for it.

Your description of events does not at all match what the article describes. Do you really think Amazon's behavior is acceptable ad I and the article describe it?

The issue continued during the day shift. ‘They emailed dayshift workers at 7 AM to not come to work when the starting time is 7:45 AM, so many were already on site or on their way to work,’ explains Hannah.

Many workers travel to the Bristol site from the Newport area, roughly an hour and a half away. GMB union organiser Marie McDonald says workers were told to go home and advised that they would be paid for the day. But at about half past twelve, they received a message from the site saying that the water was back on, and they were expected to be on-site by one o’clock. ‘You’ve got to bear in mind that a lot of our members travel great distances to get to work. The bus stop in Newport is not centrally located. They have to walk for half an hour, so many couldn’t get on the bus in time to get back to Bristol,’ she tells Tribune.

One of our members, who couldn’t physically get to the site, was told they would have to take annual leave if they couldn’t get to the site. She doesn’t have any annual leave, so she’s being penalised for an issue completely out of her control. As far as I’m concerned, Amazon is putting productivity over staff safety.’

That sounds “absolutely reasonable”to you? Really? I hope I never work for someone with standards like that.

Amazon is the new AliExpress with higher prices.

Is there an actual alternative general online store that treats its employees well and has good prices on decent products? I'm all for supporting a different online retailer over Amazon.

I don't see how one invalidates the other. Amazon's predatory practices have killed off the competition and created a sizable price gap. Not everyone has the luxury of voting with their money.

EvErYoNe HaS An AMaZoN PaCkAge On ThEir DoOr StEp

Yes, but there's no ethical consumption under capitalism.

If Amazon is the only place you can get something, you rely on them because you can't leave the house, or it's the cheapest place and you don't have extra money to spend, you have to do what's best for you. Boycotting is a privilege.

That shouldn't mean those who can't boycott lose the ability to demand change.

My household has not bought anything from them since before the pandemic. Unfortunately, this means relying on Walmart, which isn't much better, but at least they get toilet breaks.

one of the most fucked things about america is that it seems like whenever you have a shitty work environment, it's actually fine because

a) it builds character. complaining is weakness.

b) the company has to make a profit

like zero cognizance of human rights or quality of life. just, it is what it is, deal with it or you're a sNoWFlAkE.

from grade school to now peers have looked at me weird for simply complaining when something is shitty, which i've never understood. like oh we can't use headphones while we work 8 hrs washing dishes? you just take that? ok i'm going to stare at a wall because a guy said so? wtf?

feminine enough to survive other ways

Is this supposed to imply prostitution?

It might be somewhat normal in the US, but it's frightening to see in the UK, a country that supposedly actually has employee rights.

Unfortunately not most of them