Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home • Hacker News Board

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#111

Post by vkou » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:30 PM UTC

yourapostasy wrote: post #78

Questions I haven't seen answered yet: * Employee gets a destination with no parking available, who gets dinged for non-delivery? * Employee gets a destination with no parking available, but is told to double-park by local manager. Gets ticketed. Who gets dinged? * Does this constitute a non-CDL delivery service, or courier service? Will Wal-Mart handle licensing and insurance coverage of personal employee vehicles?…

Now, if only there was some sort of way to force Wal-mart to answer these kinds of questions. Maybe... A union of employees, who want to understand their relationship with their employer better, and to push back on unfair parts of said relationship.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#112

Post by Chaebixi » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:30 PM UTC

v45h wrote: post #63

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

Is it only shady because you believe Walmart employees are not paid enough as is? Doctors can choose to moonlight and get paid extra, and I don't think anyone is complaining about that. And overtime is certainly a thing. Coming from Walmart's perspective, I'm assuming it just seemed like a smart business decision rather than something maliciously intended. Like hey look, we can make our customers and employees happie…

> Coming from Walmart's perspective, I'm assuming it just seemed like a smart business decision rather than something maliciously intended.

I think that's exactly what the parent comment was criticizing:

>> Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy.

To restate: what's wrong with our economy is that we evaluate things, first and foremost, on if they're a "smart business decision" or not. That leads to "smart business decisions" are shady when looked at from many other perspectives.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#113

Post by leggomylibro » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:31 PM UTC

SilasX wrote: post #60

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

You don't think you're jumping the gun here, maybe? Do you even know what the compensation will be? >Instead of paying their employees a living wage, or offering benefits befitting a delivery driver, Obviously you can criticize Walmart's current practices. The issue is whether this policy is any worse than what they had before. >they can offset all of the risk, deprecation costs, etc associated with delivering a pack…

You're right that I don't know all the details, but I know how Walmart tends to behave with regards to their workers, and I know that the system their proposing looks unusually ripe for abuse, to the point where it seems like it must have been intentional.

I'm tired of people wrapping shit in a pretty bow and trying to pass it off as a gift. It keeps happening, and people keep going along with it. Maybe this time we'll unwrap the policy to find a nugget of gold, but fool me umpteen times...

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#114

Post by x0x0 » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:31 PM UTC

ancap wrote: post #65

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

Wow, way to take something that would be a win-win for Walmart, its employees and consumers and turn it into some dark scheme. >Instead of paying their employees a living wage Walmart (and any other employer) doesn't arbitrarily pick wages. They pay the market rate which is no more than the employee's marginal productivity. This is why Walmart was offering entry level employees $17+/hour in North Dakota during the he…

The market rate is unrelated to marginal productivity, unless you think North Dakota Walmart employees are twice as productive as Walmart employees elsewhere.

Walmart is, in many markets, a big enough employer in the low skills employment marketplace to be a price setter not a price taker.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#115

Post by downrightmike » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:32 PM UTC

zorked wrote: post #81

SilasX wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't think you're jumping the gun here, maybe? Do you even know what the compensation will be? >Instead of paying their employees a living wage, or offering benefits befitting a delivery driver, Obviously you can criticize Walmart's current practices. The issue is whether this policy is any worse than what they had before. >they can offset all of the risk, deprecation costs, etc associated with delivering a pack…

> You don't think you're jumping the gun here, maybe? Do you even know what the compensation will be? Walmart is known for high wages.

Are you already zorked this early on a Friday? Then why are so many of walmart's employees on social benefits? https://www.thenation.com/article/walmart-wages-are-the-main...

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#116

Post by Stanleyc23 » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:32 PM UTC

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

matt_wulfeck wrote: post #5

> Workers can opt in to earn extra money by making deliveries using their own cars. They’re assigned packages based on where they live so the route aligns with their commute home The headline makes it sound coercive but that actually sounds like an efficient use of time and energy (less big trucks on the road, less miles driven, more money for people who want it). I wouldn't mind dropping a few things off on my way h…

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

interesting perspective. my first impression was that this was a v1 test for getting into the on demand delivery business that Postmates is in right now.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#117

Post by hdhdjjdjd7773 » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:33 PM UTC

v45h wrote: post #63

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

Is it only shady because you believe Walmart employees are not paid enough as is? Doctors can choose to moonlight and get paid extra, and I don't think anyone is complaining about that. And overtime is certainly a thing. Coming from Walmart's perspective, I'm assuming it just seemed like a smart business decision rather than something maliciously intended. Like hey look, we can make our customers and employees happie…

Let's not compare economic apples and oranges

Doctors don't make minimum wage

Why should most employees who could be better off if Walmart just paid more spend MORE time working to support Walmarts interests

Because they don't have any other real options. That's the real manipulation

Doctors on the other hand can drop out of medicine and have life experiences and/or education to take them in a number of directions

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#118

Post by joekrill » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:33 PM UTC

yourapostasy wrote: post #78

Questions I haven't seen answered yet: * Employee gets a destination with no parking available, who gets dinged for non-delivery? * Employee gets a destination with no parking available, but is told to double-park by local manager. Gets ticketed. Who gets dinged? * Does this constitute a non-CDL delivery service, or courier service? Will Wal-Mart handle licensing and insurance coverage of personal employee vehicles?…

I understand the concerns. They're absolutely valid. But I suspect a huge, multinational corporation like Walmart has likely done their due-diligence here. Or maybe I'm just feeling optimistic today.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#119

Post by voidlogic » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:34 PM UTC

leggomylibro wrote: post #21

matt_wulfeck wrote: post #5

> Workers can opt in to earn extra money by making deliveries using their own cars. They’re assigned packages based on where they live so the route aligns with their commute home The headline makes it sound coercive but that actually sounds like an efficient use of time and energy (less big trucks on the road, less miles driven, more money for people who want it). I wouldn't mind dropping a few things off on my way h…

Ugh. I think that this sort of attitude (which was my initial reaction too) is a big part of what's wrong with our current economy. If you take the concept at face value, this is Walmart offering to let their employees make some extra money in exchange for a bit of extra work, once they've clocked out. What a nice company. But realistically, this is Walmart shunting the costs of delivery onto their employees. Instead…

>Instead of paying their employees a living wage

Are you operating on old assumptions? The average hourly wage is $13.38 for full-time workers and $10.58 per hour for part-timers [1]. While that might not get you far in the bay area (which doesn't have many Walmarts FWIW), its a pretty good wage for unskilled labor in much of the interior country (which is prime Walmart territory)...

1: http://money.cnn.com/2016/01/20/news/companies/walmart-pay-r...

Edit: Sorry, when I said bay area I was thinking of the area immediately surrounding San Francisco.

Re: Wal-Mart will pay employees to deliver packages on their way home

#120

Post by r00fus » Fri, Jun 02, 2017, 5:34 PM UTC

1_2__3 wrote: post #93

xienze wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> and it won't be near their hourly wage nor gas/wear & tear costs. Well then, I suppose the people involved will just have to do the math and see if it makes sense to them. The horror.

It's sad reading people cheering their own exploitation. But I'd expect nothing less from HN.

You think the average HN employee works shifts at Wal-mart? No, it's people here cheering other's exploitation (in the name of the mythical "freedom").