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Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

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Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#11

Post by varispeed »

nicpottier wrote: post #5
golemiprague wrote: post #2

The advantage of working from home was that you could take care of kids and do all the housework, this worth thousands of dollars per months. For years companies didn't adjust salaries in accordance to inflation and the cost of outsourcing kids care and house care, all that while keeping interest rate low and bailing rich bankers with printing of money. This caused funneling of wealth from the workers to asset holder…

We are talking about Amazon engineers here. They are in the top 3% of earners, I don't think we need to cry too many tears about them going back to the office.

Wage earners are working class. You are using "top 3%" as an excuse to c*p on them. This is the crabs in the bucket mentality that the rich want to cultivate amongst working class, so they pull each other down and help maximise profits.

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#12

Post by diggan »

harwoodjp wrote: post #7
nicpottier wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We are talking about Amazon engineers here. They are in the top 3% of earners, I don't think we need to cry too many tears about them going back to the office.

An injury to one is an injury to all.

If people had some sort of class solidarity, then yes. But instead everyone is fighting against everyone to get to the top of the "earners" curve, even if it means a less equal society as a whole, and people seem fine with it. It's a cultural issue that has persisted in the country for a very long time.

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#14

Post by windowshopping »

varispeed wrote: post #11
nicpottier wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We are talking about Amazon engineers here. They are in the top 3% of earners, I don't think we need to cry too many tears about them going back to the office.

Wage earners are working class. You are using "top 3%" as an excuse to c*p on them. This is the crabs in the bucket mentality that the rich want to cultivate amongst working class, so they pull each other down and help maximise profits.

What is c*p? "Crap"? Is that really offensive enough to censor?

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#15

Post by thfuran »

Spivak wrote: post #3
golemiprague wrote: post #2

The advantage of working from home was that you could take care of kids and do all the housework, this worth thousands of dollars per months. For years companies didn't adjust salaries in accordance to inflation and the cost of outsourcing kids care and house care, all that while keeping interest rate low and bailing rich bankers with printing of money. This caused funneling of wealth from the workers to asset holder…

Yep, working from home is easily 25%+ of my compensation and it doesn't cost the company a dime. I'm shocked executives aren't over the moon that there's a zero dollar perk they can give that's worth significant amounts of money to people.

Surely it's negative cost unless they're still maintaining an empty but fully furnished office building large enough for all employees to work from full time.

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#16

Post by nightfly »

jmward01 wrote: post #10

I wonder what drives these decisions? Is there that much solid evidence that they get more value out of people in the office rather than home? Or are there other reasons like tax incentives that encourage in-person work over remote? Is this just a control thing or or there a compelling argument that I am missing?

It's a sneaky way of doing layoffs, everyone who won't comply has to "quit"

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#18

Post by snapcaster »

varispeed wrote: post #8
Spivak wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep, working from home is easily 25%+ of my compensation and it doesn't cost the company a dime. I'm shocked executives aren't over the moon that there's a zero dollar perk they can give that's worth significant amounts of money to people.

Many major employers also hold investments in commercial property. Empty offices lose value. Someone somewhere got in their excel that loss of productivity from RTO is lower than potential loss of the property investments.

This keeps being repeated but there is no evidence provided. Can you point to a single example of a company where this calculation would be made/true?

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#19

Post by snapcaster »

golemiprague wrote: post #2

The advantage of working from home was that you could take care of kids and do all the housework, this worth thousands of dollars per months. For years companies didn't adjust salaries in accordance to inflation and the cost of outsourcing kids care and house care, all that while keeping interest rate low and bailing rich bankers with printing of money. This caused funneling of wealth from the workers to asset holder…

Isn't this kind of proving the point of RTO from the company's point of view? If you're taking care of your child and doing housework instead of working?

Re: Backlash over Amazon's return to office comes as workers demand higher wages

#20

Post by kelseyfrog »

cut3 wrote: post #17

Amazon tech workers should unionize.

It's a thought, but ceteris paribus, software engineers seem to have a particular scorn for unions beyond the calculus of economics. In other words, there is a personality/sub-cultural disdain for unions. I see it as an extension of a distaste for bureaucracy or perhaps, social structures in general, but I'm open to other perspectives.
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