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Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

bbc.com

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Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#491

Post by johnnyanmac »

bluGill wrote: post #311
LargeWu wrote: post #284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is absolutely nothing in the world I would like less than an AI device listening to all of my conversations at home.

I have privacy concerns, but an AI that worked as a servant would be a great help. I can't afford servants (or slaves), but I want something that listens in and takes action when I want something. Interrupt me when I'm planning vacation to remind me that there is some other event at home when I'd be gone. When I run low on baking powder ensure I get more. Again, the privacy concerns need to be addressed. However ther…

We called that family and community for the last few millennia. It's a shame some people want to automate that out of their lives.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#492

Post by johnnyanmac »

marcusb wrote: post #12

Once a company moves on to recurring, large-scale layoffs justified by vague corporate Mumbo-Jumbo, I think it is safe to assume it is a "day 2" company.

Is there any non-day 2 company in this day and age? Seems like everyone's laying off en masse. Even the job reports can't hide it.

If you're not working in nursing the flux of retired Baby boomers you're either already rich or on unsteady ground.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#493

Post by johnnyanmac »

gruez wrote: post #444
fooqux wrote: post #204

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh no, they might only make $15 billion instead of $18 billion next quarter?

>Oh no, they might only make $15 billion instead of $18 billion next quarter? Exactly. It's a for-profit company, not a charity or a jobs program.

At what point do we stop defending capitalism and realize that it's sucking society dry?

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#494

Post by johnnyanmac »

akshayrajp wrote: post #187
ajsnigrutin wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a great tactic, where competent, good workers find a more stable job, and the ones unable to get a better job are then rehired. On one hand, you can bully them more, and they'll stay, on the other hand, they're so bad at their job, no one else wants them either.

Doesn't sound very labour-law friendly

People call each other incompetent as the entire country is outsourcing them and then wonder why there's no worker solidarity.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#495

Post by johnnyanmac »

lingrush4 wrote: post #264
reaperducer wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Never mind the fact that families were affected and employees were constantly stressed near the end of every quarter. It's this sort of thing that has me re-thinking the fairness of employees giving employers the customary (in the United States) two week notice before leaving. Employees don't get two weeks notice before being fired without cause. It's supposed to be because replacing an employee is so difficult for t…

For layoffs like this, employers typically give out two months of severance, so I'm not sure what you're whining about. Of course if you're willing to burn bridges with your employer, there's nothing stopping you from quitting immediately. Have at it.

Two months of severance in this kind of eceonomy isn't enough. That's low compared to country with proper labor laws. They give a small severance to mitigate any investigations into violations and not much more.

>Of course if you're willing to burn bridges with your employer, there's nothing stopping you from quitting immediately. Have at it.

I think that's their point. The social contract is broken and no one's trying to make company careers anymore. If you're not respected, why respect their time?

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#496

Post by johnnyanmac »

martin-t wrote: post #60
redwood wrote: post #25

This is a reflection of 1) compensation has come down since the ZIRP era at least in some roles and 2) it's a hirer's market. This means companies see an opportunity to bring compensation down. I wish employees would instead have an opportunity to sign up for lower salary. For whatever reason you just don't see that happening anywhere

I wish the average and median salary of every position at the company was legally required to be made available to every employee and candidate so the negotiation can be an actual negotiation instead of a guessing game. I wish workers voted for their managers and did so periodically, managers at the end of their term would return to their previous position if any. In fact, an expectation of every position being tempo…

It technically is in California. If your position is posted in a job ad in California is needs to disclose wage.

If we're on wish mode: I sure wish worker would come together and proper unionize rather than do anything else to grovel to the company. These are not new problems, and blood was spilt to get where we are today, follow by decades of disestablishment to claw it back.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#497

Post by johnnyanmac »

stoneman24 wrote: post #156
mynegation wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a lot. If you are in a company large enough, you surely know at least 20 people and one of them is gone. The earlier floated figure was even larger: 30K

I suppose it’s what you are used to. A company that I worked with had under 100 staff, very profitable but had a staff turnover of about 10% per year. People joined, some stayed, some left and it was fine. Perhaps as the departures were staff decisions not some faceless corporate executive, dropping X% cos that’s what he thinks would please the markets or his boss. Or the department is making profits but as much as h…

If it's not part time work, 10% yearly turnover is awful for anything that isn't a tiny startup.

>People joined, some stayed, some left and it was fine.

For who? It's always a shame how we underplay the human element in these stories.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#498

Post by johnnyanmac »

tirant wrote: post #133
nemomarx wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not catastrophic, but probably a sign that jobs are shrinking instead of growing and so good market information if you were thinking about getting promoted or moving around?

Numbers do not support that. Jobs might be shrinking within Amazon, but globally the situation is the opposite. Population is still growing, 25% the last 20 years (trend that is slowly reversing), and unemployment rates are the lowest at global scale (~4,9% for 2024, lowest historically, down from 6.0% in 2005). That's around ~1.0 billion more jobs in 2024 compared to 2005. [1] https://www.ilo.org/resource/news/ilo-e…

Easy for jobs to be created in Asia if they are being moved from North America. That doesn't say much by itself.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#499

Post by johnnyanmac »

whamlastxmas wrote: post #395
magicalist wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> correction for over hiring during periods of low-interest rates It's been three years since that though, and five years since covid. That's why we say "AI" now. Just make sure you don't say "executive incompetence".

I don't think it's incompetence, I think it's planned, merciless strategy. It costs nearly nothing to fire a ton of people, so why not hire a bunch with free money and dump them as soon as the free money disappears

Yeah pretty much. This is just late stage capitalism, and the working class seem to just be shrugging at it instead of what theyr forefathers did in reaction.

Re: Amazon confirms 14,000 job losses in corporate division

#500

Post by johnnyanmac »

itopaloglu83 wrote: post #112
raziel2p wrote: post #10

> The company has more than 1.5 million employees across its warehouses and offices worldwide. > This includes around 350,000 corporate workers, which include those in executive, managerial and sales roles, according to figures that Amazon submitted to the US government last year. So roughly 4% of jobs in Amazon's corporate division disappeared. Not to downplay that the world/economy is in a bad state, but I don't th…

We all know that this is just the beginning to get us desensitized. The leaked plan is to fire up to 600,000 people. So roughly up to 40% of their workforce.

It's been 3 years of this. The frog has already been boiled, especially if you look at the comment activity here compared to 2023. HN is just caring less and less and tuning out the obvious economic headwinds we've been in. Real shame.
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