Amazon has pledged to ensure that its move to adjust wages and bonuses following the introduction a minimum wage of US$15 per hour will not result in staff being paid lower wages.
A company spokesperson told Fortune that all hourly employees "will see an increase in their total compensation as a result of this announcement". Amazon said it had worked "site by site and person by person" to make the necessary adjustments.
Staff at the firm's fulfilment centres had previously claimed that changes to the way they are compensated mean they will see no increase in their pay packets despite the introduction a minimum wage of US$15 per hour in November.
Their complaints centred on the idea that the retailer was making changes to its compensation policies to help subsidise the new wage floor that it is introducing in its fulfilment centres. Measures include removing the so-called ‘variable compensation programme’, which is based both on workers’ attendance and their facility’s production levels, and eliminating a stock allotment programme for certain staff.
Workers already earning more than US$15 per hour will receive a US$1 per hour wage increase so that everyone sees some kind of hourly pay hike. But several individuals complained that in light of the changes, they did not understand how their pay would rise.
One Amazon fulfilment centre worker said he earned around US$2,000 through the variable compensation programme over the course of a year. But losing that money would basically negate the dollar-per-hour raise he could expect through the new scheme. Taking the loss of restricted stock units into account, he said that he would have less annual take-home pay than previously.
“I don’t come out ahead,” said the employee, who asked not to be named in order to speak freely. “It seems like the same pile of money. They’re just moving it around.”
Meanwhile, Amazon is also reportedly changing how its parcel delivery drivers are paid by requiring all third-party courier companies to keep electronic records of driver time and attendance using ADP payroll and time tracking software. The companies will also be prohibited from paying a flat daily rate to drivers. Instead they will be required to pay on an hourly basis, according to PYMNTS.
A Business Insider investigation allegedly found that delivery drivers had experienced instances of erroneous or missing wages, including a lack of overtime pay. More than 200 delivery drivers filed a lawsuit last month, claiming that Amazon and their third-party courier partners owed them money.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
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Amazon has pledged to ensure that its move to adjust wages and bonuses following the introduction a minimum wage of US$15 per hour will not result in staff being paid lower wages.
A company spokesperson told Fortune that all hourly employees "will see an increase in their total compensation as a result of this announcement". Amazon said it had worked "site by site and person by person" to make the necessary adjustments.
Staff at the firm's fulfilment centres had previously claimed that changes to the way they are compensated mean they will see no increase in their pay packets despite the introduction a minimum wage of US$15 per hour in November.
Their complaints centred on the idea that the retailer was making changes to its compensation policies to help subsidise the new wage floor that it is introducing in its fulfilment centres. Measures include removing the so-called ‘variable compensation programme’, which is based both on workers’ attendance and their facility’s production levels, and eliminating a stock allotment programme for certain staff.
Workers already earning more than US$15 per hour will receive a US$1 per hour wage increase so that everyone sees some kind of hourly pay hike. But several individuals complained that in light of the changes, they did not understand how their pay would rise.
One Amazon fulfilment centre worker said he earned around US$2,000 through the variable compensation programme over the course of a year. But losing that money would basically negate the dollar-per-hour raise he could expect through the new scheme. Taking the loss of restricted stock units into account, he said that he would have less annual take-home pay than previously.
“I don’t come out ahead,” said the employee, who asked not to be named in order to speak freely. “It seems like the same pile of money. They’re just moving it around.”
Meanwhile, Amazon is also reportedly changing how its parcel delivery drivers are paid by requiring all third-party courier companies to keep electronic records of driver time and attendance using ADP payroll and time tracking software. The companies will also be prohibited from paying a flat daily rate to drivers. Instead they will be required to pay on an hourly basis, according to PYMNTS.
A Business Insider investigation allegedly found that delivery drivers had experienced instances of erroneous or missing wages, including a lack of overtime pay. More than 200 delivery drivers filed a lawsuit last month, claiming that Amazon and their third-party courier partners owed them money.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
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US Senator to introduce Bill forcing large employers to pay living wage
UK union sues Amazon over alleged incorrect classification of agency staff
Seattle headcount tax repealed after protests from big business
