My sympathy for the plight of the average Amazon worker is causing conflict with my desire to call, complain, and possibly get someone fired.

[Dog Weissman]

My apartment has a hub of lockers that Amazon deliveries get made to. Prior to the Hub they were (sometimes haphazardly) dropped off at the apartment doors. Prior to Covid they were delivered to the leasing office.

I got a call from my leasing office saying that a package of mine was yeeted onto the ground in front of the hub. Not secured into the lockers but put on the ground in a central location with a ton of traffic. The leasing office says they tried to stop the driver but they said they didn't have time to place the packages in the locker.

I'm not sure how mad I should be. In front of apartment doors isn't much more secure but this seems particularly fucky. I'm gritting my teeth as to whether or not I should call and complain. Furthermore, would my complaint even matter? Would most people just not have a problem with this? Help.

 

[brawndolicious]

I wouldn't bother complaining if it was a one-time thing. Sometimes people fuck up or they're under too much pressure to meet the quota. If he's regularly doing it with everyone's package, then eventually complaints will pile up.

 

[Pai Pai Master]

If it happens again repeatedly sure, I'd be a bit pissed and I'd call or submit a complaint. But if the package got stolen/picked up by someone else doesn't Amazon usually just replace it for free? Wouldn't be too much skin off your back unless it's something you urgently needed.

It sucks but the driver who did it may have had an issue with the system and probably had like negative ten minutes to make it to his next stop or risk getting his pay docked

If it was a repeat offense from driver(s) on that route then i'd be like ok wtf

 

[Like the hat?]

The problem is not the worker, it's Amazon

 

[PrepaidPostage]

You have the evidence of this mistake - and no harm was done, but if it happens again it should be brought up.

 

[andymcc]

The problem is not the worker, it's Amazon

Click to shrink...

the amazon worker that literally has put packages on my trash bin was definitely told by amazon to place packages on my trash bin.

 

[Lo-Volt]

It wasn't clear to me if the package was lost, stolen, or rendered undeliverable to you based on this story. If you didn't get it in the end because of this, that's a reason to seek assistance. Otherwise, I get why you're miffed but I wouldn't go there.

 

[Melpomene]

Considering what place of employment we're talking about, if he gave his reason as "not having enough time" to put it in the locker, I'd be inclined to believe him and expect that if he hadn't done that, he'd be facing some kind of consequence from the person above him. If you complain in response, that essentially means this worker was put in a catch-22 position where whether they did what they were told or not, they'll end up penalized.

That doesn't make it "okay," obviously, but unless it becomes a common/repeated thing, I'd try to let my empathy let it slide.

 

[Dog Weissman]

Yeah, if it happens again. This just sucks and makes me want to not order from Amazon but hey I guess that's a positive for the world.

 

[sbenji]

Amazon is not going to fire anyone for this. Your complaint will just be ignored tbh.

Furthermore, if your package was stolen Amazon would have replaced it. I'll be honest I don't see why you would expend energy on this but that is just me.

 

[Ashes of Dreams]

the amazon worker that literally has put packages on my trash bin was definitely told by amazon to place packages on my trash bin.

Click to shrink...

No but they were likely rushed, undertrained, overworked, and stressed out by how badly they are treated by Amazon.
They shouldn't put your package on a trash bin but some basic empathy would likely lead you to realize that maybe there's a reason burnt out workers take shortcuts beyond them being lazy asshole millennials or whatever.

 

[meowdi gras]

Yeah, if it happens again. This just sucks and makes me want to not order from Amazon but hey I guess that's a positive for the world.

Click to shrink...

Your best option here, IMO.

 

[andymcc]

No but they were likely rushed, undertrained, overworked, and stressed out by how badly they are treated by Amazon.
They shouldn't put your package on a trash bin but some basic empathy would likely lead you to realize that maybe there's a reason burnt out workers take shortcuts beyond them being lazy asshole millennials or whatever.

Click to shrink...

It happens repeatedly lol

I would rather them fucking throw the package over my fence than leaving it on a place for trash but ya know

 

[thisismadness]

I've never seen one of these, do you pay to rent a locker? If so, its worth complaining. If not, I wouldn't complain about the first offense, but if it continues to happen you may have to.

 

[PrivateWHudson]

Did you get your package? If so, and it wasn't damaged, service rendered. If it was stolen or damaged, just let them know it's condition, and they will probably just send a replacement. Let them decide to look into it and determine what went wrong, let the driver be.

 

[Forsaken82]

The problem is not the worker, it's Amazon

Click to shrink...

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

 

[GringoSuave89]

My building uses Parcel Pending and I can count on it ne hand the number of times they actually use it. And it's a service I pay for, which is what really makes me mad.

 

[brawndolicious]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

Labor costs for medicine are a lot higher specifically to keep workloads manageable and to maintain enough quality control. Usually anything important has a double-check done by somebody else.

If the hospital gave a nurse too many patients to manage and mistakes happened as a result, they're absolutely responsible.

 

[nsilvias]

all amazon employees do this. its basically an unwritten rule to just leave shit where ever to make time. its not there faullt amazon is strict

 

[Garlic]

My basic rule is I never complain about stuff like this unless health/safety is involved. If stuff is broken I request a return.

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

If staff are overworked then that is 100% the fault of hospital management, what kind of gotcha attempt is this lol

 

[bananab]

I've had a handful of weird experiences with Amazon deliveries. They all turn out to be one-offs and I can nearly always find a way to chalk it up to unreasonable scheduling, especially given Amazon's reputation. I'm on team leave it alone since nothing actually happened.

 

[gozu]

Wait until your item is stolen, then complain. They can see it wasn't left in a locker which makes it their responsibility. It's their business how they deal with it. Maybe they're cool with a few items getting stolen if it saves them more money in overtime pay.

Also, if there was ever a time to quit a shitty job, it's now, so that driver can and should quit if their employer is abusive.

 

[lorddarkflare]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

Not all of it, but institutions that push workers past safe limits have some liability for their mistakes.

And only a very uncharitable read of the post meant to completely ignore the point would settle on the read being absolutely no consequences for the worker.

 

[Akira86]

the real panacea would be to stop using amazon, but they've made themselves fairly indispensable, helping all those local stores to go out of business... the worker is victimized by unnecessary conditions created by Amazon that affect us as customers.

 

[cameron]

That bottom left package in the pic looks like it's too big to fit in any of the lockers. There are a bunch of locker hubs near where I live and sometimes I'm unable to have packages delivered to a hub because the lockers are full at the time of order or the item is too big. The only options in these cases would be direct home delivery or at a retail counter (i.e. post office).

If there are no door deliveries for the apartment complex, then Amazon is probably making drivers leave packages outside hub even if the lockers are full or if the package is too big.

There are youtube videos of Amazon delivery drivers using locker hubs, and the delivery scan process automatically pops opens the assigned locker door for the package. A driver intentionally scanning a package, having a locker door open, manually closing it, and then leaving the package outside seems unlikely.

 

[Pyccko]

yeah, I could never get someone shitcanned for being slavedriven to the point these dudes are

 

[elLOaSTy]

yeah, I could never get someone shitcanned for being slavedriven to the point these dudes are

Click to shrink...

Yeah especially if I got my packages just fine in the end.

I just couldntbut that's me. After over a decade in retail now that I am out and have the means I dont ever complain about shit unless it's truly fucked and even then I havent had that happen yet.

 

[HylianSeven]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

Fortunately I'm not going to go into cardiac arrest if Amazon sends me a giant dildo instead of a copy of Elden Ring.

 

[sangreal]

Honestly, I think you made out pretty good. I consider myself lucky if they deliver my packages to the right street

In all seriousness, I wouldn't call and complain, but I'd definitely give the thumbs down on that notification asking how was your delivery experience.

 

[nded]

The delivery driver probably did the math and figured there was, say, a 50% chance of you filing a complaint for a botched delivery versus a 100% chance of supervisors coming down on them if they don't meet quota. What happened sucks and the delivery driver bears responsibility, but keep in mind they're not the evil mastermind here.

 

[The Deleter]

Something like that isn't worth getting them fired over, the quotas these guys need to make are robotic, though easily worse in other shipping companies in my experience

If he's going out of his way to harm it due to not caring, like yeeting the package at the door? Then yeah that's less justifiable lol

 

[chaobreaker]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

...is this a trick question? Would you choose to get treatment at a hospital that overworks their nurses over one that doesn't? If no, why not? It's clearly just those nurses fault they're messing up going by your logic.

 

[Pluto]

I've never seen one of these, do you pay to rent a locker? If so, its worth complaining. If not, I wouldn't complain about the first offense, but if it continues to happen you may have to.

Click to shrink...

If they work like the DHL lockers here you don't pay for them. With DHL you use the locker as the delivery address, they put your package in, send you a code and with the code you can open the locker.

 

[Darknight]

I get why people are saying not to complain, but doesn't also not complaining just means that it reinforces Amazon's quotas as workable and even could be pushed further?

 

[oneils]

I wouldnt consider it a big problem.

In my building we dont have an office we only have small mail boxes for paper mail and like 6 lockers that are only used by canada post. All other packages just get left in the lobby. I am used to it.

If this kind of thing really bothers you, have it dropped off at a pick up location.

 

[Nocturne]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

wow that'd be terrible thank god it's a fucking package and not life-saving medication

get a grip

 

[Akira86]

I get why people are saying not to complain, but doesn't also not complaining just means that it reinforces Amazon's quotas as workable and even could be pushed further?

Click to shrink...

we should complain to some higher authority about amazon, tbh.

 

[Charpunk]

In my complex Amazon drivers leave stacks of packages outside of random apartment doors. It's always fun when I see the picture of the delivery and there are like 20 packages and I get to go hunting for my item. Amazon really needs to get their shit together so their drivers can actually do their job.

 

[wollywinka]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

Strange analogy. If the nurse, an employee of the hospital, gives you the wrong medicine, then the hospital is absolutely at fault.

 

[RecLib]

You go to a hospital, the nurse gives you the wrong medication because they've been overworked and you go into cardiac arrest. Are you saying all the fault lies on the hospital?

Click to shrink...

Most places nowadays have laws roughly similar to the Libby Zion Law, limiting the amount of work hours for residents (and often other hospital staff) because it is pretty explicitly understood that overworked employees WILL make mistakes, and that enacting laws limiting how much a hospital is allowed to negligently overwork its staff was the only way these deaths could ultimately be prevented. The hospitals are absolutely at fault if they create a situation where workers are so over stressed that they kill people by mistake.

 

[The Deleter]

I get why people are saying not to complain, but doesn't also not complaining just means that it reinforces Amazon's quotas as workable and even could be pushed further?

Click to shrink...

They're not going to change their quotas in response to customer complaints or even employee complaints, not individually. If customers complain about the employees consistently they will just lay them off and hire a new employee that can keep up, since they're not burned out. They only bother changing quotas and other policies in response to larger movements towards the company's working conditions itself, like in 2018 when stories were at an all time high of how bad it is working at amazon, or during the pandemic where they were under pressure to add COVID measures.

 

[Darknight]

They're not going to change their quotas in response to customer complaints or even employee complaints, not individually. If customers complain about the employees consistently they will just lay them off and hire a new employee that can keep up, since they're not burned out. They only bother changing quotas and other policies in response to larger movements towards the company's working conditions itself, like in 2018 when stories were at an all time high of how bad it is working at amazon, or during the pandemic where they were under pressure to add COVID measures.

Click to shrink...

Of course not individually; it would have to be in aggregate. But if people don't complain or not enough complain, then Amazon absolutely won't change their behavior because it's not impacting them. They'll only do so if it starts to impact them. They can only churn through so many employees before doing so also becomes problematic. So even if they do it for a bit, if it continues to cause people to complain, it'll catch up to them at some point. But if nobody does anything, then of course nothing could even possibly change.

 

[Tricky Diver]

Personally I wouldn't complain unless I was directly impacted (package lost / stolen / damaged etc), or if this happened multiple times and I was legit concerned my shit could get taken. If it's a one time thing I'd just ignore it.

 

[RoninZ]

I would. It's their job and leaving the package out in the open with a lot of traffic is irresponsible. Look how easy it is to put a item in the locker. If the worker did it once, best believe they will keep trying to get away with it

 

[The Deleter]

Of course not individually; it would have to be in aggregate. But if people don't complain or not enough complain, then Amazon absolutely won't change their behavior because it's not impacting them. They'll only do so if it starts to impact them. They can only churn through so many employees before doing so also becomes problematic. So even if they do it for a bit, if it continues to cause people to complain, it'll catch up to them at some point. But if nobody does anything, then of course nothing could even possibly change.

Click to shrink...

That specific thing is exactly what they plan for, and yes, it is on the verge of being problematic to the company, but the fact that it's included on their business strategy to begin with means it's an intended feature of their work pipeline that they calculate and plan for, not something that will be newly brought about by these complaints specifically.

The only way workers voices in 2017-18 were heard and addressed on a company wide scale was when they spoke to the press, not their managers. In the same way, unless the customers are voicing their complaints about company policy specifically, rather than the customer service they received, their complaints will be directed into the exact specific feedback systems for employees Amazon has had in place for years. It doesn't matter how aggregate it gets unless workers start collapsing on stairs flat out; the number of complaints will always be understood as only the employees needing to be addressed by management or replaced. Specifying where and how the criticism is directed matters.

 

[Deleted member 14518]

I suppose the answer here is do not buy from Amazon.

 

[timshundo]

Ehem

 

[gblues]

Amazon abuses the fuck out of its drivers. I would not complain unless it was a safety issue. Not even a thumbs down on the poll.

There is absolutely no feedback you can leave that Amazon will interpret as "we should treat our workers better." It is nothing more than a signal to management that it's time to exploit someone else.

 

[Tuppen]

I would. It's their job and leaving the package out in the open with a lot of traffic is irresponsible. Look how easy it is to put a item in the locker. If the worker did it once, best believe they will keep trying to get away with it

Click to shrink...

That's so slow. It takes forever for that poor dude to deliver those packages. I'd probably dump the packages in front of the lockers out of pure frustration.

 

[GMM]

Personally I would have complained and directed my concern at the worker not having time securing the deliveries, leaving it out in the open is not cool when the surrounding area has a lot of traffic.

The overarching problem is that Amazon, like many other logistics companies, are working their employees to death, so changes need to be made down the road and nothing will really change unless workers or customers have a significantly negative reaction towards Amazon to force their hand.

I do think and hope it will be better in the future for those employed at Amazon, their turnover rates are unsustainable and sooner rather than later they will have to make big changes to retain their workforce to keep the company going:

Amazon could run out of workers in US in two years, internal memo suggests | Amazon | The Guardian

With exceptionally high turnover, the company risks churning though available labor pool by 2024

amp.theguardian.com

Amazon provides a great shopping experience and I haven't had any issues using them in Europe, but generally I try to avoid buying from them unless it's something I can't get elsewhere for a competitive price.