SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
National grocery chain Whole Foods, which is owned by multibillion-dollar corporation Amazon, is cutting medical benefits for hundreds of part-time employees, Business Insider reported today. The decision, according to the company, is designed "to better meet the needs of our business and create a more equitable and efficient scheduling model," a Whole Foods spokesperson told BI.
[...] Whole Foods claims that the percentage of its workforce that'll be affected by the cost-cutting measure, and therefore no longer eligible to purchase employer-provided health care, is less than 2 percent. (That equates to nearly 2,000 people.) One affected employee, who's worked for Whole Foods for 15 years, told BI they were "in shock," as the company's benefits options were why they held on to the job.
Ironically:
Last month, Amazon joined a number of other tech companies and Fortune 500 firms in signing a letter outlining the purpose of a corporation as something not just designed to return shareholder value, but also to serve employees and the community. "Each of our stakeholders is essential," the pledge read. "We commit to deliver value to all of them, for the future success of our companies, our communities and our country."
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Tuesday September 17 2019, @12:27PM
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2TnkJ8_BmSI [youtube.com]
Alternative headline:
Is anyone surprised?
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Dale on Tuesday September 17 2019, @01:24PM (2 children)
Why would anyone expect anything different? When has a company bought another and not fully assimilated them over the following decade? How many times have we seen the cycle in video game companies? They claim they'll stay just like they are and then they slowly chip away at the independence until one day they finally fully absorb them. This was never going to be any different. If Amazon didn't provide those things to their own part time people then it was just a matter of time until Whole Foods lost it.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday September 17 2019, @05:28PM (1 child)
You mean that strongly worded letter he signed about placing humans before profit was bullshit?
Whelp, they had their chance, time to start REGULATING!
(Score: 2) by black6host on Tuesday September 17 2019, @11:14PM
Rather than "regulating", which I'm not keen on but do see it as a necessary evil from time to time, how about ORGANIZING. People do have the power to force change without having to wait for someone else (politicians) to wade through the bullshit that goes with regulation.
I'm aware that organization is not easy. Neither is not having adequate healthcare. Or wages, etc. At some point people are going to have to say they've had enough. I guess many corporations are willing to see how far they can go before that happens. It's a damned shame as far as I'm concerned. When the pain to stay the same is greater than the pain to change then we'll see some action. Who will feel that level of pain first? Workers or companies?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by DannyB on Tuesday September 17 2019, @02:27PM (1 child)
Amazon's management has recognized that Part Time employees must be only Part Time humans, who have only Part Time health problems and therefore require only Part Time health care . . . on someone else's time and dime. It's part of the executives Part Time ethics and Part Time humanity on display.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Freeman on Tuesday September 17 2019, @04:40PM
Otherwise known as business as usual.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 4, Informative) by ElizabethGreene on Tuesday September 17 2019, @04:51PM (1 child)
To be "full time" and eligible for benefits requires working 30 hours per week.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 18 2019, @04:15PM
Which is legislated. "The Affordable Care Act and the IRS define a full-time employee as one who works at least 30 hours a week or 130 hours a month on average." Companies used to do things like hire one person for two part time roles, and not provide insurance.