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Tag: Brad Glasser

  • Amazon Employees Can Use Their Stock to Finance Home Purchases

    Amazon Employees Can Use Their Stock to Finance Home Purchases

    Amazon employees are about to enjoy a new perk: being able to use their company stock to finance home purchases.

    According to TechCrunch, Amazon has struck a deal with Better.com to make it easier for employees to purchase a home. Under the terms of the deal, employees in Florida, New York, and Washington State will be able to use their vested equity as down payment collateral. It’s believed the program will expand to other states in time.

    Interestingly, the deal does not require an employee to give up their shares, only to pledge their vested equity. The deal also extends to former employees that still have a stake in Amazon.

    Amazon is “always looking for opportunities” to improve its employee perks “and better support employees’ mental, physical, and financial wellness,” company spokesperson Brad Glasser told TechCrunch.

    “As part of that, we offer a wide-ranging slate of financial benefits, including saving resources, tools to grow financial knowledge, and programs that help employees feel financially sound,” he said. “Eligible employees can access these benefits starting on the first day of their employment with us, regardless of role or location.”

    “Financial wellness, mental wellness, and physical wellness are all essential facets of employee health, and they all affect each other,” Glasser added. “For financial wellness, that means providing benefits that aid with both short- and long-term financial success, for employees’ time at Amazon and beyond.”

  • Amazon Freezes Corporate Retail Hiring for Remainder of 2022

    Amazon Freezes Corporate Retail Hiring for Remainder of 2022

    Amazon is continuing its hiring freezes, pausing hiring in corporate retail for the remainder of 2022.

    Amazon has been working to reduce its headcount as a result of the economic downturn. The company had already prepared to flatten hiring for its Global Corporate Affairs (GCA) group and relied on attrition to reduce its headcount by 100,000 across the company.

    According to The New York Times, the company sent an email to recruiters telling them it was pausing hiring for its corporate retail division. As the Times points out, there were 20,000 such open jobs as recently as Monday.

    Amazon reportedly told recruiters not to describe the situation as a “hiring freeze,” but said all the open jobs should be closed and new jobs will not be posted until next year.

    Candidates that had interviews scheduled before October 15 may be grandfathered in and receive offers if they are a good fit. Even if they are hired, however, they will not start their new jobs until next year.

    “Amazon continues to have a significant number of open roles available across the company,” Brad Glasser, an Amazon spokesman, told the Times in a statement. “We have many different businesses at various stages of evolution, and we expect to keep adjusting our hiring strategies in each of these businesses at various junctures.”

  • Amazon Wants Call Center Employees to Work From Home So It Can Close Offices

    Amazon Wants Call Center Employees to Work From Home So It Can Close Offices

    Amazon is bucking a trend among some of the biggest tech companies, urging its call center employees to work from home.

    Many of the world’s biggest tech companies are trying to get their employees to come back to the office in an effort to return to normal. According to a report by Bloomberg, Amazon is taking a different approach by encouraging its US call center employees to work from home. The outlet’s sources indicated the move is driven by the company’s desire to close some offices and save on real estate.

    Read more: Amazon Raising Front-Line Worker Pay to an Average of $19 per Hour

    While a company spokesperson did not comment on real estate plans, they confirmed the preference for remote work in some roles.

    “We’re offering additional members of our customer service team the increased flexibility that comes with working virtually,” Amazon spokesman Brad Glasser told Bloomberg. “We’re working with employees to make sure their transition is seamless while continuing to prioritize best-in-class support for customers.”

    Amazon’s approach is a refreshing alternative to Apple and Google. Both companies have upset employees by aggressively pushing them to return to the office. In contrast, Amazon appears to be acknowledging that some jobs don’t require in-person employees and can be done just as well remotely. Rather than something to avoid, Amazon appears to recognize that it can benefit from such a transition.

  • Amazon Backtracks on Pay Raises, Blames Software Bug

    Amazon Backtracks on Pay Raises, Blames Software Bug

    Amazon wants a do-over on employee pay raises, saying a software bug led to artificially high numbers.

    Amazon has been struggling with employee satisfaction for some time, with its attrition rate for its most desirable employees doubling in recent years. The company increased its maximum base salary to $350,000 in February in an effort to keep employees happy, but it may have wiped out any goodwill it generated.

    Unfortunately for the company, its latest raise did not go smoothly, according to Business Insider. Amazon’s software evidently used an older, higher stock price to calculate bonuses, resulting in many corporate employees initially being told they would receive a larger compensation package than intended. The issue especially impacted employees that were recently promoted.

    Rather than honor the initial amount, Amazon sent out an email to managers informing them the packages would be smaller than promised. Having seen both the email and an internal trouble ticket, Insider says as many as 40% of employees promoted this quarter were “impacted by this issue.”

    Needless to say, Amazon’s handling of the debacle is not going over well, with employees accusing the company of nickel-and-diming them. One employee said Amazon was “taking away something that somewhat made us whole.”

    Amazon representative Brad Glasser told Insider the company “identified and immediately corrected an issue with some newly promoted employees’ compensation communications.”

    “We are working with employees to ensure they understand their updated compensation,” Glasser added.

    It’s a safe bet Amazon’s employee morale issues are just beginning.