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Ask away any questions…………before PRIME day starts and i will be gone!
[AMA] I Pack for Amazon
LMrTillets on 06/07/2023 - 21:10
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They only give you free coffee vending machine,latte,cap,hot choc etc. unlimited plus tea etc. No lunch or snacks.
so generous to give unlimited tea and coffee
/s
Yes they do, but only during Peak events (Prime, etc. they will provide lunches, BBQ's, Food Trucks, etc) Also at other times of the year they provide food also for special events.
what type of bottle is your favourite to pee in
s
came here to ask this as well
or did you get issued a pee bottle during the induction
What happens to all the returned items? Are those mystery boxes on YouTube legit?
Sometimes they go back to vendors, get donated or get auctioned off on a pallet.
What do you do with return items? Do you check them before accepting/putting into different baskets?
I don't work in returns and don't know what they do
How bad is your time off task? I tend to waterspider or get one of my friends with labor tracking permissions to set me up so I don't have to worry about it 😏
water spider?
Every Amazon warehouse has a Spider nursery for morale.
☠️
Feel like I'm in an alternate universe wtf?
What do you mean? Do you mean filling in your time doing something else when you have no packing to do or something else?
Sort of, staff are tracked by how often they scan items. But if you're smart you 'waterspider' so you don't have to scan anything, basically making it so management can't see if you're slacking off or working slowly. A waterspider basically just fills up cardboard boxes or sorts out carts into different lanes, that way it doesn't involve scanning anything.
You mention an app when putting in your availability…
Is this like Flex? As in, as a packer, can you tell them when you want to work and when you don't want to work? You don't have to accept a shift if you don't want to, etc?
Or do you have a minimum amount of shifts you have to work a week?
When you get a job in pack or pick, you select your availabilty and they give you shifts on those days, not every week they can give you what you want. It's mainly random unless you suck ass i guess…but it's not a job you suck up ass over.
before PRIME day starts and i will be gone!
gone as in quit or busy working?
Busy working
Why did 3 cases of schweppes Lemonade 1.25L come just in their standard boxes with stickers today, but the 3 cases of Schweppes Soda 1.25L came boxed in amazon boxes?
I'm guessing it depends on how each product was registered in their system initially and most likely it's manually decided thus it differs by the person who do it that time. One selected that shipment label can be put straight on the item itself but other may not select this option - the product ends up to be put inside mailing boxes as usual.
It's how the product is registered and sometimes you can override them, so the packer can override which way it leaves the warehouse, on some items. The computer is not right all the time.
How do you feel about Bezos's trip to space?
I don't think the op did the packing for that one. 🙂
Are the working conditions as strict and micro-managing like they say in USA Amazon? Are you happy working there and looking to move up or sideways or just working there to make ends meet?
It's not fun and it's not sad. It's whatever. If that makes any sense ?
To quote the Pteranodon from the Flintstones: "Squawk! It's a living!"?
when will we have amzn returns mystery crates to bulk buy?
and where doi the returns go ?Returns used to be proceed in one warehouse for entire Australia they have now changed it and most amazon warehouse in australia have returns or are capable of doing returns, some get destroyed,some get donated and others go back to vendor if it's vendor product.
Why do you put my bonsoy in the biggest box available?
Thanks for your work and service!
A) any deals you can tell us that are upcoming for Prime day?
B) What’s the easiest and hardest items to pack? What item do you hate packing?
C) What warehouse do you work in? BWU2? Is it cool being around the robots?
A. i'll share if i get some
B. Easiest items to pack are nappies,toilet paper and anything that is in the ''slap'' line….which means you just print a shipping label and ''slap'' it on the item without boxing the actual item and hardest is multi large items in a box
C. Crazy tech that's all i can say
How can Amazon have regional managers? They don't have regions technically speaking.
Maybe they have Assistant to the Regional Managers though
Sure they do. Different warehouses in different.. region?
Do you check the contents of returns? Do they sell it again as a new item?
Someone in Amazon handled returns. I don't know exactly how he/she did this, but I'm guessing he/she checks the item, if the seal is broken, or if it doesn't have seal, the product has hand handling marks it will treated as no longer brand new, barcoded and return back to inventory as unfillable so that seller can get the item back.
If the seal is not broken or the product looks as new, they still barcoded and put back to inventory as sellable.
If the product sold by Amazon itself, and the product is no longer brand new - they will sell it under Amazon warehouse as used and cheaper.
I don't work in this department, but they do check.
I have a question In regards to large boxes being used to pack small items.
Australia is vastly under resourced when it comes to couriers/carriers; evident by the increase of sole operator/uber type setups.
Having used Startrack accounts before for our business, they charge for everything including handling of larger items, fuel levys and raw cargo volume/vs weight. In most cases calculated volume is far greater than actual weight. I doubt this is any different to Amazon…Surely Amazon would be looking at ways to make this far more effiecient. In some cases we have recieved items where the box is 4-6 x larger in volume than the item itself. Not to mention the extra fuel/resources required for this. It doesnt seem very sustainable.
We did the maths. Assuming they do this for every second parcel, amazon would be using the equivelent of around 2 full extra vans for the volume of goods they actually carry. Its ALOT of air.
So my only reasoning for this is that its purely based around the capacity of the driver himself, and the ability to service a specific area with an x amount of parcels? In other words it doesnt matter how many can fit in the van. It comes down to what the driver can physically deliver in a day?
Is this factored in at any point, or is it really a computer telling you how and what to do/use?
Each new product that gets added to amazon get's scanned and the box size is determined from that point when you scan the item , it tells you which box to put in, almost 70% of cosmetics , usb cables, and many many other things are using oversized box..which is a complete waste. You as a packer can override this. Sometimes what happens is, a very LARGE thick book asks you to put it in JM2 box….which if you did that you would damage the book, so you override it and i guess use your brain so you don't damage the book, sometimes you need a bigger box to what the computer tells you and other way around.
Do you pack using envelopes or is that a different line? Do you prefer boxes or padded evenlopes, for say a small or large book?
The packing with envelopes like you find in australia post are in ''main line''. I like small thin books that go into padded envelopes. They are the best to pack. Simple,fast and easy. The padded envelopes come in 3 different sizes. JM2, JM8, JM9. The larger thicker books go into JM8 OR JM9….and smaller thin books or items go into JM2.
Even none book small items sometimes go into those padded envelopes. They are easy to do.
Can you talk/chat to others while working?
I do, some do….some don't. so as long as you are being productive at same time.
If you're interested in witnessing Amazon operations firsthand, make sure to check this link frequently: https://amazontours.com/au/onsite/BWU2. From time to time they open the dates for free guided tours of their warehouse in Kemps Creek, NSW. I had the opportunity to attend one myself, and it was truly incredible.
When I ordered an item I received a wrong item twice even after I sent it back to get the same exact wrong item. Why does this happen?
What are the career progression options?
W
It's very quick. You can go from packer to something decent in 6-12 months if you into it.
head of the sticky tape department?
or box manager
I snorted way too loudly
Head receiver.
i wish, they wouldn't move me from shipdock in TYO9 to some where else because i was too efficient they put me on a do not move list …..and wouldn't make me a leader or trainer because i dont take shit when im abused even though i worked far harder and know the systems better, probably because i was a gaijin, did packing for a few weeks that was pretty easy and now im in STI Reactive and i bloody hate it id rather be at shipdock, what do you think about the place is where you are any different
…probably because i was a gaijin…
OP is talking about Amazon AUYou are talking about Amazon JPThough not surprising that even when working for a US company in Japan, management would treat foreigners differently
We used to get multiple bags of cat litter (2 or 3 15kg bags) in a box but now we get individual bags in individiual boxes. Is this to avoid back injury to delivery drivers?
Because 2x 15kg would be 30kg….now days must be under 23-23kg for your back
Sorry, 15kg. They are 15ltr each
That's honestly a very good thing, you don't want a back injury when you're lifting things in a hurry or fatigued.
In addition to my previous question
1) Is there a shrine of Jeff Bezo's that you're required to pray to before / during / after each shift?
2) Do the managers and everyone in authority call themselves 'Bezo's Angels'
Someones obsessed with bezos….
Why as a long time Prime Member am i blocked from purchasing so many items especially on Prime day just because i live in metro WA ? I realise freight etc but cant these larger items be delivered to local WA warehouse in expectation of the Prime orders theyll get ? Seems unfair.
Best AMA for me for some reason. It does open up to see how Amazon treats their employees in aus compared to the US.
Laws……its because laws and unions
something the USA doesn't have much of
plus it seems like the persons only answering questions that arent that bad… other questions get ignored.
That is correct, without the people standing together in union, companies will screw the worker over badly.
If it was not for australian laws and etc….it would be worse. They try to do semi american operation in the warehouse for the new ''fresh'' blood that joined…but here is the thing, they do it in a sly way….so kind of like…….we not pushing you to hit your targets but you must hit them……..they won't tell you this to your face…….your shifts will be cut and you become irrelevant. They push you….without….making it obvious…does that make sense?
…does that make sense?
PerfectlyAmazon AU does not need humans in the warehousing process - JD warehouses in China already prove thisBut since the local operation pays minimal tax and also bids for government contracts through AWS, they must keep a certain level of Australians employed to maintain a level of respectability
How or where can you buy legit bulk crates from Amazon?
I always see the ads on Facebook but they look like scam.
I will find this out for you, as i want to know as well. I never really asked. But i know one time i asked a manager they do auction them
That would be great. Thanks!
How many boxes do you pack on average of an hour?
If all the boxes and tape etc…is in front of me and i don't have to refill and get distracted…. i can pack 200-230 small single items per hour. That would be a single book in a single satchel or box, or a single perfume in a single small box. Around 200-230…but if i take it easy 150-160.
In the slap line again if no distraction and no paper or box issues…..and they are just slaps and no boxing needed i can get 4-5 items in a single minute. The machine takes sometime to print the label few seconds.
In the warehouse, do Amazon supply the workers with Amazon Basics branded tools and equipment to use?
A vending machine exists for gloves,glove hangers or clip to hang anything off it and box cutters….you are given a pin number, you enter a pin number select glove size and it drops for you. You are allowed around 2 new gloves per week.
Most of the time I've ordered books they arrive dusty, dirty or damaged. Is this normal for the library section? - noticed this with Booktopia too, book depository use to have this on occasion before Amazon bought em. Local bookstores don't have this problem.
I think in most amazon warehouses they have book printers, the books are printed inside the warehouse by amazon and sent out to the customer. It could have been printed and stored sometime ago, that is why you get it dirty , dusty or damaged. Think a bunnings warehouse and times it by 3-5 times and all items stored so it gets dirty
I think in most amazon warehouses they have book printers, the books are printed inside the warehouse by amazon and sent out to the customer.
Nope. Most english books are printed in either Asia(mostly China), the USA, or UK. Books generally say where they are printed! I've found full colour books to be mostly printed in China and the remainder B&W in US/UK - I just checked by looking at some books purchased through Amazon, book depo, booktopia and local book stores.
It could have been
printedand stored sometime ago, that is why you get it dirty , dusty or damaged.These are newly published books in the last 1-5 years. And warehouse policy dictates not to store most stuffs past certain dates like supermarkets. The longer an item sits and takes space in a warehouse the more it costs. I can definitely understand dirt and dust in a warehouse just not damage..
I am pretty sure almost all books are printed within Australia and in particular i think they are printed in the Sydney Moorebank warehouse.
@MrTillets: They're not lol. Just look inside the books. I can list some if u want. Amazon are in for profit margins. Printing books is not economical for a retailer
@MrTillets: Okay so they have a printing press. What books are printed I have no idea - probably best sellers or fiction novels mostly. Most if not all books I have, are printed in China or USA/UK. Whether by Amazon in the USA/UK I'm unsure and would have to look into.
Saying that not all books are printed at Amazon that are sold on there, you need copyright permissions to do so.
That tour video also didn't show full color printing so I'm believing articles I've read online over someone on Ozbargin saying so without a video for proof.
@foxmulder: As someone involved and interested in engineering and automation, that video is fascinating.
I've just learnt a lot.
Thanks.
Amazon has a book printing service, but what you say isn't true, From my experience at MEL1, Most books are stored in a library type shelving unit/bins, but books can and will have other items in the same bin, so it's easy for them to get damaged, dusty etc. some will get bent or heavy items placed on them. It was very rare to see a pallet of the same book, unless it was a best seller. The Barefoot Investor comes to mind, back in the day.
I want to work there, please help
Google addeco. It's in a previous post ;)
Hey wassup y’all I have some questions :) xoxox
People can also see inside Amazon's biggest warehouse in oz - not sure tours are available or were.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7689350/take-a-look-i…
If you Google it you might find a video or 2.
During prime day sales, as an employee do u have dibs to any sale offers including lightning deals before or after sales?
no we dont, we don't even get discounts
How long have you worked at Amazon? How much longer do you think you'll work there? Are you interested in the career progression? What was your previous job?
Does Amazon give you lunch like in US or do you have to organize it yourself?