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Eurogamer: Amazon fires UK driver who drove off with boy's birthday PS5
- Thread starter Saucycarpdog
- Start date
- News
I agree and its becoming worse with Amazon dealing with shadier delivery drivers around rhe world. What would solve this would be asking all delivery drivers like US law enforcement is to wear a camera when delivery or have a camera in there car pointed at them when delivering, so there would no doubt that he did deliver it or caused the theft.
Prison ≠ Jail
They're two different things. You're not going to go to prison for stealing a PS5 unless you have priors, but simply slapping them with a fine isn't likely to be enough of a deterrent for someone who is willing to steal a $500 item.
How about companies actually hire people, instead of contracting in more and more predatory ways, and pays them fairly for decent work conditions, so that no one would even consider risking his livelihood for a PS5.
A £499 toy still costs £499. If someone ripped a phone out of your hand in the street you wouldn't be calling it a toy. Also, I never said jail time, but you can't just take valuable items and not face some kind of criminal record, be it a suspended sentence or otherwise.
Stealing anything worth over (roughly) 250 dollars is a felony here in Europe.
You won't get jail time for your first offense, but you can absolutely get jailed if you do it again.
I hope that kid can pursue charges on that guy. Hope that was worth losing your job over, idiot.
Pretty much, agreed. Amazon are scum.
Amazon logistics don't fall under that legislation. The Postal Service Act only applies to Royal Mail.
It somebody's hard earned money paying for that toy, what the item is has no bearing on the crime committed.
Also, it's not the US and we have many other strands to our justice system (as flawed as it is, like it's makers). No one is saying lock him up (he wouldn't) but don't steal shit and you won't have people asking for punishment.
Yea wtf. Era is more (economically) left than I am but is surprisingly much more tough on crime lol
My reaction to these cases hinge on whether the courier tries to forge a received receipt or not. If it's Amazon that's stuck with the loss, I can't feel too bad - sure, the buyer didn't get a PS5 but there are tons of people that want a PS5 and can't get one right now. But if the courier forges the receipt, making it harder to get a refund and the buyer is both stuck without the PS5 and the money, that's a lot worse.
Why do we always pull out "it's a toy", when it's time to talk down to someone?
You're not going to die without access to a PS5 lets not try and burry the guy beneath the jail lol
This is a very expensive "toy". Would you be saying the same thing if someone stole your phone?
Because of course it means if you care so much you "must be a child!"
That aside, there's a difference between jail and something like community service.
The dude is fired, and probably wont be getting a job like this again, that's already punishment.
If an extra layer of punishment should be a return of stolen property + a fine of some kind, sure that's probably appropriate.
But lets keep it real here, ya'll are feening for this man to be put in jail over a god damn toy (an expensive toy) and I'm just saying that's fucked up.
It being a toy or not really doesn't matter. I really don't get that argument. I don't think if he stole some rich persons watch or something that that somehow has more value and now he should be put into jail.
I don't think he should be put into jail, but not because it's a toy. The idea that something a child owns has no value is just inherently backwards to me. There's much more importance in toys for kids than a lot of more "important" stuff.
Amazon probably pays their drivers shit.
UPS (for sure) and Fedex (I think) drivers are unionized and make very large salaries ($70k+ with enough experience) - it's a huge disincentive to steal things like PS5s when you're already making high five figures and have all the benefits of a union job. I doubt Amazon pays them anywhere near that - or if they're still independent contractors, even offers them any benefits.
£400 compensation? That's unbelievable (literally).
I'm surprised people are even getting offered £50.
The standard compensation is a £5 credit to the account, but Amazon mailshotted people like myself and gave £10 amazon credit. (I posted a screenshot of the email I received earlier)
I also raised a complaint to John Boumphrey who is the managing director of Amazon in the UK and had the "executive team" respond but offered nothing.
You'd never in a million years go to jail for stealing £50 out of a cash register in the UK, at least not unless you already had previous convictions.
I never said the dude needed to go to jail. I was just saying I can see why others might think so and would expect that to be the case. Literally could care less about Amazon losing money even if it sucks for the birthday boy.
What world are people saying 'why would you lose your job over a PS5?' living in. He didn't steal it to play it ffs. Right now scalpers are selling PS5s for anywhere up to and over £1000. There was that one thread on this forum about an £800 purchase.
Amazon delivery drivers, even their more well known partners like Hermes, start on minimum wage £8.72 per hour, on zero hour contracts so never guaranteed a full 40 hours a week, and on top of that for the worse subcontractors any damage / wear and tear to their van has to be covered by themselves. Frankly a lot of the sub sub contractors are people working cash in hand who couldn't get any other job for various reasons (language, perhaps legal reasons).
Stealing 1 PS5 could literally net the equivalent of a few months salary to these people, and it's so easy. Just mark the delivery as done but never show up. It's your word against theirs, worst case scenario the package is determined 'lost in the system' and if Amazon have suspicions like this case or see a trend with some contractors they won't let you work with them again (or say that, doubtful they even have a record of who the exact driver is). The chance of getting caught for just 1 is absolutely minuscule. Who wouldn't be tempted?
Amazon delivery drivers, even their more well known partners like Hermes, start on minimum wage £8.72 per hour, on zero hour contracts so never guaranteed a full 40 hours a week, and on top of that for the worse subcontractors any damage / wear and tear to their van has to be covered by themselves. Frankly a lot of the sub sub contractors are people working cash in hand who couldn't get any other job for various reasons (language, perhaps legal reasons).
Stealing 1 PS5 could literally net the equivalent of a few months salary to these people, and it's so easy. Just mark the delivery as done but never show up. It's your word against theirs, worst case scenario the package is determined 'lost in the system' and if Amazon have suspicions like this case or see a trend with some contractors they won't let you work with them again (or say that, doubtful they even have a record of who the exact driver is). The chance of getting caught for just 1 is absolutely minuscule. Who wouldn't be tempted?
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Nuts. I mean you had to get two jobs to get a PS3, for a PS5 I guess you have to sacrifice your current job?
Great post. I just don't understand how amazon didn't class ps5's as valuable items requiring password delivery..I mean that alone is a failure. I mean is that option even a option people can request at cost? I bet everyone would have paid a ten buck premium if they had the chance
Seeing the lax nature of contracting during the pandemic, is it crazy to think thieves are deliberately taking these bad subcontracting jobs in order to get PS5s "for free"?
It's hard for me to think it would be tough to get a job as a delivery driver for Amazon given the impossible 1 day delivery guarantees. Seems like a ripe avenue to steal with the less of a fear of severe legal action.
It's hard for me to think it would be tough to get a job as a delivery driver for Amazon given the impossible 1 day delivery guarantees. Seems like a ripe avenue to steal with the less of a fear of severe legal action.
That could be a poor family that saved long and hard to get that for the kids birthday.
You calling it a toy to diminish what was done misses out on nuances like that. Here is an idea, I will break in and take your expensive toys ... all good?
You might get shot and lose your life, forget about jail time lol.
AFAIK, FedEx is non-union and tends to run their drivers in to the ground. UPS drivers are union, and paid pretty well. USPS is unionized and pays pretty well for what it is, but the work load can be absolutely hellish until you reach full-time career status. Amazon around here tends to pay $15 an hour for drivers, USPS starts at $17 an hour for comparison.
I'm sorry to say guys but the implication made in here by many about how shit a job and how shit an employer Amazon is makes an excuse for theft is bullshit.
Worked many shit jobs for minimum wage, sometimes less than ... didn't give me carte blanche to be a thief.
Worked many shit jobs for minimum wage, sometimes less than ... didn't give me carte blanche to be a thief.
Because of COVID package signature doesn't mean jack shit these days. I have several packages from multiple delivery services with signature required. The drivers just put it my name in without my presence. This definitely opens up opportunities for delivery drivers to steel shit. In case of Amazon where the pay is shit, it's an easy choice for some.
Jail time for theft under $500? They stole a PS5, lost their job, and obviously didn't get to keep the console. If we start putting people in jail for petty theft, we're going to redefine the term "overflow" in regards to prisons.
No wonder there isn't any accountability. People prioritize livelihoods too much over standards.
If you actually fire people, guess what? People will smarten up.
It's not "carte blanche to be a thief". The system in place puts many people in a position where they're tempted by the notion of theft because the risk / reward of stealing one package could be the difference between having food on the that night for their family. Yes, even employed people.
I've worked for NO money (internship during college), but I also recognize my privileged position where the idea of theft has never entered the equation of my daily existence.
This is largely why it's wrong to want to jail people for stealing a toy.
It's not wrong at all. It's not like they were stealing food. Plus if it wasn't on camera it's just one person's word against theirs. I've been blamed for stolen goods before and it's a bunch of bullshit.
This. Also the fact that it is a toy is immaterial.
Jail time is a bit harsh but the dude made a conscious to do it as an adult so a return of the goods and a fine/citation should be the way.
I'm not talking about jail, I am talking about those saying him losing his job is enough. If it is such a throw away job, is it?
Also £150 a day (what Amazon drivers get in the UK) isn't enough to put food on the table?
I was raised by my Mum on benefits and we always had food on the table and she got nowhere near £150 a week.
I grew up in poverty and much of my peer group have been involved in criminality, I know the life you are theorizing about and I will still call out bullshit.
Amazon doesn't care at all about customer service to actually go through with this. They'll just refund and move on to the next sucker.
People are crazy. Between the scarcity of the new consoles and this pandemic. Just mad that someone would steal consoles to make short term profit.
This is not wrong at all. There are consequences for actions made that people need to be held accountable for. Granted, theft is on the lower end of the spectrum of criminality, so it's not as if they're getting 1st degree murder sentences.
Also, while the example of stealing because of poverty/desperation may apply in certain situations, that's not always the case. Instead, the whole PS5 theft/scalping nonsense is driven by greed more so than anything.
Weird strawman. The family are still going to get their ps5, it's just going to take a little longer. The only people who are going to lose any money on this are Amazon's insurance company.
There's no way in hell you know this. You can't possibly know why any given person took actions that at minimum mean they will lose their job.
Also scalping and theft aren't even closely related...
It's still theft under $500 (or £500 in the UK). At the very worst, community service is in order. They've lost their job, which is enough of a punishment for somebody desperate enough to steal a tracked package.
As for damages to the consumer, I've had a dozen or so Amazon packages stolen, and I've had every single situation resolved. In the end, I'm not harmed. The only party harmed is Amazon, and I'm going to get another package sent out to replace the stolen one. So I get my stuff at a later date, whatever. It sucks, it's an inconvenience, but it's extremely low on the criminality scale.
This is a terrible way to justify this. When I worked in retail I had access to all kinds of high value goods. Moreover, I was one of the few people that could do a certain kind of stock check on items. I never stole anything. Putting aside the fact I have less of a problem stealing directly from a huge mega coroeration than from people who have already bought the item, here is why stealing is wrong:
1) If you are caught, you will lose not only your job but you will also find it harder to find a new job.
2) If you aren't caught, an investigation will be carried out and everyone who handled the item will be treated with suspicion. It is perfectly possible the wrong person could get fired, and the person that did it will not come forward.
I also think the assumption poor people will steal is insulting.
Lmao what are you even talking about?
Yeah mate no idea what these guys are doing disrespecting this dream job. Your mum would've loved the opportunity to have to piss in a bottle just to make a liveable wage I'm sure.
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Basically this. I'm a uni student working at DPD right now because I need money and it's quick to sign up. I've done various different jobs and DPD is by far the hardest I've ever had to work for just £8.72 an hour. You also basically have no worker rights as you're easily expendable, nearly every workers/drivers who's been there for a bit, their back is destroyed because they preach about manual handling but demand you work at a pace where all that goes out the window and on top of that they can't even pay you correctly each week. I've managed to keep at it because I know it's not my end goal.
Stealing is wrong obviously but selling one PS5 for the marked up price can literally make someone's life much much easier. Its still wrong though.
When I worked at Walmart a support manager got fired for pocketing a couple hands of clearanced candy.