Amazon Employees Deal With the Unexpected
With corporate layoffs underway at numerous Amazon offices, employees have plenty of reasons to be on edge.
But in New York, the jitters increased Thursday morning when an Audi sedan parked not far from the company’s New York City office building’s entrance at 450 West 33rd Street burst into flames. New York City firefighters extinguished the fire in front of 50 Hudson Yards and no injuries were reported, according to a New York City Fire Department spokesperson, who declined any further comment.
More from WWD
The Seattle-based tech juggernaut signed the lease for reportedly 359,000 square feet of office space in the 1.8 million-square-foot building several years ago.
Asked about the fire, an Amazon spokesperson said late in the day Thursday, “At this point, we don’t have any additional information to share.”
Like Meta, Twitter and other major tech companies, Amazon is in the midst of making substantial cuts to its workforce. While Meta is laying off 13 percent of its staff — more than 11,000 employees — and Twitter has slashed its 7,000-plus global team by 50 percent, Amazon has yet to publicly pin a number on its job cuts.
Meanwhile with holiday shopping picking up steam, some neighborhood watch groups and police departments are reminding shoppers to safeguard deliveries wherever possible. “Porch piracy” has become a problem for many online shoppers who increased their purchases during the pandemic. According to a recent Security.org survey of 18,000 adults in 50 states about the issue, nearly 49 million Americans have had at least one package stolen in the past 12 months, with the median value of stolen merchandise being $50, according to the company.
Meanwhile, the New York City Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying a thirtysomething 5-foot, 7-inch female of light complexion, who was operating an Amazon delivery truck in Brooklyn on the afternoon of Oct. 29. After exiting the vehicle to deliver packages at a home at 58th Street and 13th Avenue, the person removed and opened packages that had already been delivered to a nearby residence before fleeing the location in the company truck to parts unknown.
No injuries have been reported in this grand larceny incident, according to the NYPD. The individual was last seen wearing an Amazon vest, an orange hoodie and orange sneakers. Any tips are to be directed to NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline, via the CrimeStoppers’ site or on Twitter@NYPDTips.
In other Amazon-related news, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union put the word out to media about its plans to join a few other unions and community groups in standing in solidarity outside the Amazon facility in Bessemer, Alabama, on Friday as part of a worldwide day of actions directed at Amazon. Unions will be demonstrating and striking as part of Make Amazon Pay, an effort to hold Amazon responsible for its alleged “poor working conditions and negative impact on communities,” the RWDSU said.
Best of WWD
