Say what you will about Amazon, the retail and delivery giant that has become one of America's largest employers, but it gets the jaws flapping.
In a virtual sense, in particular. Last week, I wrote a news story about Amazon building a distribution warehouse in Mills River that will employ about 200 people, with everyone guaranteed a minimum of $15 an hour.
It didn't take long for the news to make it the Asheville Politics Facebook page, where a carousel of comments generally poo-pooed the coming of Amazon as just a bunch of crummy jobs at a company that doesn't take good care of its employees.
It's started off nice enough, with a chipper, "This is great for our area!"Then it turned sour.
A sampling:
"This is part of the plan, destroy small and medium size businesses and offer only jobs in mega corporations."
"I wonder if their wage will cover the cost of livingin Asheville. I doubt it will cover rent, much less mortgages. Our community needs to demand living wage, sustainable development, not knee-jerk, desperate any-business-will-do."
"I am amazed at people arguing about how 'good'this is. This is a multi-billion dollar monopolist concern, that pays (poop)for benefits and (poop)for wages."
Pay in the median range?
Sure, it's a $28 million investment, and an Amazon spokesman told me via email that"all associates will be paid at least $15 per hour from day one," and the company often includes benefits such as health insurance and a 401(k) savings plan. But the hate for Amazon ruled.
Hey, I get it. Amazon has garnered a lot of attention for its employment practices, ranging from low pay and demandingworking conditions to a recent critical report on CBS' 60 Minutes that questioned the company's commitment to keeping warehouse workers safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also, it does not help that Amazon Owner Jeff Bezos is poised to become a trillionaire —yes, with a 't' —by 2026, as Business Insider reported last week. Seriously, I think Bezos could peel off a few million dollar bills from his money clipand pay employees more.
But let's get back to the Mills River facility, which is in northern Henderson County and likely will employ folks from Henderson, Buncombe and Transylvania counties, and maybe even more distant ones.
Based on a 40-hour week, that $15 an hour equals $31,200 annually. That's not "I'm buying me a Lamborghini!" kind of dough, but it's a decent living.
The median household income for Henderson County (and that can include more than one worker) was $52,815 in 2018, and per capita (or person), it was $29,860. For Buncombe County, the numbers were $50,668 and $31,439, respectively, according to U.S. Census data.
So the jobs are about average.ZipRecruiter.com states the average annual pay for Amazon Distribution workers is $32,055, with a range of $20,000-$47,500. The company hires a combination of full- and part-time workers.
On its website, Amazon states, "Though benefits can vary based on location, number of regularly scheduled hours worked, length of employment, and job status (such as part-time, seasonal, or temporary), they include: Medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage. 401(k) savings plan with 50 percent company match."
I'm not dropping to my knees, thanking the employment gods for plunking down a huge concrete warehouse off U.S. 280, as these jobs offerhard work for average pay. But I'm also not in the haters group, especially in a time when so many people are out of work and a lot of jobs might not come back real soon, even when we do reopen fully from the pandemic.
Another Facebook commenter hit the nail on the head, I thought, with this:
"I love this.
Asheville Politics: 'We need more diversity of jobs in the area. Having nothing but tourism is killing our economy.'
Also Asheville Politics: 'No. Not those jobs.'"
That's the rub for me. People tend to look at jobs sometimes with what comes off as an elitist attitude. For a lot of people, with varying educational backgrounds, these Amazon positions are indeed good jobs.
Sure, the haters hate corporations, even though most people work for them, and they really hate mega-wealthy corporations whose owners hoard cash like King Midas.
Fair enough, although painting with such a broad brush isusually not truly fair. Allow me to generalize, as one of those poor schmucks who works for a corporation: All companies provide a workplace environment that some people are just not going to like.
Everybody complains at some point in their lives about pay or terrible hours or stressful demands or terrible bosses or whatever. It's what we humans do best: complain. And when we really don't like a workplace, we move on.
Should Amazon pay more? Absolutely. Can it afford to? Double absolutely.
But our area remainsheavily tourism-dependent, especially ever since the 1990s when all the large manufacturers started closing down or moving to China. Amazon's business model is growing, and that means those jobs should provide security and steady wages, which in turn means regular working people are able to live here.
Are the Amazon jobs living wage?
The Amazon employees won't live like kings and queens, because our cost of living is so high around here, but two people working at these wages could afford a home and other basics.
And yes, the Amazon jobs are living wage jobs.
“As far as our living wage threshold, those jobs are in line with our living wage threshold,” said Vicki Meath, executive director of Asheville-basedJust Economics, which has certified 450 mountain companies as paying living wages."We have a rural rate that provides for counties outside of Buncombe, so that would meet that rural rate.”
To be certified by Just Economics as a living wage company in Buncombe County in 2020, the employer has to pay "atleast the current living wage to all regular full- and part-time employees, which is $15.50 an hour without qualifying employer provided health insurance, or $14 an hour with employer provided health insurance.For WNC areas outside of Buncombe County, the rate is $12.60 an hour," Just Economics states on its website.
Let me be clear: Meath was not endorsing Amazon or commenting on their business practices. In fact, she mentioned that she's seen some reports about Amazon's labor practices that concern her.
"We also do look at living wage as one piece of puzzle of creating agood job," Meath said. "I think the other things are worker safety and protection, benefits, how workers are treated in the workplace, if workers have a chance to voice opinions orcollectively bargain or join together. I think of them asother pieces of that puzzle."
CITY LEADERS:Boost worker pay, slow transit upgrades, no urban forester
ANSWER MAN:300,000-square-foot buildingin Fletcher? Hanger company coming?
UNEMPLOYMENT PLUNGES:... while Asheville monthly job totals set records
NEW JOBS:Economic development leaders seek 'broad community prosperity'
FROM MINIMUM WAGE TO TRADE:NC voters and candidates speak on the economy
AMAZON IN NC?:Amazon bringing $28M distribution center, 200 jobs to Mills River
Clark Duncan, executive director of theEconomic Development Coalition for Asheville-Buncombe County, offered a similar assessment, saying, "Defining a ‘good job’ requires we look at the whole picture."
"That begins with starting wage, but compensation also includes benefits and employer contribution to medical coverage, retirement savings, training and education," Duncan said via email. "Smart employers are making these long-term investments in the personal and financial health of their workforce."
He stresses that longer-term picture.
"Most importantly, I look for career ladders and opportunity for advancement," Duncan said. "The arrival of Amazon is a great thing, and strengthens those pathways for upward economic mobility in the Asheville Metro."
Are these "great jobs?" I'd say no.
But in the real world we're living in, they're pretty good.
This is the opinion of John Boyle. Contact him at 828-232-5847 or jboyle@citizentimes.com
)
