Senators pressure Jeff Bezos over Amazon schedules they say squeeze workers

Amazon, the second largest private employer in the United States, is under fresh bipartisan scrutiny from federal lawmakers over its treatment of work...

Amazon, the second largest private employer in the United States, is under fresh bipartisan scrutiny from federal lawmakers over its treatment of workers.

In a letter to Amazon founder and executive chair Jeff Bezos sent Friday, Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) raised concerns about how the company schedules shifts for hourly warehouse and delivery workers. A 2024 survey from the Shift Project at the Harvard Kennedy School suggests those employees are required to use a system that can leave them with “volatile and unreliable schedules - and uncertain paychecks,” the senators wrote.

Harvard data provided to Warren’s office found that 41 percent of Amazon workers surveyed receive their work schedule less than two weeks in advance, suggesting it uses an automated “just-in-time” scheduling system, the letter said.

Systems of that kind can put an employer’s convenience first and burden workers with unpredictable schedules and pay that make it difficult to organize child care, education and second jobs, the senators claimed.

“Sometimes, these practices mean workers simply don’t get enough hours at work - effectively forcing them to become part-time workers,” the letter said.