E-commerce Delivery: Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger, Yet With No Regard For The Workers

With the holiday season upon us, the frenzy of shopping is also in full effect. Hoping to avoid long queues in the crowded shopping malls, many of us will turn to online retailers who will bring the perfect last-minute gift straight to our doorsteps with just enough time to slap some wrapping paper on it. But the near-instant delivery enabled by growing e-commerce platforms comes at a cost — and it's not just monetary.

A recent New York Times podcast may cause you to rethink your online purchases as a result of a very personal and moving account made by former warehouse worker Tasha Murrell, who offers a sobering look at the human toll of instant delivery. She describes horrid working conditions and mistreatment of workers at Verizon warehouse operated by the logistics giant XPO, where in order to meet the demand, low-paid employees would pull off 12-hour-plus shifts with little to no breaks. Some of the boxes to move would weigh up to 45 pounds (20 kilograms) and the indoor temperatures could reach above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius).

As a part of the interview, Ms Murrell recounts how she got pregnant while working for XPO. Despite a personal letter from her OB-GYN advising against heavy lifting, her supervisor denied her lighter work. Eventually, after a strenuous shift, Ms Murrell had a miscarriage. Not even months apart, four other women working at the same warehouse also lost their unborn babies.

And just when you think it couldn't be worse, you find it is. Last year, in the same warehouse, a female worker died of cardiac arrest after complaining of illness. The deceased woman laid on the warehouse floor for hours after the supervisors cordoned the area off with orange cones and ordered employees to just work around the body.

"I call it modern-day slavery with a little pay. That's what I call it,"

says Tasha Murrell in her poignant interview.