Bluegoat Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I've been trying to use alternates to Amazon for a while, for things I can't get locally - initially after reading about their employment practices with lower level employees. I read this article today, about their corporate culture - yuck! It just makes me more determined to boycott them. What other online places do people have good luck finding books - both for school purposes and just for reading? What do you like about them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 The New York Times story has been met with criticism from multiple other sources—and a NYT editor has even criticized the report's lack of balance and context. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 BetterWorldBooks -- I like them because they donate to literacy programs, have used & new books in a wide variety, & offer free shipping. Powell's Books -- I like them because they are an independent bookstore, offer a flat rate for shipping ($3.99 or free w/ orders over $50), & have a variety of new & used books. You might also want to check for local, independent bookstores in your area. I have one right down the street from me & use them for most of my book purchases. They are mostly a used bookstore, but they will order any new book I want, give me 10% off the cover price, & usually have it in for me within one to three days. Plus, I'm supporting a local businessperson in my community. To find independent bookstores, check out IndieBound. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carla Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I don't know anything about their practices regarding employees or corporate culture, but I have used Bookdepository.com frequently. They offer free shipping with no minimum order and usually have what Amazon has (for me, anyways, I use Amazon.ca) at a similar price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthwestMom Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 The New York Times story has been met with criticism from multiple other sources—and a NYT editor has even criticized the report's lack of balance and context. This is true. Anecdotally, from my friends who work at Amazon (I have several) and friends who know others who do - everyone agrees with the gist of the story. I would not want anyone I cared about to work there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 Thank you for the ideas everyone! I know the article has been critisized. But like NorthwestMom, everything I have ever seen or heard about them points in the same direction - to a really sick work culture, and one that I think is socially dangerous. Whatever the reporting failures of this story, I just have no doubts that what it describes is true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 A positive story for working for Amazon. A dear friend of DH's works in one of the warehouses- he praises working for them. They worked with him while he was severely injured from an accident and when he had a major medical issue. He still works for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Thriftbooks. Com is another good alternative Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxbridgeacademy Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Belltower Books is cheaper then Amazon (for most used books) has more then just textbooks (also children's fiction for example) $1 shipping per book, but they have their own personnel issues that may or may not be acceptable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 http://fortune.com/2015/08/16/amazon-new-york-times-response/ My cousin works there and loves it. And one of my husband's interns is there now and happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I read this article today, about their corporate culture - yuck! It just makes me more determined to boycott them. I just read this article. It isn't a culture that I would want to work in, but it does remind me of what I have heard working in a large law firm is like. Mr. Bezos clearly has a worldview that I don't ascribe to and it drives his company culture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 This one was better than the other one I linked. https://medium.com/@nickciubotariu/an-amazonian-s-response-to-inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace-b06ca4f6d53a Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I read this article today, about their corporate culture - yuck! It just makes me more determined to boycott them. It sounds like their being upfront about what a lot of white collars jobs are like anyway. The company I worked for prettied it up in corporate lingo and politically correct front line statements, but the competitiveness was there, not quite to the level described in the article, but it was a different industry and a different time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wendyroo Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I just read this article. It isn't a culture that I would want to work in, but it does remind me of what I have heard working in a large law firm is like. Mr. Bezos clearly has a worldview that I don't ascribe to and it drives his company culture. The other thing the article reminded me of was my time at MIT. Almost every student there will tell you IHTFP which simultaneously conveys I Have Truly Found Paradise AND I Hate This F*cking Place. The environment is designed to be brutal and creative and exhausting and competitive. Students are pushed beyond what they think they can achieve which does lead to sleepless nights and tears and resentments...and world class innovations. MIT is not the right place for every student and it doesn't sound like Amazon is the right place for every worker. Then again, we aren't talking about indentured servitude; we're talking about voluntary employment at a place of business. Wendy 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Reminds me of working in Silicon Valley in the '90s. ETA: Book Depository is owned by Amazon. (Unless they broke off?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melbotoast Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I think thriftbooks is also owned by amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 The other thing the article reminded me of was my time at MIT. Almost every student there will tell you IHTFP which simultaneously conveys I Have Truly Found Paradise AND I Hate This F*cking Place. The environment is designed to be brutal and creative and exhausting and competitive. Students are pushed beyond what they think they can achieve which does lead to sleepless nights and tears and resentments...and world class innovations. MIT is not the right place for every student and it doesn't sound like Amazon is the right place for every worker. Then again, we aren't talking about indentured servitude, we're talking about voluntary employment at a place of business. Wendy I don't think I really buy the idea that employment being voluntary makes bad contract or working conditions ok - this very same argument has in the past been used to stop legislation against all kinds of things that were good for employers and bad for workers - from workplace safety to poverty wages to no breaks, sexually harassing workplaces, and even child exploitation. It's always a temptation for employers to take advantage of workers, because realistically employment isn't actually voluntary - in a capitalist economy where most people are workers rather than owners, workers have only limited control over the job market. Historically this kind of exploitation is seen whenever employers are allowed to set the conditions of employment without much interference. And it isn't like that sort of thing stays confined to one place - it inevitably spills over into other workplaces that need to compete. The conditions of employment for warehouse workers are an example - sub-contracting those jobs to temp agencies means that the employers can get away with employment practices that would otherwise be illegal. It's unjust in itself, and workers aren't in a position just to go work elsewhere, because that kind of situation takes over the job market. It's even bad for the economy as a whole because it inevitably creates a class of non-workers and even workers are too unstable to be effective economic contributors. I think everyone knows that there are a few jobs that are so demanding in themselves that they will only be suited for a few people, often ones who are willing to give up things like a family life, or who have a spouse at home full time. And some jobs have very intense periods. But I think that is quite different from a workplace, or an entire economy, that views its workers not as people, but as production units. Even some slave societies didn't have that view of their slaves. I don't think the problem with this is really about a workplace that is meant to push people - those places can bring out a lot of excellent things in people. But they work well when they also recognize people's human needs, and they offer supports for the sacrifices they ask for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaConquest Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 I just read this article. It isn't a culture that I would want to work in, but it does remind me of what I have heard working in a large law firm is like. Mr. Bezos clearly has a worldview that I don't ascribe to and it drives his company culture. That reminds me of the time that a partner at my firm went into the hospital for a quad bypass. His assistant sent a firmwide email letting us know that he would be out of the office for surgery, "but checking his Blackberry." Sigh. Anecdotally, I have a friend who woks for Amazon's IT department and loves it. He originally worked in the Seattle HQ, but has been seconded to Beijing for the past few years. As far as alternatives, I have been buying a lot of stuff on Jet.com. Their selection isn't as vast as Amazon's, but their prices are amazing! WAPO just did a comparison. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/business/wp/2015/08/21/i-placed-the-same-order-at-amazon-jet-and-wal-mart-heres-how-they-did/?tid=sm_fb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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