
© BFN NewsAmazon CEO Jeff Bezos
It has been a turbulent 24 hours for retail giant Amazon. First, the company's founder (and
world's richest individual)
Jeff Bezos announced that he would step down as CEO. Then, the
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ruled that the company had illegally stolen more than $61 million worth of customer tips meant for its delivery drivers.Under their contracts, Amazon drivers were supposed to make between $18 and $25 per hour and keep all their tips. However, since at least 2016,
the company had been secretly confiscating tips customers sent through an app, using their contributions to reduce their own wage payouts, meaning they were swindling both customers and employees. "In total, Amazon stole nearly one-third of drivers' tips to pad its own bottom line,"
said FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra.
Unlike corporate crime cases in
other nations,
Amazon will merely be required to pay back the money it took from employees. Thus, it will face no negative consequences, except a possible public relations backlash due to bad press.
Yet, instead of grilling Amazon, the media appear to be working hard to run defense for it, downplaying the nature of the crime in their headlines.
Comment: Creepy Joe running true to form. He probably means every word of it, in defiance of all reality.