Amazon increases wages by $1 billion to attract and retain workers
Good morning! Happy Friday and welcome to the incoming weekend. Let’s get it started.
“You must learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t possibly live long enough to make them all yourself.”
– Sam Levenson, American humorist
With the holidays right around the corner, wage increases are the primary method the country’s largest suppliers and carriers are utilizing to increase peak season employment. But what about retention year around? Currently the country is experiencing a historically tight labor market and Amazon, one of the largest companies, is increasing its wages by approximately $1 billion to hopefully attract more potential employees.
Check out today’s featured article from CNBC to read about Amazon’s recent wage bump for its delivery workers to $19 per hour as they prepare for a busy peak season. ☕️
Featured Article:
Amazon hikes pay for warehouse and delivery workers | CNBC
“Amazon is raising its hourly wages for its warehouse and delivery workers, the company announced Wednesday.”
Network Association 🤝
USPS is making big moves to keep up with its competitors UPS and FedEx
The U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is looking to transform the government agency into a major competitor with private carriers such as FedEx and UPS. But will his changes be in vain?
DeJoy said in an interview with Supply Chain Dive that the goal of the organization is to be a cost-effective option for customers to use instead of a private shipper. Affordability and reliability are the priorities of the United States Postal Service moving forward. Some changes being implemented involve an expansion of its network of operations and an improvement in parcel deliveries.
From the years 2007 through 2020, the Postal Service reported losses totaling $87 billion.
Peak Season & Hiring 🎄
Companies need peak season labor spots filled - but will the workers answer their call?
The holiday season is also peak season for the supply chain. Some of the world’s largest supply chain providers will be looking for seasonal staffing soon, including UPS. The global freight delivery company is expecting to hire more than 100,000 workers to be driver helpers and package handlers. The United States Postal Service is also adding an additional 28,000 seasonal employees as part of its newly launched Delivering for America plan.
Regardless of the help needed to fulfill the peak season demand, it remains to be seen if the workers will show up to take the positions. The ongoing labor outlook is still grim, and there are no guarantees that companies can rely on an influx of workers submitting applications for peak season work.
Let’s Get Global 🌎
🇮🇳 India is increasing its cell-making capacity. While still trailing far behind its Western counterparts, India is looking for ways to adopt electric mobility on its borders. Electric vehicles being sold to Indian citizens are currently requiring the country to import most of its lithium-ion from China. India’s government is considering tax subsidies and delegating economic zones to boost raw material manufacturing of lithium, nickel, and cobalt. (Supply Chain Brain)
🇺🇸 Sanctions are incoming. The White House has announced that more Russian sanctions will be rolled out by both the United States and its allies. The previous sanctions do not seem to have deterred Russian President Vladimir Putin from its invasion of Ukraine and Ambassador James O’Brien of the State Department’s Office of Sanctions Coordination has advised that “anything is on the table”. (AJOT)
🇷🇺 Could it be sabotage? Three out of four of the pipes in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipeline network ruptured earlier this week. These pipes are responsible for delivering Russian gas to Germany… and many are suspicious the suspected explosions are the doing of Russia itself. None of the pipes were moving gas at the time due to political reasons involving Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. (The Maritime Executive)
iLevel With You
More topics for the average American household to consider…
🏈 Get your favorite NFL team merchandise in record time. Global digital sports platform Fanatics is entering into a partnership with a crowd-sourced delivery platform out of Atlanta, Georgia called Roadie. Roadie and Fanatics are working together in order to deliver licensed sports merchandise to the fans as quickly as possible… maybe even the very next day after ordering. Fanatics’ warehouses store merchandise for teams and players from the MLB, NBS, NFL, and more. Roadie’s founder and CEO Marc Gordon is voicing excitement for the collaboration, anticipating that eliminating the supply chain links that previously effected delivery times will increase customer satisfaction. (Supply Chain Management Review)
🛒 Costco prices will remain elevated - all expect the hot dog deal, of course. EVP and CFO Richard Galanti advised on a Q4 earnings call last week that customers should expect the higher cost of goods at their warehouses to remain, for the time being. The company’s suppliers wages are still increasing, despite the price of commodities declining. Because of that inflation, those costs will still be passed along to the customer. But fear not, Costco is determined to lower supplier costs with a few other methods. (Supply Chain Dive)
⚡️ Hurricane Ian leaves almost 3 million people without power. As far inland as Orlando the floodwater was waist-high and at least one death has been confirmed. While emergency crews are working hard to bring electricity and cell service back to citizens, the damage has been done. It’s expected that fuel will remain hard to find while a third of Tampa’s area remains without power. (TT News)
GET SMART
Ramp up that brain power for these advanced topics…
🤖 Embrace technology to its fullest. Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are being leverages by supply chains to fortify their operations after a tumultuous couple of years. In a survey conducted by IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV), almost half of respondents said that their company had invested in new automation technology over the past twenty-four months. Sustainable transparency is a hot topic issue as well, pushing COO’s to find ways for accelerating business growth that they can easily communicate to board members, investors, and customers. (DC Velocity)
📦 So, what’s cross dock? Crossdocking is the act of moving product from one door of a warehouse to the other side without repacking or adding any new value to the product. It’s a popular act in the retail world to use planned cross docking with an advanced ship notice (ASN). An ASN is provided by the shipper to alert the receiver exactly what’s being shipped and if it’s coming from an internal or external source. It can be difficult to execute operationally. (SC Digest)
🚛 Spot rates are on a slippery slope. DAT Freight & Analytics has reported that despite strong volumes, spot prices continues to decline over the month of August. However, the DAT’s Truckload Volume Index (TVI) for van freight was the highest ever at an 11.7% increase from the month of July. (Fleet Owner)
Business Strategy 💡
Why Sustainable Home Delivery Results in Greater Sales and Profitability | Logistics Viewpoints
Logistics Viewpoints contributor Chris Jones tackled the topic of sustainable home deliveries and how they can be profitable in the long run. Consumers are wanting to make more environmentally-friendly decisions but still receive their deliveries in a timely fashion. Both are possible.
Gartner lists three strategies to weather supply chain disruptions | DC Velocity
DC Velocity Staff writes about Gartner Inc’s recommendations of business strategies for companies to take when tackling supply chain disruptions.
How Supply Chain Management Helps Food Manufacturers Plan for Disruptions | Food Logistics
Food Logistics contributor Stephen Dombroski from QAD Inc. writes about food manufacturers are carefully monitoring transportation issues, market changes, and consumer behavior while planning for the future.
Trade & Border Issues 🗺
U.S. Goods-Trade Gap Narrows to Smallest Since October 2021 | Supply Chain Brain
Supply Chain Brain contributor Bloomberg writes about the smallest U.S. Goods trade gap since October of 2021 reported in August.
Supply Chain by the Numbers for Sept. 30, 2022 | SC Digest
Supply Chain Digest summarizes some of the biggest stories of the week, including China’s expensive Belt & Road Program and Apple moving production to India.
G Captain contributor Mike Schuler writes about the White House’s tentative “temporary and targeted” approval of a Jones Act Waiver for the island of Puerto Rico ager Hurricane Fiona made fuel reserves low.
Fuel Tech ♻️
Carbon is not the only truck emission | Back The Truck Up
Back The Truck Up contributor Michael Vincent writes about how carbon isn’t the only culprit that’s polluting the air. A sustainable trucking industry will have to analyze every bit of its footprint.
Regulations ⚖️
Bipartisan group of senators press Buttigieg on overdue tourism infrastructure plan | The Hill
The Hill contributor Zach Schonfeld writes about the increased pressure on Pete Buttigieg and the Department of Transportation from senators looking to revamp tourism infrastructure.
Leadership 🏆
“It’s all around people, process and technology” | Supply Chain Management Review
Supply Chain Management Review contributor Bob Trebilcock writes about Jabil’s chief supply chain and procurement officer Frank McKay’s thoughts on the past two years of supply chain issues.
Electric Vehicles 🔋
Maiden Flight for DHL’s First-Ever Fully Electric Plane | Supply Chain Brain
Supply Chain Brain’s team shares an article describing the first-ever fully-electric plane’s first flight - a project by DHL Express.
Warehousing 📦
Warehouse Operators Look to Optimize Operations | MHL News
MH&L News Staff writes about how warehouse operators are facing increases in shipment volumes and looking to optimize operations to meet those cost increases.
Tech 📟
During these disruptive times, technology can keep fleets prepared | Fleet Owner
Fleet Owner contributor Josh Fisher writes about McLeod Software's CEO Tom McLeod speaking at his company's user conference about the usage of tech in fleets and 3PLs.
Brokerage 📞
OOIDA demands that FMCSA provide an update on broker transparency petition | CDL Life
CDL Life contributor Ashley writes about the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association’s (OOIDA) request for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to clarify its rules against brokers taking advantage of unsuspecting truckers.
U.S. Economy 💰
Fox Business contributor Megan Henney writes about the confirmation of the beginning of the recession after the economy shrank 0.6% in the spring.
How interest rate hikes ripple throughout the economy | Vox
Vox contributor Madeleine Ngo writes about about what an increase of interest rates can mean for you, your family, and the economy as a whole.
The Workday Dash is an aggregation of articles regarding the transportation logistics, trucking, and supply chain industries for November 28, 2024, from iLevel Logistics Inc.