Beginning in June, the e-commerce giant will halt Amazon Shipping, a fledgling service available in just a few cities and a direct competitor to UPS and FedEx. The program works by sending Amazon drivers right to businesses to pick up packages for consumers, instead of the usual route of packages shipped from Amazon warehouses.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon decided that due to the coronavirus pandemic and the surge in demand from people relying on Amazon’s service to deliver critical supplies directly to their doorsteps, the company needed all its workers and resources focused on the main business.
“We understand this is a change to your business, and we did not take this decision lightly,” Amazon said in a note to firms who use the service. “We will work with you over the next several weeks so there is as little disruption to your business as possible.”
In a company blog updated on March 16, 2020, Amazon says it is planning on hiring an additional 100,000 full and part-time employees across the U.S. in the company’s fulfillment centers and delivery network, according to the New York Post.
Amazon is also investing over $350 million globally to increase pay by $2/hour in the U.S., C$2 in Canada, £2/hr in the UK, and approximately €2/hr in many EU countries for employees and partners who are in fulfillment centers, transportation operations, stores or those making deliveries so that others can remain at home.
While UPS didn’t offer comment on the development, a FedEx spokeswoman says: “We are continuing to work with our small-business customers during this time to support their growth.”
