We decided to jump right into the swing of things, and picked up voluntary overtime this week.  Going from 4 five-hour days right into 5 ten-hour days was a little tough on the feet!  But our goal this year at Amazon is “fatter wallet, slimmer waist”!!  And the 50 hour weeks will help us achieve that goal in no time.

There are two main picking areas at the Jeffersonville center:  East and West.  Last year we were both on the West side the entire time, until our very last day when I “moved on up” to the East side.  I happily discovered it was the easier side to pick, since the majority of the pickers, stowers and ICQA employees were assigned to the West side.  The two sides are identical, except for the fourth floor.  The West side contains the HRV floor (high retail value), consisting of watches and jewelry.  The East side just has more clothing on the fourth floor.

This week, they moved all the Camperforce employees to the East side, and stated we will remain there the rest of the season.  It is closer to our lockers and the seasonal break room, so it made sense to move all of us there.  Those of us that picked on the West side last year are thrilled to be on the “easier” and less crowded side of the building.

Also new this week, Amazon removed the metal detectors at the entrances, and replaced them with RFID panels.  I am not sure how this technology works, but we no longer have to remove items from our pockets (keys, coins, etc).  You just simply walk between the panels on the way out.  It used to take several minutes (or more during peak) to go through the metal detectors.  Now it takes no additional time at all.  You still need to stop at a table if you are carrying a lunch bag or purse, but it is a huge time saver.

They post a weekly newsletter on the back of the bathroom stalls (Dan says they are also posted above the urinals), and this past week they hired an additional 200 employees as they start ramping up for peak season.  Although this is not a job I would want to do year round, Amazon does offer some nice benefits for their employees, including fully paid health insurance and stock options.

Mandatory overtime has been called for the upcoming week. Amazon has opened up their Halloween “store” and are having a sale.  They are expecting a very large volume of orders this week.  Camperforce is required to do the mandatory overtime, up to 50 hours.  We are happy to have the hours.  And we both enjoy picking Halloween costumes.  They are easy to pick, as they stand out in a drawer of socks, shirts, jeans, jackets and underwear.  It is also fun to see what people are planning to dress up as.  Some of you are going to be very “naughty” this Halloween, as we have seen a lot of very “adult” costumes! In fact, we are picking about five times more adult Halloween costumes compared to the kids.

Tonight we are having another get together with our fellow Camperforce employees.  The best part of Amazon is the social side.  You sure do meet a lot of great people!

Tomorrow (Tuesday) is our overtime day, and then back to our Wednesday through Saturday schedule.  Wednesday is “pink out” day, to show support for breast cancer research.  Looking forward to another “fun” week!

Work….eat….sleep….repeat!  This will be our life for 10 more weeks!

Quote for the day:  “What’s dangerous is to not evolve.” – Jeff Bezos