Getting sick is a career risk

I was living in Seattle in 2007 and was hired in February as an Assistant Merchandising Manager working for both the DVD and Music departments. Prior to being hired, I was interviewed extensively and one of the things I discussed in my interview was work/life balance and I was told repeatedly that my job required me to work 45 hours a week.  As soon as I started working at Amazon, it was clear that my co-workers were working at least 20 hours more than that every week (not just during some sort of emergency). I also asked why the job was not two jobs and was told it had to do with frugality (one of Amazon's core values). My predecessor had focused most of his time on the DVD part of his job, neglecting the music department. One of the music managers was a stakeholder in my getting hired and she liked that I came from a music background (prior work at both independent and major labels). 

Immediately after getting hired, the music manager got fired (she had worked there for 8 years and despite her age and having a disability, Amazon fired her. I believe she sued and she did not succeed in achieving anything with that lawsuit). The DVD manger who hired me was promoted and then my new manager was inexperienced (as in had never managed anyone other than one young women fresh out of college - she may have even been an intern). This manager had no idea how to manage and micromanaged me to death (she was more interested in my documenting my work than my actually doing my work). When I was hired, I was told that I was hired in part due to my prior success in creating and streamlining processes at prior jobs. The #1 issue I brought to the department's attention was ignored (even though it involved managing financials in an unprotected Excel spreadsheet). What was I told? "Amazon is an Excel culture and that will never change."  

I got sick while working at Amazon. I went through months and months of medical testing. During all of my medical testing, I came in every day and did my work and was never told that I had performance problem. One week, I had to take sick days because I had a spinal tap and then had to return to the hospital because of complications from the spinal tap. This happened over a few days prior to Memorial Day. When I returned to work (with proof of my hospitalization), my manager ignored me my entire first day back - not talking to me or even acknowledging that I was there. I couldn't believe how childish and unprofessional her behavior was. Then one day, my manager told me that I should quit. She said I should quit because "it was not a good fit." I refused to quit, noted my job was getting done, and that she had never stated that I had performance problem with my job prior to this conversation. I ended up, at the urging of my doctors, going out on disability for one month. When I returned to work after that month, suddenly I had a performance problem. Suddenly I was PIP'd and had 90 days to "rectify my performance problem." I knew then that Amazon intended to fire me and there was nothing I could do about it. I worked to accomplish everything on the PIP (all the while still going through medical testing). I was even given positive feedback from the manager of another division (one of the primary stakeholders in creating a new system for managing payments to the departments) - even though I was told I failed to meet that particular point (serving as liaison with that department) on my PIP. I even had an outside advocate that I had meet with me and HR regarding my illness (I was misdiagnosed with MS). It didn't matter. I was fired and was made to sign paperwork stating I would not sue Amazon when I was fired, that Amazon did not and never would admit to any wrongdoing. I was then escorted from the building.

After I was fired, one way Amazon covered it's ass was to eliminate my job description and make the job into two jobs, project management jobs - one for Music and one for DVD. And to add insult to injury when I needed confirmation of my employment at Amazon, I was referred to a third party company (that would not allow ME to access the account, but would allow government entities to do so - and the government entity that needed the verification would not jump through the stupid hoops of going through this third party company). I had to literally threaten via email every HR person I ever dealt with (during my going out on disability, meeting with my advocate, and when I got fired) in order to get access to my own ADP pay stubs. It was stressful and totally unnecessary. Just more hateful hassle to add to everything that had already happened.

I wanted to work at Amazon.  I thought the job I applied for was perfect for me. I did not listen to the numerous people in my life in Seattle who told me I did NOT want to work at Amazon, that it was not a good place to work and despite dozens of horror stories from people I personally knew, I accepted the job offer. I thought working at Amazon would be my key to spending the rest of my life in Seattle. Instead, I had to leave Seattle, am living with motor neuron disease (a form of ALS) and have not worked since I got fired.

As an employee, I discovered what a horrific place it is and how it treats really good, smart, hardworking people like garbage, especially if they happen to have any kind of human experience (illness, pregnancy, etc.)  I have never shopped at Amazon since and make sure that everyone I know knows why they should not shop at Amazon either. The article in the NYT is absolute verification of the reality I experienced during my six months at Amazon. These stories are the rule, not the exception.