If Amazon supports Rep. Mace’s federal law legalizing marijuana, should you be happy or very concerned?

Has the evil empire of e-commerce suddenly turned into a 70’s Peace and Love Flower Child?

Amazon, long known for its pee bottles and poor working conditions, has jumped on the marijuana legalization bandwagon, but not for the reasons you’d think. Many in the industry were concerned that Amazon was sowing a seed for future marijuana sales and 48-hour deliveries in Prime delivery trucks. While at some point in our lifetime Amazon will have vendors on the site who will be able to sell cannabis and Amazon will deliver those packages, that is not their immediate goal. While their foray into prescription drugs and pharmacy renewals is still slow, there is no immediate rush on the Amazon side to obtain state cannabis licenses and prepare for interstate trade.

As the new Forbes article points out:

In June, the retail giant announced it would ban marijuana from most of its employees’ drug tests and began lobbying for cannabis legalization. Six months later, the company met with Mace and now says it will support her States Reform Act. “They don’t want to sell it,” says Mace, noting that employment is the driving force behind the support. “It opens up the hiring pool by about 10%.” Brian Huseman, Amazon’s vice president of public policy, adds, “This bill offers a sweeping reform that argues for the emergence of a bipartisan consensus to end the federal ban on cannabis. “

As the Cannabis.net article pointed out, when Amazon removed marijuana from its 5-panel employee drug tests, it wasn’t for altruistic motives. Amazon, like the rest of America, is struggling mightily to attract and retain warehouse workers. The same applies to Amazon DSPs or delivery service partners who operate the vans and drivers for Amazon. With so many people under 40 failing a marijuana drug test, particularly in states like Colorado, California, Oregon, and Washington, Amazon had to throw in the towel and say, “If you can’t beat them, do them.”

While Amazon vice president Bill Huseman says not testing for cannabis adds 10% to the hiring pool, other estimates put Amazon hiring up to 30% of applicants for jobs in the $15-$18.50 salary range. Losing dollars an hour due to failed cannabis drug tests. With many employers in the restaurant, retail, transportation, and fast-food industries desperate for employees, Amazon had no choice but to waive the marijuana drug test. Amazon also misjudged itself as an employer when they switched many of their parcel stations to “Megacycle”. This meant that employees picking and packing packages in routes for drivers had to work night shifts to ensure routes were ready for drivers in the morning. Amazon told employees at many locations that working 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. or finding a new job was their only option. Because of the children’s menu, adult care, and family life, many employees did just that during the Great Retirement, and Amazon was sent to fill internal station jobs. Make your own class schedule, money for tuition, better health benefits, and no marijuana testing — all of these started appearing in Amazon commercials and ads.

This week’s Forbes article on Amazon supporting Rep. Mace’s federal cannabis legalization bill comes as no shock to the industry. Amazon and its seller’s liability would decrease if marijuana were federally legal. The employee pool would continue to grow if cannabis were federally legal, and in the long run, Amazon could begin to put together a plan to sell weed. Will Amazon be good at selling marijuana when and when the time comes, Cannabis.net’s Thom Baccus says Amazon will be bad at selling cannabis for a variety of reasons, which you can read about here.

As an insider told me, “Amazon makes $1 billion every day, which is every 24 hours, they make a billion dollars not because they’re nice and chanting ‘Kumbaya,’ but because they’re relentless on suppliers and margins. As Jeff Bezos once said, “Your margins are my opportunity,” Amazon takes the same mindset when dealing with vendors and partners.”

At one point, Amazon changed some of the wording on its internal website used by DSPs, delivery service partners, from “affiliate” to “program” because the contracts DSPs sign with Amazon are so biased in favor of Amazon, the word “affiliate.” According to the text of the contract, it is not applicable or even approximately true. Words like “Delivery Service Program” are now listed on the websites, and the word “partner” has been cleaned up. Amazon’s lawyers, always good at spotting a potential lawsuit, can’t call it a partnership when the contract goes 99-to-1 in Amazon’s favour.

Ironically, the recent Forbes article says that Amazon is wholeheartedly behind Rep. Mace’s marijuana reform and legalization law.

In a tweet on Tuesday, Amazon’s public relations department tweeted: “We are pleased to support @RepNancyMace’s reform bill. Like so many in this country, we believe it is time to reform the country’s cannabis policy and Amazon is committed to helping lead the effort.”

If Amazon is committed to righting past social injustices and the unfair treatment of lower social classes as a result of the War on Drugs, why not put your own house in order now? Many have written about Amazon being a new form of modern day slavery. Why not pay a decent wage as opposed to the state minimum wage or as close to what Amazon can legally pay? Why not give employees options other than night shift so they don’t have to choose between looking after their children and family or working at an Amazon fulfillment facility? Why not schedule enough bathroom breaks so the internet isn’t littered with Amazon Pee Bottle images? Why fight tooth and nail against the union organization for underpaid workers in all stations in America? You can’t go back in history to correct past injustices, but you can correct your current practices, so let’s not look back 50 years from now and say we need to correct the high-pressure, low-wage environment that Amazon created during that time e-commerce boom.

AMAZON AND WEED, IT’S COMPLICATED, READ THIS…

AMAZON DISCONTINUES MARIJUANA DRUG TESTING, WHY?

OR..

WHY AMAZON WILL STINK ABOUT SELLING MARIJUANA, READ HERE.