Over the past month, Amazon founder, CEO and President Jeff Bezos has received strong criticism over one of Amazon’s sub companies, Whole Foods requesting employees to donate part of their salary to sick employees who were staying at home. Last week, Amazon fired a worker for organising a walkout that protested Amazon’s lack of safety precautions, protective equipment and pay/benefits for sick employees – many Amazon warehouses have become clusters of COVID-19. As a result of this, users of many popular social media platforms are campaigning to boycott Amazon and its subsidiaries. Many companies from all over the world have taken a similar stance to that taken by Amazon and they too are feeling the wrath from the public. On the flip side, there are plenty of big businesses that are supporting their employees, local charities and efforts to combat COVID-19 leading to plenty of praise by people. But is this hate or love for businesses based on their response to the COVID-19 outbreak a short-term ‘heat of the moment’ event or will it have a long-term impact on the success of the businesses?
Besides those decisions made by Amazon and some of its subsidiaries, there are many other approaches taken by several big businesses that have been criticised. General Electric and other car manufacturers have been called out for initially not agreeing to produce ventilators and respirators, and for laying off workers – many factory workers responded by protesting such decisions. McDonald’s decided against introducing hazard pay for its workers, while Instacart only introduced thermometer checks and supplied free masks to workers after several labour protests. Many essential big businesses seem to be continuing work and not making any changes as if nothing has happened which itself is a poor response.
On the contrary, corporations like Ralph Lauren, Columbia Sportwear and Starbucks have donated to or supported all their employees during this crisis while instructing them to work from home. Several other business figures have taken a positive stance by actively using their foundations to support research for cures or vaccines and donating to food banks or unemployed people – over the last month, 6.6 million people have become unemployed in the US alone.
A recent internet study done to assess Amazon’s public image found that 90% of people think Amazon’s coronavirus response is poor and nearly 40% won’t be using or buying from Amazon again. Other large corporations who have made ‘socially unacceptable’ reactions to the coronavirus outbreak have similar approval ratings. While, companies like Samsung, Microsoft and Dell have had largely positive responses thanks to their large donations towards supporting the fight against COVID-19. Some users on the internet have gone as far as to make websites or lists mentioning which companies are good/bad or have contributed appropriately or inappropriately to solve the COVID-19 crisis.
We do not know how people would behave once life returns to normal but based on the current public opinion, consumers may hold a grudge against specific companies who were unethical during this difficult time. Shahid is a construction manager in Lahore who recently got laid off his job and he had this to say about his employers: “I have given five years to this company and they lay me off the day work stops. I have sacrificed lots of my personal and family time with kids to help this company and now they do not even support me or my family. It is devastating”. He went on to speak on other employers laying off workers, “The construction industry in Pakistan has been hit hard. I and my family will survive on our savings for a year, but almost 5 million people work as daily wagers in the industry and most of them are not getting paid. I’ll be boycotting the companies that are laying off workers or not paying them. I’ll also make sure my extended family and friends know who they are”.
Many employees being laid off or mistreated will be feeling like Shahid right now. Many might be cautious in the future about who they work for or which organisations they buy products from, but whether the majority will still remember these events years later and take relevant action is yet to be seen. Still, it is always better for businesses to be safe than sorry.
Pakistan’s government has been urging its citizens to pay Zakat (an obligation of a Muslim individual to donate part of their annual wealth to less fortunate people) right now, while requesting richer citizens to donate to ration funds. The response has been favourable as people have begun to pay Zakat, students from local universities are crowdfunding to support families in need and some public figures and organisations have made contributions. But most big businesses have been inactive other than delivering an occasional public message. One resident of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) in Lahore (an area where the middle and upper classes reside) had this to say: “I personally continue paying my four home servants despite telling them to not come to our home for work. I can afford to pay them and most people in DHA can but a lot of people here are selfish.” She went onto say, “Out of 12 households in our street, 7 are paying their servants right now. I know all these people and I can assure you they can all afford to pay their servants too. I will definitely be staying away from my neighbours who are selfish”.
We reached out to another resident of DHA Lahore who had this to say regarding support from businesses: “The other day, I read that Pepsi Pakistan is donating millions of meals to those in need. I was so happy to hear that news and this act of kindness is enough to put Pepsi above Coca Cola in my buying priorities”. He also made a comment on workers being laid off, “A lot of construction workers got laid off and many servants were sent away without pay in our sector. Most of them come from a local village nearby and every day I find a few of them coming to houses in the area to get money, food or a ration pack. I help as much as I can but sometimes, I have to turn them away because I run out of cash at home”. He further stated, “There are a lot of other people like me too but there are those who do not even open their doors. Some of the unemployed who do not get food or cash end up walking for kilometres to reach a ration area. There is a roundabout near Nawaz Sharif Interchange where the unemployed sit waiting for someone to give them food and supplies. Once they receive the ration, they walk for a few kilometres back home late at night”.
A construction worker previously employed in DHA told Crux, “The government has stopped our work, but they should’ve made sure our employers didn’t stop our pay. I and my wife go from house-to-house now to ask for ration or money. People help whenever they can, but it should not be the people’s responsibility. The blame lies on the greedy owners in the construction industry and the government. I would rather go to work and deal with the risk of getting coronavirus than let my family die from hunger”.
The situation is dire everywhere. Most big businesses can afford to pay their workers, supply them with protective equipment and still be able to donate to notable causes to fight COVID-19. Many businesses are thinking short-sightedly; they are looking for profits in the short-term rather than customer loyalty, good brand image and strong workforce in the long run. If big businesses pledge to fight against COVID-19 through various employee benefit programs, health & safety protocols and donations to worthy COVID-19 causes, then not only would the people and economy benefit, but the businesses would have a positive brand identity that would help them maintain their customer base and potentially expand it in the future.
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That comment by the construction worker hits you hard...