Friday, February 28, 2020
1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed
1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed is a 2014 book about ancient history by Eric H. Cline. It was published in 2014 by Princeton University Press. ... Before this book, the leading hypothesis during previous decades attributed the civilization collapse mostly to Sea Peoples of unknown origin.
In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh's army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so ...
Apr 23, 2014 - 1177 B.C. was the kind of year people try to forget. ... recounts in 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton University Press).
by R Delafontaine - 2016 - Related articles
In the final decades of the 12th century B.C. a number of centuries-old empires in the Eastern Mediterranean collapsed. The notable exception being Egypt ...
by EH Cline - Cited by 322 - Related articles
In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh's army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so ...
Black And Brown New Yorkers Who Lived Under Mayor Bloomberg Are Urging Voters To Reject Him
"He had trouble personalizing the impacts of his policies — I guess that’s just his business way," New York City’s public advocate said of Bloomberg.
"He had trouble personalizing the impacts of his policies — I guess that’s just his business way," New York City’s public advocate said of Bloomberg.
Ryan Brooks BuzzFeed News Reporter February 25, 2020
A group of 90 New Yorkers of color who lived in the city during Michael Bloomberg’s time as mayor have signed onto a letter asking communities of color across the country to reject Bloomberg’s bid for president as Super Tuesday approaches.
The letter includes signatures from New York elected officials and political organizers including New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, New York state Sen. Julia Salazar, New York City Council Member Antonio Reynoso, Working Families Party Director of Strategy Nelini Stamp, and family members of people killed by New York City Police Department officers during Bloomberg’s time in office.
The letter details the surveillance of Muslim communities in New York City after 9/11; an increase in marijuana arrests for people of color; housing policies and rezoning efforts which they point to as one of the reasons for the affordability crisis and gentrification of neighborhoods; and stop-and-frisk, a policing tactic which disproportionately targeted New Yorkers of color.
“In recent days, Michael Bloomberg has attempted to rewrite his legacy, but we haven’t forgotten,” the signers wrote. “The extent of harm, humiliation and terror that the Bloomberg administration’s daily racial profiling and police violence caused in Black, Latinx and other communities of color cannot be overstated.”
In response to the letter, Bloomberg’s campaign shared statistics from various articles and polls about his time in office. The campaign pointed to New York Times reporting which said Bloomberg had improved race relations across the city and favorability ratings among black and Latino New Yorkers when he left office.
"In deep contrast to his immediate predecessor in office, Mike Bloomberg's City Hall was open to and listened to all New Yorkers. But as much as we encourage everyone's right to speak their minds, not all of the facts in this letter line up with Mike's real record,” campaign adviser Stu Loeser said in a statement to BuzzFeed News, pointing to changes in SNAP benefits and the city’s earned income tax credit under Bloomberg. “Our critics are welcome to offer alternative opinions, but the broader range of facts presents a different picture.
Mark Sagliocco / Getty Images
Jumaane Williams at a press conference at Irving Plaza, May 26, 2016.
Since launching his presidential campaign, Bloomberg has faced scrutiny for past comments, policies enacted during his time as mayor, and the women who have sued the candidate and his company for sexual harassment and sexist remarks (three of those lawsuits specifically name Bloomberg). In one resurfaced and viral audio clip from a 2015 speech, Bloomberg could be heard saying you could “Xerox” the description of murder suspects, which would be minorities between 16 and 25, to hand out to cops.
“A decade ago, the mayor was pretty obstinate and obtuse on issues related to black, brown, and working communities and how his policies affect that, and the most powerful one is policing, but there are other ones as well,” Williams, who was on the City Council during Bloomberg’s last term as mayor, told BuzzFeed News. “He refused to listen, and the callousness with which he would use to discuss the impact, you know, talking about Xeroxing the descriptions, throwing them up against the wall — he had a way of talking about people in terms of numbers and widgets.”
“He had trouble personalizing the impacts of his policies — I guess that’s just his business way,” Williams added.
New Yorkers who’ve signed the letter support other presidential candidates, including Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, who’ve gained support from progressives like Williams and Salazar, and the Working Families Party, respectively.
“The beautiful thing is that we can all be united in this, and this isn’t about our candidates, to be honest,” Stamp said. “People are all over the map for their respective reasons, but I think the one thing that can unite progressive New Yorkers is Bloomberg ever seeking office again because of the pain he’s caused in our communities.”
MORE ON MICHAEL BLOOMBERG
Michael Bloomberg Had To Face The Other Candidates For The First Time. It Didn’t Go Very Well.Rosie Gray · Feb. 19, 2020
A group of 90 New Yorkers of color who lived in the city during Michael Bloomberg’s time as mayor have signed onto a letter asking communities of color across the country to reject Bloomberg’s bid for president as Super Tuesday approaches.
The letter includes signatures from New York elected officials and political organizers including New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, New York state Sen. Julia Salazar, New York City Council Member Antonio Reynoso, Working Families Party Director of Strategy Nelini Stamp, and family members of people killed by New York City Police Department officers during Bloomberg’s time in office.
The letter details the surveillance of Muslim communities in New York City after 9/11; an increase in marijuana arrests for people of color; housing policies and rezoning efforts which they point to as one of the reasons for the affordability crisis and gentrification of neighborhoods; and stop-and-frisk, a policing tactic which disproportionately targeted New Yorkers of color.
“In recent days, Michael Bloomberg has attempted to rewrite his legacy, but we haven’t forgotten,” the signers wrote. “The extent of harm, humiliation and terror that the Bloomberg administration’s daily racial profiling and police violence caused in Black, Latinx and other communities of color cannot be overstated.”
In response to the letter, Bloomberg’s campaign shared statistics from various articles and polls about his time in office. The campaign pointed to New York Times reporting which said Bloomberg had improved race relations across the city and favorability ratings among black and Latino New Yorkers when he left office.
"In deep contrast to his immediate predecessor in office, Mike Bloomberg's City Hall was open to and listened to all New Yorkers. But as much as we encourage everyone's right to speak their minds, not all of the facts in this letter line up with Mike's real record,” campaign adviser Stu Loeser said in a statement to BuzzFeed News, pointing to changes in SNAP benefits and the city’s earned income tax credit under Bloomberg. “Our critics are welcome to offer alternative opinions, but the broader range of facts presents a different picture.
Mark Sagliocco / Getty Images
Jumaane Williams at a press conference at Irving Plaza, May 26, 2016.
Since launching his presidential campaign, Bloomberg has faced scrutiny for past comments, policies enacted during his time as mayor, and the women who have sued the candidate and his company for sexual harassment and sexist remarks (three of those lawsuits specifically name Bloomberg). In one resurfaced and viral audio clip from a 2015 speech, Bloomberg could be heard saying you could “Xerox” the description of murder suspects, which would be minorities between 16 and 25, to hand out to cops.
“A decade ago, the mayor was pretty obstinate and obtuse on issues related to black, brown, and working communities and how his policies affect that, and the most powerful one is policing, but there are other ones as well,” Williams, who was on the City Council during Bloomberg’s last term as mayor, told BuzzFeed News. “He refused to listen, and the callousness with which he would use to discuss the impact, you know, talking about Xeroxing the descriptions, throwing them up against the wall — he had a way of talking about people in terms of numbers and widgets.”
“He had trouble personalizing the impacts of his policies — I guess that’s just his business way,” Williams added.
New Yorkers who’ve signed the letter support other presidential candidates, including Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, who’ve gained support from progressives like Williams and Salazar, and the Working Families Party, respectively.
“The beautiful thing is that we can all be united in this, and this isn’t about our candidates, to be honest,” Stamp said. “People are all over the map for their respective reasons, but I think the one thing that can unite progressive New Yorkers is Bloomberg ever seeking office again because of the pain he’s caused in our communities.”
MORE ON MICHAEL BLOOMBERG
Michael Bloomberg Had To Face The Other Candidates For The First Time. It Didn’t Go Very Well.Rosie Gray · Feb. 19, 2020
Rosie Gray · Feb. 17, 2020
The Democratic Primary Is A Mess. Michael Bloomberg Is Taking Advantage.Rosie Gray · Feb. 8, 2020
Ryan Brooks is a politics reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York.
Ryan Brooks is a politics reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York.
She Showed Her Students A Picture Of Her Fiancé And Was Suspended. Now She Has A Huge Payout.
"If you are a school district that thinks you can bully a gay teacher out of their job, I hope you remember my name and I hope you think twice," said Stacy Bailey.
Stacy Bailey
A Texas teacher who was suspended for showing her students a photo of her then-fiancé has reached a $100,000 settlement with her school district, her attorney announced Tuesday.
Stacy Bailey will donate $10,000 of her settlement money from the Mansfield Independent School District to a charity helping LGBTQ students in schools.
"If you are a school district that thinks you can bully a gay teacher out of their job, I hope you remember my name and I hope you think twice," said Bailey during a press conference on Tuesday.
Bailey, who twice won Teacher of the Year awards at Charlotte Anderson Elementary School in Arlington, filed a discrimination lawsuit against MISD in 2018.
The 33-year-old teacher was suspended in September 2017 after the district "received complaints from parents about Ms. Bailey discussing her sexual orientation with elementary-aged students," according to a press release from the school district.
The complaint related to her showing a photo during an introductory slideshow of her and her then-fiancé, Julie Vazquez, dressed as Finding Nemo characters, telling students it was her "future wife."
Julie Vazquez
The photo of Stacy (left) and her wife, Julie, in the Finding Nemo costumes.
A parent had complained to the school district that the award-winning teacher promoted a "homosexual agenda."
Speaking on Tuesday, Bailey said the parent's complaint was without merit.
"When a straight teacher happily announces that she and her husband are expecting a baby to her elementary class, is she saying something inappropriate to very young and impressionable students? Is she announcing her sexual orientation? Is she presenting her life in a way that promotes her political beliefs?" asked Bailey. "Of course not. She’s simply sharing facts about her life."
Under the terms of the settlement, the school district will withdraw the suspension from Bailey's permanent record, provide staffers with mandatory training on LGBTQ issues, and vote on whether to add "sexual discrimination" to its list of antidiscrimination categories.
MISD also has to pay a total of $100,000 to Bailey and her attorney, Jason Smith. Bailey and her wife plan to donate $10,000 of their share to a charity for LGBTQ students, while Smith will donate $10,000 to the Human Rights Campaign.
After an eight-month suspension from her job as an elementary school art teacher, Bailey was reassigned to a local high school.
In October, a federal judge ruled that Bailey's lawsuit claiming discrimination and a breach of her constitutional rights could go ahead.
“If the community’s perception is based on nothing more than unsupported assumptions, outdated stereotypes, and animosity, it is necessarily irrational and […] provides no legitimate support for Mansfield ISD’s decisions,” wrote Judge Sam Lindsay. "The private antipathy of some members of a community cannot validate state discrimination."
The case was heard at the Northern District of Texas federal court in Dallas.
Stacy Bailey
Julie (left) and Stacy (right) with their dogs, Gal and Guy.
In a telephone interview on Tuesday, Bailey told BuzzFeed News that when she started at her new school, she was nervous about how students would react as news of her suspension for being gay had been all over local and national media.
Instead, on her first day, around 15 LGBTQ teens flooded her classroom with baskets and candy, introducing themselves. Some even cried as they welcomed her.
"I don't think they’d ever seen a teacher out loud say they were gay. To see a grown-up who was successful and educated and not afraid? I don't think they had ever seen that before," Bailey told BuzzFeed News.
And she used the exact same introductory slideshow presentation with the photo of her wife when meeting her new high school students at the beginning of the school year.
"I've seen my classroom turn into a safe space for all kinds of kids who feel marginalized," she added.
Bailey said when the suspension first happened, she considered moving to a nearby urban school district but worried the next gay teacher at MISD would encounter the same anti-gay prejudice she did.
"There have always been gay educators," said Bailey. "Some of your best teachers may have been gay but too afraid to tell you."
Ms. Clayton@msclayton_cae
Congrats again to our 2016 Charlotte Anderson Teacher of the year, Ms. Stacy Bailey! #MISDOscarNight2017 #youmakeusproud @msbailey_cae09:02 PM - 08 May 2017
Reply Retweet Favorite
Bailey said that although the last few years have been extremely stressful and anxiety-inducing for her personally, she plans to continue working as a high school teacher with MISD and watch the district change from within.
"Even though you’re made to feel small and made to feel less than, you can stand up in your own power and you can also make a change," she told BuzzFeed News.
She encouraged other queer teachers facing discrimination in their conservative districts to avoid the temptation to move to more progressive districts. "I challenge you to change the one you're in," she said.
"It may not be easy. You may get pushback. And if what happened to me happens to you, I want you to know you can survive it," said Bailey. "You do not have to give up your passion or profession."
MORE ON THIS
A School Board Admitted It Suspended A Gay Art Teacher For Saying Jasper Johns Had A Male PartnerAmber Jamieson · Aug. 14, 2018
Bailey, who twice won Teacher of the Year awards at Charlotte Anderson Elementary School in Arlington, filed a discrimination lawsuit against MISD in 2018.
The 33-year-old teacher was suspended in September 2017 after the district "received complaints from parents about Ms. Bailey discussing her sexual orientation with elementary-aged students," according to a press release from the school district.
The complaint related to her showing a photo during an introductory slideshow of her and her then-fiancé, Julie Vazquez, dressed as Finding Nemo characters, telling students it was her "future wife."
Julie Vazquez
The photo of Stacy (left) and her wife, Julie, in the Finding Nemo costumes.
A parent had complained to the school district that the award-winning teacher promoted a "homosexual agenda."
Speaking on Tuesday, Bailey said the parent's complaint was without merit.
"When a straight teacher happily announces that she and her husband are expecting a baby to her elementary class, is she saying something inappropriate to very young and impressionable students? Is she announcing her sexual orientation? Is she presenting her life in a way that promotes her political beliefs?" asked Bailey. "Of course not. She’s simply sharing facts about her life."
Under the terms of the settlement, the school district will withdraw the suspension from Bailey's permanent record, provide staffers with mandatory training on LGBTQ issues, and vote on whether to add "sexual discrimination" to its list of antidiscrimination categories.
MISD also has to pay a total of $100,000 to Bailey and her attorney, Jason Smith. Bailey and her wife plan to donate $10,000 of their share to a charity for LGBTQ students, while Smith will donate $10,000 to the Human Rights Campaign.
After an eight-month suspension from her job as an elementary school art teacher, Bailey was reassigned to a local high school.
In October, a federal judge ruled that Bailey's lawsuit claiming discrimination and a breach of her constitutional rights could go ahead.
“If the community’s perception is based on nothing more than unsupported assumptions, outdated stereotypes, and animosity, it is necessarily irrational and […] provides no legitimate support for Mansfield ISD’s decisions,” wrote Judge Sam Lindsay. "The private antipathy of some members of a community cannot validate state discrimination."
The case was heard at the Northern District of Texas federal court in Dallas.
Stacy Bailey
Julie (left) and Stacy (right) with their dogs, Gal and Guy.
In a telephone interview on Tuesday, Bailey told BuzzFeed News that when she started at her new school, she was nervous about how students would react as news of her suspension for being gay had been all over local and national media.
Instead, on her first day, around 15 LGBTQ teens flooded her classroom with baskets and candy, introducing themselves. Some even cried as they welcomed her.
"I don't think they’d ever seen a teacher out loud say they were gay. To see a grown-up who was successful and educated and not afraid? I don't think they had ever seen that before," Bailey told BuzzFeed News.
And she used the exact same introductory slideshow presentation with the photo of her wife when meeting her new high school students at the beginning of the school year.
"I've seen my classroom turn into a safe space for all kinds of kids who feel marginalized," she added.
Bailey said when the suspension first happened, she considered moving to a nearby urban school district but worried the next gay teacher at MISD would encounter the same anti-gay prejudice she did.
"There have always been gay educators," said Bailey. "Some of your best teachers may have been gay but too afraid to tell you."
Ms. Clayton@msclayton_cae
Congrats again to our 2016 Charlotte Anderson Teacher of the year, Ms. Stacy Bailey! #MISDOscarNight2017 #youmakeusproud @msbailey_cae09:02 PM - 08 May 2017
Reply Retweet Favorite
Bailey said that although the last few years have been extremely stressful and anxiety-inducing for her personally, she plans to continue working as a high school teacher with MISD and watch the district change from within.
"Even though you’re made to feel small and made to feel less than, you can stand up in your own power and you can also make a change," she told BuzzFeed News.
She encouraged other queer teachers facing discrimination in their conservative districts to avoid the temptation to move to more progressive districts. "I challenge you to change the one you're in," she said.
"It may not be easy. You may get pushback. And if what happened to me happens to you, I want you to know you can survive it," said Bailey. "You do not have to give up your passion or profession."
A School Board Admitted It Suspended A Gay Art Teacher For Saying Jasper Johns Had A Male PartnerAmber Jamieson · Aug. 14, 2018
An Elementary School Art Teacher Was Suspended For Telling Her Students She Was GayAmber Jamieson · March 29, 2018
The Wife Of A Teacher Suspended For Being Gay Says They're Suing To Help Other LGBT TeachersAmber Jamieson · May 11, 2018
The Texas Teacher Suspended For Being Gay Is Suing Her School District For DiscriminationAmber Jamieson · May 8, 2018
Amber Jamieson BuzzFeed News Reporter Posted on February 25, 2020Amber Jamieson is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York.
Contact Amber Jamieson at amber.jamieson@buzzfeed.com.
ICE DENIES PORTLAND SCHOOL BOARD'S CLAIMS THAT AGENTS ARRESTED FATHER AT BUS STOP
BY CHANTAL DA SILVA NEWSWEEK ON 2/27/20
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has denied claims agents arrested a father at a school bus stop in Portland just after dropping his children off.
Earlier this week, a Tigard-Tualatin School District official told The Portland Tribune that, from the school board's understanding, Tomas Galvan-Rodriguez had been arrested at a bus stop after walking his two children there last week.
"The location of Galvan-Rodriguez's traffic stop and subsequent arrest did not occur at a known marked school bus stop or a location that was previously known to the officers," Roman said.
Galvan-Rodriguez, she said, had been arrested on February 19 during a routine traffic stop. The father had been in a vehicle at the time of his arrest, she asserted.
According to Roman, the father is a citizen of Mexico and has been living in the u.S. undocumented. The ICE spokesperson also added that he has a criminal history, which includes a 2004 conviction for a hit-and-run and a 2008 conviction for larceny. According to The Oregonian, court records showed that Galvan-Rodriguez damaged property in the hit-and-run, but had not injured anyone.
Roman said Galvan-Rodriguez is "currently pending immigration proceedings before a federal immigration judge." It is unclear whether he will be deported out of the U.S.
BY CHANTAL DA SILVA NEWSWEEK ON 2/27/20
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has denied claims agents arrested a father at a school bus stop in Portland just after dropping his children off.
Earlier this week, a Tigard-Tualatin School District official told The Portland Tribune that, from the school board's understanding, Tomas Galvan-Rodriguez had been arrested at a bus stop after walking his two children there last week.
"Two of our students...their [parent] walked them to the school bus, the kids got on the school bus and ICE came and arrested the parent," Jill Zurschmeide, school board director, told the outlet on Monday.
At the time, it was unclear whether the children had witnessed the arrest.
Marked school bus stops are considered "sensitive locations" by ICE, meaning agents should avoid performing an arrest there.
In a statement sent to Newsweek, ICE claimed that it was not true that Galvan-Rodriguez was arrested at a marked school bus stop, nor was he arrested on foot, according to agency spokesperson Tanya Roman.
At the time, it was unclear whether the children had witnessed the arrest.
Marked school bus stops are considered "sensitive locations" by ICE, meaning agents should avoid performing an arrest there.
In a statement sent to Newsweek, ICE claimed that it was not true that Galvan-Rodriguez was arrested at a marked school bus stop, nor was he arrested on foot, according to agency spokesperson Tanya Roman.
"The location of Galvan-Rodriguez's traffic stop and subsequent arrest did not occur at a known marked school bus stop or a location that was previously known to the officers," Roman said.
Galvan-Rodriguez, she said, had been arrested on February 19 during a routine traffic stop. The father had been in a vehicle at the time of his arrest, she asserted.
According to Roman, the father is a citizen of Mexico and has been living in the u.S. undocumented. The ICE spokesperson also added that he has a criminal history, which includes a 2004 conviction for a hit-and-run and a 2008 conviction for larceny. According to The Oregonian, court records showed that Galvan-Rodriguez damaged property in the hit-and-run, but had not injured anyone.
Roman said Galvan-Rodriguez is "currently pending immigration proceedings before a federal immigration judge." It is unclear whether he will be deported out of the U.S.
A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement special agent
preparing to arrest alleged immigration violators at Fresh Mark,
Salem, June 19, 2018.SMITH COLLECTION/GADO/GETTY
It is also unclear whether the father's children have someone else to take care of them. District Superintendent Sue Rieke-Smith told the Tribune that the children had been connected with supportive services to make sure their housing and other basic needs would be met.
The list of sensitive locations, she said, include: "Schools, such as known and licensed daycares, pre-schools and other early learning programs; primary schools; secondary schools; post-secondary schools up to and including colleges and universities; as well as scholastic or education-related activities or events, and school bus stops that are marked and/or known to the officer, during periods when school children are present at the stop."
It is also unclear whether the father's children have someone else to take care of them. District Superintendent Sue Rieke-Smith told the Tribune that the children had been connected with supportive services to make sure their housing and other basic needs would be met.
The list of sensitive locations, she said, include: "Schools, such as known and licensed daycares, pre-schools and other early learning programs; primary schools; secondary schools; post-secondary schools up to and including colleges and universities; as well as scholastic or education-related activities or events, and school bus stops that are marked and/or known to the officer, during periods when school children are present at the stop."
UKRAINE UPDATE
A Viral Email About Coronavirus Had People Smashing Buses And Blocking Hospitals
Ukraine’s security service said the fake email that was supposedly from the Ministry of Health had actually been sent from outside the country.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
Evacuees look out from a bus as they leave an airport in Kharkiv, Ukraine.
KYIV — A dangerous mix of fear and fake news about the coronavirus has sparked violent protests in Ukraine, despite there being no confirmed cases in the country.
Protests and clashes with riot police have broken out in several places after a mass email claiming to be from Ukraine’s health ministry spread false information that there were five cases of coronavirus in the country, on the same day a plane carrying evacuees from China arrived.
Protesters have smashed the windows of buses carrying evacuees and set fire to makeshift barricades.
Valentyn Ogirenko / Reuter
A stone is thrown towards a police van during a protest against the arrival of evacuees from China.
But the email, sent to the Ministry of Health’s entire contact list, had actually originated from outside Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement.
Only two Ukrainians have been infected with the coronavirus and they are aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Japan, and they've already recovered.
Disinformation surrounding the coronavirus has spread online globally and caused panic in other countries ever since the outbreak started in Wuhan, China, in December.
Maksym Mykhailyk / Getty Images
Local residents protest the plans to quarantine evacuees at a local hospital in the settlement of Novi Sanzhary.
In Ukraine, where trust in the health care system and the government is low, anxiety about the outbreak spread as fast as the fake news claiming the first cases had arrived in the country was disseminated online. It didn’t seem to matter that Ukraine’s Center for Public Health put out a message warning of the fake news or that President Volodymyr Zelensky said authorities had everything under control.
“Attention! The reports about five confirmed cases of COVID-19 coronavirus in Ukraine are UNTRUE,” the Center for Public Health said in a statement, referring to the official name of the disease caused by the coronavirus.
“We urge the media not to disseminate this information and to inform the press service of the Health Ministry of Ukraine of the sender of this information upon receipt of the letter.”
Oleksiy Kucher, the governor of the Kharkiv region where the plane carrying Ukrainian evacuees from China’s Hubei province landed, told people, “not to sow panic — everything is fine. All who are on board are healthy.”
But the messages trying to reassure people were not the ones that went viral.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
A medical worker smokes between ambulances during the arrival of evacuees in Kharkiv.
February 20, 2020
SEE https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/02/coronavirus-email-hoax-led-to-violent.html
MORE ON THIS
Coronavirus Case Numbers Jumped Overnight. It’s Because We Changed How We Count Them. Dan Vergano · Feb. 13, 2020
Ukraine’s security service said the fake email that was supposedly from the Ministry of Health had actually been sent from outside the country.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
Evacuees look out from a bus as they leave an airport in Kharkiv, Ukraine.
KYIV — A dangerous mix of fear and fake news about the coronavirus has sparked violent protests in Ukraine, despite there being no confirmed cases in the country.
Protests and clashes with riot police have broken out in several places after a mass email claiming to be from Ukraine’s health ministry spread false information that there were five cases of coronavirus in the country, on the same day a plane carrying evacuees from China arrived.
Protesters have smashed the windows of buses carrying evacuees and set fire to makeshift barricades.
Valentyn Ogirenko / Reuter
A stone is thrown towards a police van during a protest against the arrival of evacuees from China.
But the email, sent to the Ministry of Health’s entire contact list, had actually originated from outside Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement.
Only two Ukrainians have been infected with the coronavirus and they are aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Japan, and they've already recovered.
Disinformation surrounding the coronavirus has spread online globally and caused panic in other countries ever since the outbreak started in Wuhan, China, in December.
Maksym Mykhailyk / Getty Images
Local residents protest the plans to quarantine evacuees at a local hospital in the settlement of Novi Sanzhary.
In Ukraine, where trust in the health care system and the government is low, anxiety about the outbreak spread as fast as the fake news claiming the first cases had arrived in the country was disseminated online. It didn’t seem to matter that Ukraine’s Center for Public Health put out a message warning of the fake news or that President Volodymyr Zelensky said authorities had everything under control.
“Attention! The reports about five confirmed cases of COVID-19 coronavirus in Ukraine are UNTRUE,” the Center for Public Health said in a statement, referring to the official name of the disease caused by the coronavirus.
“We urge the media not to disseminate this information and to inform the press service of the Health Ministry of Ukraine of the sender of this information upon receipt of the letter.”
Oleksiy Kucher, the governor of the Kharkiv region where the plane carrying Ukrainian evacuees from China’s Hubei province landed, told people, “not to sow panic — everything is fine. All who are on board are healthy.”
But the messages trying to reassure people were not the ones that went viral.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
A medical worker smokes between ambulances during the arrival of evacuees in Kharkiv.
Tensions reached a fever pitch by midday in the village of Novi Sanzhary, in Ukraine’s central Poltava region, where residents protested the arrival of the evacuees over fears they could be infected with the coronavirus, including smashing the windows of buses transporting them.
The protesters fought with police while trying to block the road leading to a health facility where the evacuees — 45 Ukrainians and 27 foreign citizens, as well as 22 crew members and doctors — are to be held in quarantine for at least 14 days to make sure they aren’t carrying the virus.
Videos posted on social media showed hundreds of police in riot gear dragging protesters away and using armored vehicles to move tractors blocking the road.
Valentyn Ogirenko / Reuters
An injured man receives assistance during the protest against the evacuees arriving in Ukraine.
As the skirmish dragged on, Ukraine’s National Guard had to counter what it said was more fake news, this time about the medical staff at Novi Sanzhary’s hospital fleeing the facility.
By evening, the government had dispatched the prime minister, Oleksiy Honcharuk, and the interior minister, Arsen Avakov, to the village to deal with the turmoil.
Maksym Mykhailyk / Getty Images
Protesters in Novi Sanzhary.
Meanwhile, in the western Lviv region, people used tires and cars to block the entrance to a hospital because they were afraid the evacuees could be brought there and their children would get infected.
And in nearby Ternopil, people gathered with a priest on a road to block access to a medical facility and pray that the Ukrainians returning from China would be kept away from it.
“We are praying so that God can help save us from all of this,” said one of the attendees.
“God forbid the virus spreads further,” said another.
President Zelensky said Thursday the authorities were doing everything possible to make sure the virus wouldn’t spread to Ukraine. In a statement posted to Facebook, he called for calm and reassured Ukrainians they weren’t in danger.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
A security officer wearing a protective facemask in Kharkiv.
There is no risk of infection, Zelensky told the nation, only “the danger of forgetting that we are all human and we are all Ukrainians.” He said the panic showed “far from the best side of our character.”
On Facebook, some of the evacuees posted about the harassment they were receiving and said they were shocked by those protesting their return.
One of them, a woman named Svitlana, told BBC’s Ukrainian service that she had received death threats because of her choice to return to Ukraine.
Oleksandr Makhov, who was also aboard the flight, posted a selfie from the plane and praised the flight attendants, pilots, and medics who helped rescue him.
“Shame,” he said of the protesters.
The panic in Ukraine came as China, which has on several occasions changed how it reports new coronavirus infections, said on Thursday it had seen a decrease, according to media reports which cited the country’s health authorities.
The cumulative total of infections globally has reached 75,778 with 2,130 deaths, most in central Hubei province, according to a live tracker from John Hopkins University.
Meanwhile, South Korea reported its first coronavirus death, and Japan reported the deaths of two citizens aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
Nina Jankowicz, a disinformation fellow at the Wilson Center and author of the forthcoming book How to Lose the Information War, told BuzzFeed News from Washington that health-related disinformation and misinformation has huge potential in Ukraine because there is mistrust in the state health care system, which is widely viewed as inefficient and subpar.
“Combine this with mistrust toward official government information sources and a sensationalist media and you have a recipe for panic, especially with a pandemic like coronavirus,” she said.
The protesters fought with police while trying to block the road leading to a health facility where the evacuees — 45 Ukrainians and 27 foreign citizens, as well as 22 crew members and doctors — are to be held in quarantine for at least 14 days to make sure they aren’t carrying the virus.
Videos posted on social media showed hundreds of police in riot gear dragging protesters away and using armored vehicles to move tractors blocking the road.
Valentyn Ogirenko / Reuters
An injured man receives assistance during the protest against the evacuees arriving in Ukraine.
As the skirmish dragged on, Ukraine’s National Guard had to counter what it said was more fake news, this time about the medical staff at Novi Sanzhary’s hospital fleeing the facility.
By evening, the government had dispatched the prime minister, Oleksiy Honcharuk, and the interior minister, Arsen Avakov, to the village to deal with the turmoil.
Maksym Mykhailyk / Getty Images
Protesters in Novi Sanzhary.
Meanwhile, in the western Lviv region, people used tires and cars to block the entrance to a hospital because they were afraid the evacuees could be brought there and their children would get infected.
And in nearby Ternopil, people gathered with a priest on a road to block access to a medical facility and pray that the Ukrainians returning from China would be kept away from it.
“We are praying so that God can help save us from all of this,” said one of the attendees.
“God forbid the virus spreads further,” said another.
President Zelensky said Thursday the authorities were doing everything possible to make sure the virus wouldn’t spread to Ukraine. In a statement posted to Facebook, he called for calm and reassured Ukrainians they weren’t in danger.
Sergei Supinsky / Getty Images
A security officer wearing a protective facemask in Kharkiv.
There is no risk of infection, Zelensky told the nation, only “the danger of forgetting that we are all human and we are all Ukrainians.” He said the panic showed “far from the best side of our character.”
On Facebook, some of the evacuees posted about the harassment they were receiving and said they were shocked by those protesting their return.
One of them, a woman named Svitlana, told BBC’s Ukrainian service that she had received death threats because of her choice to return to Ukraine.
Oleksandr Makhov, who was also aboard the flight, posted a selfie from the plane and praised the flight attendants, pilots, and medics who helped rescue him.
“Shame,” he said of the protesters.
The panic in Ukraine came as China, which has on several occasions changed how it reports new coronavirus infections, said on Thursday it had seen a decrease, according to media reports which cited the country’s health authorities.
The cumulative total of infections globally has reached 75,778 with 2,130 deaths, most in central Hubei province, according to a live tracker from John Hopkins University.
Meanwhile, South Korea reported its first coronavirus death, and Japan reported the deaths of two citizens aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
Nina Jankowicz, a disinformation fellow at the Wilson Center and author of the forthcoming book How to Lose the Information War, told BuzzFeed News from Washington that health-related disinformation and misinformation has huge potential in Ukraine because there is mistrust in the state health care system, which is widely viewed as inefficient and subpar.
“Combine this with mistrust toward official government information sources and a sensationalist media and you have a recipe for panic, especially with a pandemic like coronavirus,” she said.
February 20, 2020
SEE https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/02/coronavirus-email-hoax-led-to-violent.html
Coronavirus Case Numbers Jumped Overnight. It’s Because We Changed How We Count Them. Dan Vergano · Feb. 13, 2020
Dan Vergano · Feb. 9, 2020
Christopher Miller is a Kyiv-based American journalist and editor.
Christopher Miller is a Kyiv-based American journalist and editor.
AMAZON GIG ECONOMY PART 3
3,200 Amazon Drivers Are Going To Lose Their Jobs
Amazon continues to terminate its larger delivery contractors; at least 3,242 delivery drivers will be laid off this spring.
Caroline O'DonovanBuzzFeed News Reporter
3,200 Amazon Drivers Are Going To Lose Their Jobs
Amazon continues to terminate its larger delivery contractors; at least 3,242 delivery drivers will be laid off this spring.
Caroline O'DonovanBuzzFeed News Reporter
Ken Bensinger BuzzFeed News Reporter
Posted on February 27, 2020
Chris Helgren / Reuters
An Amazon worker loads a trolley from a Prime delivery van in Los Angeles, California
More than 3,200 drivers who deliver Amazon packages to homes and businesses across the country each day will be laid off by the end of April as the e-commerce giant continues a significant shift from large delivery contractors to smaller ones that are cheaper and easier to control.
In the past several months, the online retailer has informed at least eight delivery firms that it would be severing contracts with them. In turn, those contractors told state workforce regulators that they would be forced to lay off at least 3,242 employees, records show.
That comes in addition to the layoffs of more than 2,000 drivers from three other terminated delivery firms reported by BuzzFeed News and ProPublica in October; all three of those firms had been involved in accidents resulting in fatalities that were previously reported in investigations by the news organizations.
“Sometimes the companies we contract with to deliver packages do not meet our bar for safety, performance or working conditions,” Amazon said in a statement. “When that happens we have a responsibility to terminate those relationships and work to find new partners. We care a lot about the communities where we operate and work hard to ensure there is zero or very little net job loss in these communities.”
Although Amazon offers laid off drivers the chance to apply for new jobs with its other delivery contractors, the company’s director of transportation compliance, Carey Richardson, recently acknowledged under oath that it’s rare for more than 60% of those individuals to end up at one of those firms. That’s a particular issue at this time of year, when the holiday rush is over and many delivery contractors say they are not hiring.
“There are no jobs for these drivers to transition to,” said the owner of one Amazon delivery firm that has not lost its contract and who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal. “They have nowhere to go.”
To achieve its promise of next-day delivery, Amazon relies on a homegrown network of independent companies that hire their own drivers, rather than employ its own workforce directly. Those contractors, recognizable by their ubiquitous cargo vans that roam the streets of almost every community in the country, delivered more than half of the record number of packages Amazon shipped to customers this past holiday season.
The use of contractors also creates a layer of legal separation that helps Amazon deny liability when things go amiss. Investigations by BuzzFeed News and ProPublica last year found that Amazon contractors have been involved in dozens of serious crashes, including at least ten that were fatal. Many of the online retailer’s delivery firms have been investigated by the Labor Department following allegations that workers were underpaid and denied proper lunch or bathroom breaks.
Using contractors also makes it easy for the online retailer to unilaterally drop firms — many of whom have no other source of revenue and are forced to go out of business — at its whim.
Most recently, Transportation Brokerage Specialists, based in Costa Mesa, California, lost its contract with Amazon and said it would be shutting down its operations in California, Arizona, Washington, and Oregon. As a result, the firm will be forced to initiate a “mass layoff of approximately 907 employees,” the company wrote in a letter to regulators last week.
Amazon has also severed contracts with other contractors, including Bear Down Logistics, Express Parcel Service, Delivery Force, Urban Mobility Now, RailCrew Xpress, Dash Delivery, and 1-800-Courier in recent months, government records show, leading to layoffs in at least 18 states, including California, Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Ohio, Virginia, North Carolina, Washington, WIsconsin, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Kentucky, Alabama, Michigan, Arizona, Minnesota, and Oregon.
One RailCrew Xpress driver in Alabama was recently told she’d be out of work on April 12. She said she wants to get a job with another Amazon delivery contractor but is far from confident. “I have to apply and hope for the best,” said the woman, who requested anonymity for fear that speaking out would prevent her from getting hired.
After being told he would be laid off because his employer, Delivery Force, was getting terminated by Amazon, one driver got a job offer from a different delivery contractor. But that job paid less, $15 instead of $17 an hour, he said. “It just can’t work,” said the man, who requested anonymity because he is still working for Delivery Force. “It’s so sad,” he added. “We had all these plans for our team … We had no clue until we got the letter.”
Amazon launched its delivery network as an alternative to UPS, FedEx and the US Postal Service in 2014. Originally, it brought in established logistics firms, some of which it contracted to operate in multiple locations and run hundreds or even thousands of routes at a time. But since mid-2018, Amazon has been aggressively shifting its delivery model towards smaller contractors that work from a single location and manage no more than a few dozen routes.
Because of their size, those smaller companies have less negotiating leverage with Amazon, which in some cases pays them as much as 5% less than it paid its so-called “legacy” or “1.0” carriers for the same work, court records show. While Amazon pays legacy carriers a monthly stipend to cover the cost of dispatchers, for example, there is no such payment for the newer firms.
In addition, while legacy contractors are free to choose their own vendors and purchase or lease their own vehicles, Amazon requires its newer carriers, known internally as “2.0,” to lease blue vans branded with the Amazon smile logo, and to obtain insurance and manage payroll through providers that it selects, giving the $900 billion company far more control over their daily operations.
Amazon does not publish a list of all its delivery contractors and in October refused a written request from three US Senators to do so, although it did say it had more than 800 firms under contract at the time. As of late last month, there were roughly 30 legacy contractors still delivering Amazon packages, according to court testimony.
Meanwhile, Amazon continues signing up hundreds of new, small, 2.0 contractors around the country. In its statement, the online retailer said that “in the past six months, more than 300 new Delivery Service Partners have launched their businesses with Amazon, creating job opportunities for nearly 15,000 drivers.”
Drivers at some of the 2.0 firms complain of some of the same workplace issues as at legacy contractors, including being forced to drive poorly maintained vans, not receiving overtime pay, and being denied proper lunch or bathroom breaks. At least one 2.0 firm, Amazing Courier Express Services, based outside San Diego, has been subject to an employment suit, court records show. That suit is still pending.
Last summer, Amazon managers in Seattle reviewed the company’s remaining legacy contractors, ultimately creating a list of 15 firms marked for termination. Amazon manager, Micah McCabe, whose job is to “own the exit process” of delivery contractors, said in court testimony that those 15 firms were singled out solely because they had been named in employment lawsuits by drivers.
But some delivery firm owners claim Amazon’s termination decisions are capricious and inconsistent. A review of court records reveals other legacy firms that have delivered for Amazon for years have been named in multiple employment lawsuits yet do not appear to have been terminated. Courier Distribution Systems, for example, has been sued by its drivers at least 13 times, most recently in November. Yet the Georgia-based firm continues to post help-wanted ads for Amazon drivers, and in some cases offers a wage below the $15 minimum hourly rate Amazon has said it requires its delivery contractors to pay.
A different legacy contractor, Bear Down Logistics, has been the subject of just one employment suit, court records show. But last summer, 75 of its drivers in Wisconsin — frustrated by low pay, inadequate health insurance, and other issues — filed for a labor election that would allow them to be represented by a trade union. Earlier this month, Bloomberg News first reported that Bear Down Logistics had lost its contract with Amazon and as many as 400 drivers would be laid off in April.
When Amazon terminates a delivery firm, it typically offers a payment in exchange for signing a non-disclosure agreement. None of the eight delivery firms that have been terminated responded to requests for comment from BuzzFeed News.
One delivery firm on the termination list, Scoobeez, refused Amazon’s $1 million offer and is currently fighting the online retailer’s efforts to shut it down in court. Scoobeez, based outside of Los Angeles, employs almost 900 drivers in three states and gets essentially all of its income from Amazon; in December 2018 it operated more than 13,000 routes and had $5.1 million in revenue, according to court records.
The delivery firm, which has been working for Amazon since 2015, refused to accept the terms of the 2.0 contract because it “would have taken a 5 percent haircut” on what it earned, according to an email written by Eric Swanson, director of Amazon’s last mile program.
Scoobeez, which has been sued multiple times by workers alleging underpayment and also was accused by its creditors of possible criminal mismanagement, filed for bankruptcy protection last April. Amazon continued giving Scoobeez business after the filing, but in October informed the company that its contract would be terminated.
Amazon, has been unable to cut off Scoobeez because of bankruptcy court protections but contends it shouldn’t be forced to do business with a company it no longer wants delivering its packages, citing concerns that could hurt its reputation.
“If a driver was then to contact media, then Amazon, again, could be called out as the bad guy,” Amazon’s compliance manager Richardson testified. Added McCabe: “I would point to a BuzzFeed article that came out several months ago."
Scoobeez was featured prominently in that article. At least three other firms mentioned in that report have also since been terminated by Amazon since publication.
Posted on February 27, 2020
Chris Helgren / Reuters
An Amazon worker loads a trolley from a Prime delivery van in Los Angeles, California
More than 3,200 drivers who deliver Amazon packages to homes and businesses across the country each day will be laid off by the end of April as the e-commerce giant continues a significant shift from large delivery contractors to smaller ones that are cheaper and easier to control.
In the past several months, the online retailer has informed at least eight delivery firms that it would be severing contracts with them. In turn, those contractors told state workforce regulators that they would be forced to lay off at least 3,242 employees, records show.
That comes in addition to the layoffs of more than 2,000 drivers from three other terminated delivery firms reported by BuzzFeed News and ProPublica in October; all three of those firms had been involved in accidents resulting in fatalities that were previously reported in investigations by the news organizations.
“Sometimes the companies we contract with to deliver packages do not meet our bar for safety, performance or working conditions,” Amazon said in a statement. “When that happens we have a responsibility to terminate those relationships and work to find new partners. We care a lot about the communities where we operate and work hard to ensure there is zero or very little net job loss in these communities.”
Although Amazon offers laid off drivers the chance to apply for new jobs with its other delivery contractors, the company’s director of transportation compliance, Carey Richardson, recently acknowledged under oath that it’s rare for more than 60% of those individuals to end up at one of those firms. That’s a particular issue at this time of year, when the holiday rush is over and many delivery contractors say they are not hiring.
“There are no jobs for these drivers to transition to,” said the owner of one Amazon delivery firm that has not lost its contract and who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal. “They have nowhere to go.”
To achieve its promise of next-day delivery, Amazon relies on a homegrown network of independent companies that hire their own drivers, rather than employ its own workforce directly. Those contractors, recognizable by their ubiquitous cargo vans that roam the streets of almost every community in the country, delivered more than half of the record number of packages Amazon shipped to customers this past holiday season.
The use of contractors also creates a layer of legal separation that helps Amazon deny liability when things go amiss. Investigations by BuzzFeed News and ProPublica last year found that Amazon contractors have been involved in dozens of serious crashes, including at least ten that were fatal. Many of the online retailer’s delivery firms have been investigated by the Labor Department following allegations that workers were underpaid and denied proper lunch or bathroom breaks.
Using contractors also makes it easy for the online retailer to unilaterally drop firms — many of whom have no other source of revenue and are forced to go out of business — at its whim.
Most recently, Transportation Brokerage Specialists, based in Costa Mesa, California, lost its contract with Amazon and said it would be shutting down its operations in California, Arizona, Washington, and Oregon. As a result, the firm will be forced to initiate a “mass layoff of approximately 907 employees,” the company wrote in a letter to regulators last week.
Amazon has also severed contracts with other contractors, including Bear Down Logistics, Express Parcel Service, Delivery Force, Urban Mobility Now, RailCrew Xpress, Dash Delivery, and 1-800-Courier in recent months, government records show, leading to layoffs in at least 18 states, including California, Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Ohio, Virginia, North Carolina, Washington, WIsconsin, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Kentucky, Alabama, Michigan, Arizona, Minnesota, and Oregon.
One RailCrew Xpress driver in Alabama was recently told she’d be out of work on April 12. She said she wants to get a job with another Amazon delivery contractor but is far from confident. “I have to apply and hope for the best,” said the woman, who requested anonymity for fear that speaking out would prevent her from getting hired.
After being told he would be laid off because his employer, Delivery Force, was getting terminated by Amazon, one driver got a job offer from a different delivery contractor. But that job paid less, $15 instead of $17 an hour, he said. “It just can’t work,” said the man, who requested anonymity because he is still working for Delivery Force. “It’s so sad,” he added. “We had all these plans for our team … We had no clue until we got the letter.”
Amazon launched its delivery network as an alternative to UPS, FedEx and the US Postal Service in 2014. Originally, it brought in established logistics firms, some of which it contracted to operate in multiple locations and run hundreds or even thousands of routes at a time. But since mid-2018, Amazon has been aggressively shifting its delivery model towards smaller contractors that work from a single location and manage no more than a few dozen routes.
Because of their size, those smaller companies have less negotiating leverage with Amazon, which in some cases pays them as much as 5% less than it paid its so-called “legacy” or “1.0” carriers for the same work, court records show. While Amazon pays legacy carriers a monthly stipend to cover the cost of dispatchers, for example, there is no such payment for the newer firms.
In addition, while legacy contractors are free to choose their own vendors and purchase or lease their own vehicles, Amazon requires its newer carriers, known internally as “2.0,” to lease blue vans branded with the Amazon smile logo, and to obtain insurance and manage payroll through providers that it selects, giving the $900 billion company far more control over their daily operations.
Amazon does not publish a list of all its delivery contractors and in October refused a written request from three US Senators to do so, although it did say it had more than 800 firms under contract at the time. As of late last month, there were roughly 30 legacy contractors still delivering Amazon packages, according to court testimony.
Meanwhile, Amazon continues signing up hundreds of new, small, 2.0 contractors around the country. In its statement, the online retailer said that “in the past six months, more than 300 new Delivery Service Partners have launched their businesses with Amazon, creating job opportunities for nearly 15,000 drivers.”
Drivers at some of the 2.0 firms complain of some of the same workplace issues as at legacy contractors, including being forced to drive poorly maintained vans, not receiving overtime pay, and being denied proper lunch or bathroom breaks. At least one 2.0 firm, Amazing Courier Express Services, based outside San Diego, has been subject to an employment suit, court records show. That suit is still pending.
Last summer, Amazon managers in Seattle reviewed the company’s remaining legacy contractors, ultimately creating a list of 15 firms marked for termination. Amazon manager, Micah McCabe, whose job is to “own the exit process” of delivery contractors, said in court testimony that those 15 firms were singled out solely because they had been named in employment lawsuits by drivers.
But some delivery firm owners claim Amazon’s termination decisions are capricious and inconsistent. A review of court records reveals other legacy firms that have delivered for Amazon for years have been named in multiple employment lawsuits yet do not appear to have been terminated. Courier Distribution Systems, for example, has been sued by its drivers at least 13 times, most recently in November. Yet the Georgia-based firm continues to post help-wanted ads for Amazon drivers, and in some cases offers a wage below the $15 minimum hourly rate Amazon has said it requires its delivery contractors to pay.
A different legacy contractor, Bear Down Logistics, has been the subject of just one employment suit, court records show. But last summer, 75 of its drivers in Wisconsin — frustrated by low pay, inadequate health insurance, and other issues — filed for a labor election that would allow them to be represented by a trade union. Earlier this month, Bloomberg News first reported that Bear Down Logistics had lost its contract with Amazon and as many as 400 drivers would be laid off in April.
When Amazon terminates a delivery firm, it typically offers a payment in exchange for signing a non-disclosure agreement. None of the eight delivery firms that have been terminated responded to requests for comment from BuzzFeed News.
One delivery firm on the termination list, Scoobeez, refused Amazon’s $1 million offer and is currently fighting the online retailer’s efforts to shut it down in court. Scoobeez, based outside of Los Angeles, employs almost 900 drivers in three states and gets essentially all of its income from Amazon; in December 2018 it operated more than 13,000 routes and had $5.1 million in revenue, according to court records.
The delivery firm, which has been working for Amazon since 2015, refused to accept the terms of the 2.0 contract because it “would have taken a 5 percent haircut” on what it earned, according to an email written by Eric Swanson, director of Amazon’s last mile program.
Scoobeez, which has been sued multiple times by workers alleging underpayment and also was accused by its creditors of possible criminal mismanagement, filed for bankruptcy protection last April. Amazon continued giving Scoobeez business after the filing, but in October informed the company that its contract would be terminated.
Amazon, has been unable to cut off Scoobeez because of bankruptcy court protections but contends it shouldn’t be forced to do business with a company it no longer wants delivering its packages, citing concerns that could hurt its reputation.
“If a driver was then to contact media, then Amazon, again, could be called out as the bad guy,” Amazon’s compliance manager Richardson testified. Added McCabe: “I would point to a BuzzFeed article that came out several months ago."
Scoobeez was featured prominently in that article. At least three other firms mentioned in that report have also since been terminated by Amazon since publication.
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