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An Amazon Education

24 points| iProject | 13 years ago |bits.blogs.nytimes.com | reply

7 comments

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[+] wyclif|13 years ago|reply
Unimpressive. $2,000/yr really isn't much, given the current cost of education. What they should do is offer full reimbursement for STEM training to employees who qualify. Now that would make me consider working for Amazon.

This only confirms my opinion of Amazon as a company that likes to be stingy with salaries and benefits.

[+] sadga|13 years ago|reply
It's $2000/yr bonus for minimum wage warehouse employees, not spoiled engineers.
[+] primatology|13 years ago|reply
From the FAQ:

> What are the maximum benefits under the program? > Amazon will pay up to 95% of the tuition, textbook and associated fees up to a maximum of $2,000 per year for four years.

Tuition for an associates degree is usually upwards of $5000. I was impressed at first; now I'm deeply disappointed and see this as little more than a PR stunt.

[+] Mythbusters|13 years ago|reply
I think it was targeted towards the people who work in the warehouses not necessarily highly paid technical staff aiming to do their MS or MBA. Still $2000 is paltry as compared to what Google and Microsoft, other major tech employers in the area, offer.
[+] sadga|13 years ago|reply
$2000/yr for 4 years is $8000

In Washington State, an AA is 4 semesters * $1500 = $6000, completed part-time by people have jobs at Amazon.

The Amazon hate on this issue is bizarre.

[+] dinkumthinkum|13 years ago|reply
That's pretty bogus. Little more than a PR stunt. Honestly, I would have more respect for Amazon if they just didn't have such a program or made it basically secret rather than treating it as a call to action for other corps to "copy."