Are you a delivery person or do you work in a retail warehouse? Can you tell me...

[Dennisreynoldsduster]

... if ordering non essential items at the moment is a really dickish thing to do?
I’ve had a lot of parcels from my work so I can set up my home office and work remotely for the foreseeable. I’ve been a bit embarrassed as it’s the same delivery people each time - who are lovely I hasten to add and perfectly cheery.

However DH mentioned ordering some bits for the garden so we can work on it at the weekends while stuck at home and getting a jumperoo for DS so he can bounce/ be entertained.

Initially I thought it helps the economy to keep shopping (and a few posters mentioned this in another thread) but now I’m thinking is this just moronic behaviour in a time of national crisis? Is it making the warehouse workers HAVE to be at work?
We don’t need these items they would be very nice to have in lockdown but now I’m not sure what to do. DH thinks I’m massively overthinking it and that the economy needs all the help it can get. Plus so many things are out of stock he thinks everyone has been doing the same. Not that it makes it right of course.

What would you say?

Well I have an order due from George at Asda but won't be ordering anything else now aside from things like Baby Formula etc

Hubby works for Royal Mail and, as Dasiest has said, he gets delivering essentials, etc. but gets annoyed when he sees the Nastygal.com, etc. parcels coming in, lol!! That said though, I've done a couple of online orders myself recently because I need proper maternity clothes now I'm getting bigger at 28 wks - I hadn't stocked up before because I wasnt sure how much I would put on!! Hubby said if he's being made to work then he'd rather be out on the road delivering parcels than stuck in the office to close to people with not much to take out...which makes sense.

Think about who you are ordering from. Small businesses like mine only have one member of staff, working from home, and don't have contact with anyone in the post office as we drop our stuff and go. Shopping with small businesses helps them pay their bills and stay afloat. Big companies like Amazon are putting their staff at risk and have the money to stay afloat if sales drop.

For the owners it’s good for the workers... come in, they’re on minimum wage. You think they wanna go and work 50 or more hr weeks, putting their health at risk to only receive 20% more?

I’m a keyworker. Believe me, everyone at my work is gutted we are not furloughed at home on the sofa.

If f you want to order stuff then do it but just make sure that you’re not also one of them gobshites telling anyone who will listen that you’re holier than thou and the perfect isolator and everyone is doing it all wrong!

The warehouse I work in - a very large UK retailer - has just been closed. The primary reason was that half the staff were off sick and the other half were so furious and petrified at having to come in to risk being seriously ill or even dead to earn £9 an hour supplying utterly pointless home furnishing tat to the great British public that they basically threatened to walk out.

Behind your internet clicks are real people, often working long hours doing gruelling physical work under immense pressure from their managers for fuck all money.

Right now all you need is food, toiletries, medicine and possibly parts for diy or repairs.

Not a fucking antelope head wall hanging....ok?

Next directory announced they've closed, BIL will be over the moon!

The sooner non essential warehouses close the better, it’s almost impossible to maintain safe social distancing in a warehouse environment. Employee wages are protected at the moment, I’m sure they would rather be at home safe than packing non essential items because people are bored or want to redecorate

Yes I feel awful now about the stuff I had ordered - prior to lockdown - that is arriving now. If I could cancel it I would.
Rest assured I haven’t been ordering any antelope wall hangings. Baby things and toiletries are heading this way but I’ve told DH we aren’t ordering anything else non essential now

A friend of mine works in a distribution warehouse. It's awful - impossible to socially distance, half the staff are off unwell/self-isolating etc.

Some of what they're distributing is food and medicine, which they're okay about. Hedge cutters and the like, not so much.

One of my dc's has broken a string on their violin. I've agonised for a few days then decided to order one from a small business which only has two stores, which are obvs closed.

Amazon are supposed to only be shipping essential items at the moment, my DB works in their warehouse and they've never been busier. Lots of people ordering pointless shit e.g himalayan rock salt, pop vinyl figures, coat hangers, photo frames.

They are still receiving items into the warehouse shipped from China.

They weren't sent home when there was a suspected bomb in the warehouse around a year ago so he's not holding out hope of being furloughed.

Please only order what you need. Its not just delivery drivers, every item will go through numerous peoples hands first. Many on zero hour /agency contracts too so likely to go into work ill as they can't afford to be off.

I’m glad I started this thread. I’ve seen some
Others (including one of my
Own a few weeks back!) where people have been talking about climbing frames/ garden tools/home gym equipment etc they had been ordering.
We had previously ordered a LOT of stuff because we had not long moved house and needed a lot of things for it which we had budgeted. But lockdown made me REALLY think, something I have been very guilty of not doing previously in our click to order culture.
As I said I’ve felt like I’ve had to apologise to delivery drivers for the amount of orders we have been receiving even though they were from work mainly - I’m going to be really ashamed when the obvious George at Asda parcel arrives. Wish I could cancel it but looks like that’s not an option.
The items will get used, and they’re basics for DS nothing fancy but even so. I think they must think I have some kind of shopping problem and must really hate me right now! I have put up a sign to say i sanitise the doorbell and door every time it’s used - tiny tiny gesture of course in the grand scheme of things.
Serve us right if this is how we bloody catch it I suppose. ☹️

Amazon are definitely not only shipping essential items, I’m a manager of a warehouse who distributes to Amazon, our products are being accepted and sold without any issue, infact we are busier than ever, all non essential.

Agreed, I’ve been sent so many amazon parcels through work - I’ve managed to stop them now thankfully, and hardly any of the items were truly
Essential. I didn’t know they were coming so had no say in the matter IYSWIM.
I feel really grubby and entitled now to be honest. Just made a list of everything I’ve received recently so I could take a look and think about the implications for everyone.
If anything good comes out of this whole thing I hope it’s things like this - appreciating other people and thinking about how things affect people.

Dennisreynoldsduster

You sound like a kind and thoughtful person, don’t feel guilty, we are all just trying to make our way through this nightmare. Hopefully more non essential businesses will close soon, and I know the detrimental impact this may have on economy but we really do need to protect peoples health.

Ah thank you @Allofaworry that’s a very sweet thing to say

I managed to cancel one of my orders and only have one coming now but my mum has apparently ordered a load of stuff for DS and for my birthday so we will be getting a few more anyway :-/

I am so grateful to the key workers who are working to keep us safe. Anyone who is not a key worker should be at home. I won’t be ordering anything

i have ordered a bulk catering size of dishwasher detergent and laundry powder, 48 protein bars, and some things for birthdays from amazon. i have 2 birthdays in may in my house so didnt want DC to not have at least a small item.

i feel bad for those in warehouses but there is nothing else i need and really dont like how it seems impossible to work safely