A California creator filmed an Amazon delivery driver pedaling an electric cargo bike through the midday heat in Los Angeles, leaving viewers questioning why the company was having employees make deliveries this way. Some commenters felt the setup was unfair to workers. Others pushed back, claiming the job isn’t nearly as rough as it looks.
Posted to TikTok by @iamautoboy, the video shows an Amazon delivery driver riding an electric cargo bike while the California creator reacts off camera. He questions whether Jeff Bezos is turning people into “slaves” as the driver pedals along. The on-screen text points out how hot it is in Los Angeles, making the working conditions even worse.
Amazon introduced its e-cargo delivery bikes in California in August. At a press conference at the time, a company representative said the bikes were designed to “solve real city problems like congestion, traffic, and noise by taking vehicles off the roads.”
Viewers Weren’t Having It
Commenters were quick to point out how unfair it seemed for employees to be making deliveries this way instead of driving a regular delivery vehicle. “8hr bike shift so [expletive] devious,” one wrote. Another agreed, calling it “so diabolically evil.” A third wanted to know how more people weren’t upset about the whole thing.
Viewers also had their own theories about why Amazon was using these bikes in the first place. Some suggested it was a punishment for the California employee or a way to get around rising gas prices. Another commenter argued the company was doing it “so that they can bypass commercial trucking regulations since technically that is not a delivery van.”
However, some commenters familiar with the bikes had a different perspective. One person who drives one said, “It’s pretty much electric. It’s not as labor intensive as it looks plus you get paid $32.75/hr…. Not bad.” Another commenter explained that pedal assist actually does about 99 percent of the work.
Others saw an upside to the arrangement. “You laughing but he’s getting paid & his calves gon be defined all at once,” one commenter pointed out. Another said they liked the idea of making money while getting in shape.
Ultimately, many felt this was another example of a major corporation being more concerned with its bottom line than its employees.
