Amazon India Launches Skill Development Program on World Youth Skill Day

The pilot program is aimed at engaging, training and upskilling 1000 youth; under National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS)

July  2020: Amazon India has launched a skilling program under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS), across its Fulfilment Centres in India. The company aims at training youth whose learning journey or placement was impacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Apprentices will be identified through various sources including NSDC-accredited training centers (DDU-GKY Centers) and the NSDC Skilling Database. This program will enable Amazon India to contribute to the government’s commitment towards skilling and increasing the employability of the apprentices.

During the 6-month program, the apprentices will be trained on warehousing and Inventory Management skills for the roles of warehouse associates and process associates. The curriculum will consist of a mix of classroom sessions, on-the-job learning, and assessments held at the fulfillment centers in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad. All training sessions will be conducted with a high standard of preventive health and safety measures including social distancing and regular sanitization.

The apprentices will receive a monthly-stipend in line with guidelines mandated under NAPS. At the end of the program, apprentices will be assessed by the Logistics Sector Skill Council, and post the assessment they will receive a certification. After certification, the apprentices will be eligible to be considered for available seasonal and full-time employment opportunities.

“At Amazon, our business is naturally aligned to the government’s priorities of enabling skilling and job creation. For us, skilling is not only meaningful but a sustainable and long-term approach. We are deeply invested in creating opportunities for the youth which will help them secure gainful and skilled employment in the future. We are excited to launch the pilot program with 1000 apprentices at our Fulfilment Centres and then scale further with time,” said Swati Rustagi, Director of Human Resources, Amazon India Operations.

“It is encouraging to see large job creators like Amazon furthering our vision to enhance the employability of the youth. We are confident that this apprentice program will help create a skilled workforce which will greatly benefit our communities and the economy,” said Anita Srivastava, Joint Director, Ministry of Skill Development And Entrepreneurship.

Through various initiatives, Amazon has continued to offer skilling and training opportunities to the youth. In September 2019, the company had announced its partnership with Sol’s ARC, an NGO, to train and create employment opportunities for young adults with Autism & Intellectual Disabilities. As it continues to expand its fulfillment infrastructure, the company has consistently worked towards creating work opportunities for the youth and equipping them with technological and operational skills.

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Amazon India Expands Packaging-Free Shipping to more than 100 cities towards its continued commitment to reduce packaging waste

                With this initiative more than 40% customer orders from the Amazon Fulfilment network are now shipped without secondary packaging

Bangalore, 3 June 2020 Amazon India today announced that it has achieved an integral milestone towards minimizing packaging waste across its supply chain by expanding its India-first initiative, Packaging-Free Shipping (PFS), to over a 100 cities in the country. PFS is a sustainable packaging solution in which customer orders are shipped in their original packaging without any additional packaging, or significantly reduced packaging. Amazon had first launched PFS in India in June 2019 in 9 cities and within a year, the company has been able to successfully expand this program to more than 100 cities.

With this expansion of PFS, more than 40% of Amazon customer orders shipped from Amazon India’s Fulfilment centers are now packaging-free or have significantly reduced packaging. With PFS, multiple customer orders are secured and transported in re-usable totes during deliveries.

The PFS algorithm leverages technology and is applied to orders based on parameters like the location of the customer, distance the order has to travel and the category of product ordered. To keep up with Amazon’s vast and rapidly expanding selection, Amazon.in uses machine learning algorithms to adjust packaging protection depending on the product and transportation conditions. Products that are shipped packaging-free include tech accessories, home and home improvement products, shoes, luggage, and more. Liquids, fragile items, and personal care products that need additional protection during transportation continue to be shipped with packaging.

“At Amazon India, we are aggressively working towards building innovative and sustainable packaging solutions which will help us minimize waste. We have been working with several brands to provide e-commerce friendly packaging to further reduce use of secondary packaging. The expansion of PFS to 100 cities within a year is a testament to our commitment towards sustainability. We continue to expand this initiative while ensuring safe and secure deliveries of customer orders”, said Prakash Kumar Dutta, Director, Customer Fulfilment & Supply Chain, Amazon India.

Visit Amazon’s sustainability website for information and sustainability metrics that share the progress the company is making towards reaching The Climate Pledge. The goals, commitments, investments, and programs build on Amazon’s long-term commitment to sustainability through existing innovative programs, including Shipment Zero – Amazon’s vision to make all shipments net zero carbon, with 50% net zero carbon by 2030; sustainable packaging initiatives like Frustration-Free Packaging and Ship in Own Container, which have reduced packaging waste by 25% since 2015; renewable energy programs; investments in the circular economy with the Closed Loop Fund; and numerous other initiatives happening every day and led by teams across Amazon.

Amazon India is creating close to 50,000 seasonal opportunities across its fulfilment and delivery network to meet customer needs

Bengaluru, May 22, 2020: As India continues to maintain social distancing to fight the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon India firmly believes it has a unique role to play providing a critical service for the community; to help them get the items they need for their families without leaving their homes. Amazon India today announced that it has opened close to 50,000 seasonal roles to meet the surge in demand from people relying on Amazon’s service, particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public. This will be a variety of roles in their fulfilment centres and delivery network including part-time flexible work opportunities as independent contractors with Amazon Flex.

The associates will join other thousands of associates across Amazon India’s fulfilment and delivery network and assist them to pick, pack, ship and deliver customers’ orders more efficiently.

“One thing we’ve learned from the COVID-19 pandemic is how important a role Amazon and ecommerce can play for our customers as much as for small businesses & the economy. We take this responsibility seriously, and we’re proud of the work our teams are doing to help small and other businesses deliver to our customers through this difficult time. We want to continue helping customers all over India get everything they need so they can continue to practice social distancing. To enable this, we are creating work opportunities for close to 50,000 seasonal associates across our fulfilment and delivery network. This will also keep as many people as possible working during this pandemic while providing a safe work environment for them.” said Akhil Saxena, VP, Customer Fulfilment Operations, APAC, MENA & LATAM, Amazon.

While creating these opportunities, Amazon remains committed to the health and safety of its associates,  partners, employees, and customers, and has implemented a number of measures towards their well-being. The company has made close to 100 significant process changes in their operations for the safety of its people which include mandatory face covering, daily temperature checks in buildings, increased frequency and intensity of cleaning at all sites including regular sanitization of frequently touched areas, and awareness-building among associates on safety requirements around hand-washing and hand sanitization.

Amazon India launches a Special Fund to help Small & Medium Business Partners in Logistics impacted due to the Lockdown; to benefit close to 40,000 of their staff

The Fund will support Delivery Service Partners and Transportation Partners associated with Amazon, and provide financial aid for the month of April 2020. 

29 April 2020, Bangalore: Small and Medium Businesses (SMB) across India have been financially impacted due to the nationwide lockdown in these unprecedented times. In an effort to enable the SMBs in logistics that are heavily reliant on the company, Amazon India has introduced a Partner Support Fund.

This Partner Support Fund for small and medium businesses in logistics will be available to Delivery Service Partners (DSP) and select Transportation partners in India to help adjust their business model to the new realities posed during the lockdown. Through the one-time disbursement, the fund will support the partners in multiple ways. This includes enabling them to provide financial aid to close to 40,000 of their staff for the month of April’20. Additionally it will help cover some critical fixed infrastructure costs, and support liquidity and cash flow for these businesses as they resume and scale their operations post lockdown.

Akhil Saxena, VP, Customer Fulfilment Operations, APAC, MENA & LATAM, Amazon, said, “Amazon is committed to keeping India safe by delivering essentials to customers at their doorstep. We are equally invested in helping our partners overcome the unforeseen disruption in business. This one-time special Partner Support Fund is designed to enable partners to assist close to 40,000 of their associates through financial hardships, and will help our small business partners in logistics get back on their feet at the earliest when the economy reopens. Our commitment to partners and to India is for the long-term, and this fund, in addition to other measures, aims to support SMBs overcome the situation with relative ease.”

The special Amazon Partner Support Fund follows the recent announcement of the global USD 25 million Amazon Relief Fund (ARF) in India. ARF can be utilized by qualifying individuals who have been quarantined or diagnosed with COVID-19. Amazon India has extended the Amazon Relief Fund to eligible delivery associates who are part of the Delivery Service Partner Program, Amazon Flex program and its trucking partners providing transportation support.

Amazon is committed to the health and safety of its associates, delivery service partners, drivers, employees, and customers, and has implemented a number of preventive measures. Amazon India has begun temperature checks in buildings, has increased the frequency and intensity of cleaning at all sites, ,adjusted practices so that teams can adhere to social distancing whether at site or while even making deliveries to customers.  All associates are also required to wear re-usable face covering through departure of their shifts at our sites, and also when they are out on the road making deliveries.

Amazon India Strengthens Its Partnership with Indian Railways for the ease of Freight Movement amid Lockdown

The continued partnership with Indian Railways will enable faster and reliable deliveries of essentials to customers

27 April 2020: Amazon India today announced that it has strengthened its partnership with the Indian Railways to transport consignments via rail across the country. The company is leveraging the ’COVID-19 Parcel Special Trains’ introduced by the Indian Railways to ramp up its operations to 55 lanes during the lockdown period.

This is yet another step towards a long-term partnership between Amazon India and Indian Railways which is focused on developing the rail network to supplement the road and air networks for transportation of customer packages with improved speed and reliability. Indian Railways with the support of the Railway Board and the zones across Western, Central, Northern, Eastern, South Central, Southern, South Eastern, North East Frontier, North Western and South Western have created a proactive solution to provide support for transportation during lockdown.  This enhanced network will enable sellers in Amazon India’s network to ship their products across the country and keep their businesses running, thereby, allowing people to access a more diverse selection of essential products.

“In these unprecedented times, we understand the importance of ensuring that critical supplies reach our customers across the country.  With the support of COVID-19 Parcel Special trains introduced by the Indian Railways, we are confident that we can further fulfil customer orders with enhanced speed and capacity. We are grateful for this timely decision by the Indian Railways to offer freight movement solutions during these challenging times.” said Abhinav Singh, Director – Amazon Transportation Services, Amazon India.

“We are pleased to extend our partnership with Amazon India and offer services of ’COVID-19 Parcel Special Trains’ to ensure that essential needs of the public across the country are met and fulfilled by Amazon. We will continue to build on this partnership to help the industry service customers during this critical period.” said sources at the Indian Railways.

To serve the communities while also ensuring the safety of its associates, Amazon has always innovated processes to prioritize the delivery of items that are of high priority for customers.  In 2019, Amazon India had partnered with Indian Railways for inter-city transportation of e-commerce packages on 13 lanes. Previously, the company had also partnered with the Indian Railways to set up pickup kiosks for customers in Kolkata and Mumbai.