B&H Photo responds to CR Forums member re: warehouse working conditions story

[ahsanford]

Kudos to B&H for writing me back in response to my letter to them about the AJA story on the treatment of their warehouse workers.

FYI if you were curious. Didn't want to start a thread on this so much as close the loop on their side of things.

- A

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Thank you for reaching out to inquire about the recent news articles you've seen. At B&H we value your feedback and appreciate your concern for our business and our staff. Allegations in the public are just that, allegations; and we would like to take the opportunity to set the record straight.

B&H Photo is a classic New York business who recognizes we could not have grown from where we began to what we are now without the dedication and contribution of our employees, each of whom is a valued team member. Employee satisfaction is as important to us, and as vital to us, as customer satisfaction. The two are intertwined. Our commitment to our employees runs as deep as it does to our loyal customer base. They are the reasons we are here and to both we are eternally grateful.

We have committed, devoted, hard-working employees who earn above-average industry salaries, generous benefit packages, 17 paid days off annually, and 3-weeks paid vacation time. Our average employee tenure in our distribution and fulfillment center is more than five years. We provide terrific benefits, highly competitive wages and a safe, friendly environment.

B&H has a strong and independent human resources department which strictly adheres to workplace regulations. We take matters of employee safety seriously and are committed to reaching even higher standards to ensure that we live up to our own expectations commensurate with the excellent reputation we have fostered over many years.

As to the matter of union representation, our employees have the right to seek such representation. It is a decision to be made by our employees, and there is a process underway to resolve that question.

-- -
regards,
Henry Posner
Director of Corporate Communications
B&H Photo-Video, and Pro-Audio
http://www.bandh.com/

 

[ahsanford]

What's important is what that doesn't say and that effectively means B&H Photo are guilty as charged - nowhere in that email do they say that the allegations are wrong or do they deny them.

Someone in another thread said the truth is probably in the middle between B&H being innocent vs. what the AJA article said. Likely so.

I asked them in my letter to rebut the AJA story, but this is what they chose to give me. Take that as you will.

- A

 

[AlanF]

It's worth noting that the group troll dilbert started a thread about B&H that was so racist it was deleted by the mods.

 

[twagn]

Nice, now people will spend an enormous about of time looking up these allegations (whatever they are) whether accurate or not..."the AJA story" ...jeez...is someone applying for a job at B&H? ....Go out and take photos!

 

[ahsanford]

Nice, now people will spend an enormous about of time looking up these allegations (whatever they are) whether accurate or not..."the AJA story" ...jeez...is someone applying for a job at B&H? ....Go out and take photos!

You could not possibly be more off-target with your comments. Please walk back to the prior thread and avoid speculating about others' intentions.

Cheers.

- A

 

[distant.star]

It's worth noting that the group troll dilbert started a thread about B&H that was so racist it was deleted by the mods.

Interesting how interpretations can be so vastly different.

I saw the dilbert post, and I saw NOTHING racist about it.

Anyway, thanks for posting the B&H response, for what it's worth. Looks like boilerplate corporate-speak to me.

I'll continue to hope the full story emerges.

 

[takesome1]

And again is it really racist to say?

That isn't it odd that a news organization that is believed to be Muslim biased would write and publish a negative article about a company that appears to be Jewish owned.

Probably not a topic the moderators would think appropriate here and just let it go. That is probably why these threads get locked and deleted.

But it is the elephant in the room, do we ignore it.

 

[takesome1]

I'll continue to hope the full story emerges.

Without Bias

 

[ahsanford]

It's worth noting that the group troll dilbert started a thread about B&H that was so racist it was deleted by the mods.

Interesting how interpretations can be so vastly different.

I saw the dilbert post, and I saw NOTHING racist about it.

Anyway, thanks for posting the B&H response, for what it's worth. Looks like boilerplate corporate-speak to me.

I'll continue to hope the full story emerges.

Yeah, but I'm going to ask to have this thread locked nonetheless.

I strongly believe that we should be openly discussing the retailers we use -- especially the huge ones like B&H, Amazon, etc. -- but this specific case is tough to be open-minded about. I just wanted to know if B&H ran some elements of a sweatshop, but this inevitably devolved into 'discussion third rails' like Union vs. Non-Union, AJA vs. Jewish business owners, etc.

That was not the intent of the thread I started, but if that's where the conversation will always spiral I should put a cork in this thread and walk away from it.

My apologies for winding folks up. That was not my intent.

Respectfully,
A