Wall Street Journal - 2022-03-23
Every day, millions of sailors, truck drivers, longshoremen, warehouse workers and delivery drivers keep mountains of goods moving into stores and homes to meet consumers’ increasing expectations of convenience. But this complex movement of goods underpinning the global economy is far more vulnerable than many imagined. Photo illustration: Adele Morgan 0:00 Where’s my stuff? How record demand broke supply chains 3:10 Ocean shipping—the journey from Asia 8:01 Inside America’s most backlogged port 13:50 Why there aren’t enough truck drivers 26:00 The humans and robots working in fulfillment centers 38:11 The last mile—how products get to your doorstep 50:06 How can we fix supply chains? #SupplyChain #Documentary #WSJ
I used to work as an order picker/selector and as a forklift driver. I have unloaded many trucks and spoken to many drivers. This is one of the best, most well made documentaries I have ever seen. Well done to all those involved, thank you for telling our story.
Seen "Why many lose Faith in Capitalism" by 'Second Thought'?
How would you characterize your employer? And what are your feeling about them?
@George I. Klapsides Negligent towards safety, toxic and hostile workforce, not recommended. I got arthritis in my joints in my 20s from overwork, took me most of a year to heal.
@Joshua pl Interesting to read. Dont you believe the vid is "eye candying" some of the conditions?
@George I. Klapsides Yeah definitely
WSJ did a great job of putting human faces on all this. I have a new-found respect and admiration for all the folks who make the supply chain work.
What about China locking down to gain leverage... who holds the leverage? Who is now more dependent on who
More like human excuse for their minions
WSJ didn’t show the ambulances outside fulfillment centers.
I don't believe any media from NYC
Hats off to every worker involved in getting these goods to us. An especially big Thank You to all the truck drivers who kept the country functioning during the pandemic and many closures. Good video, WSJ.
100%. I think many of us never gave it much thought about how incredibly vital truck drivers are. Bless them, it's a very difficult job with not a lot of thanks or appreciation. Thank you to all truckers😇
@50 acres A place like Idaho imports 90 percent of its FOOD. They better thank the truckers every day and every time they see one.
Agreed, we don't see that side when we click buy it now. Watching this makes me feel dirty and maybe even addicted to wanting stuff.
I try to thank all the delivery drivers who kept me going during the pandemic, they have been wonderful. I was on full lockdown for two years and being able to get supplies, etc., delivered made a huge difference.
We will enjoy a greater depression than the Great Depression because of people who complied with covid mandates and those who believed in the threat.
All of this nonsense has brought down the supply chain.
I was really impressed with all the workers involved in this documentary, especially their attitudes. As a retired person, I truly appreciate all workers involved in the delivery process. I appreciate all workers everywhere who make our world work. As customers we should be appreciative and don't need to make their jobs harder with insignificant complaints and excessive demands. Thank you workers around the world!
This is probably one of the most eye-opening subjects on a very overlooked topic that not many people think about. It’s also funny because I literally bought a USB charger from Amazon 2 days ago and it got to my house this morning. Makes me realize how much work/effort was put in just for me to receive this item. So much respect to all the workers involved in the global supply chain.
I've always been surprised Amazon and what not don't have minimum delivery charges like most companies. It truly is only profitable (and only been profitable last 5-7 years I think) through the simply staggering scale of the operation. Don't see how there's profit anywhere along the chain of delivering someone a freakin USB charger for a few bucks, ya know? They HAVE to be taking a loss on that that's only made up through other deliveries. But how long does that concept really work in the long run?
@Jesus is coming. Read the Gospel. amen
@Jonny- B - The shipping costs are sometimes relatively high, and they are built into the cost of the product (if you are an Amazon Prime member for instance). Sometimes it's low or very reasonable also. But what I think is really unsustainable in the long term (and I'm the antithesis of a leftist or liberal), is the use of natural resources/ fossil fuels as Earth's population grows and the demands on the supply chain increase dramatically in only a few short years.
Certain special interests (Globalist Usury Bankers, Royal Families, etc.) would rather have us locked down in our houses ordering online than actually living and traveling in the world/ having relationships/ etc. People should expect a Plandemic every decade or so from now on as the so-called "new normal". Pressure from above and pressure from below is their mantra.
Feels like any Amazon Prime purchase just creates a Rube Goldberg machine of human misery.
Really great documentary. Excellent photography and storytelling style.
Although many people pointed out that issues began with deregulation, I feel they talked around this rather than completely addressing it.
One of the solutions not directly mentioned although you might say it's sort of implied a little bit, is simply the result of deregulation and what it means: workers are underpaid and executives are overpaid.
Ironically, Jeff Bezos flies into outer space, and then admits that his ability to go to space was the result of all the workers at Amazon. Although Amazon has pretty good pay, they overwork their people and that also means they are underpaying them. This documentary points out that the turnover sometimes has exceeded 100%. I don't know how that is even possible, but I do know that means the working conditions are unsustainable. Humans are not robots, but executives can get away with demanding robot-like working conditions because of deregulation. Workers feel they must take those jobs because the majority of jobs are even worse paying or even non-existent. That desperation in the workforce is also a part of deregulation. Laws that benefit larger corporations to bully smaller businesses into bankruptcy is also part of deregulation and loosening of antitrust enforcement. Why are truck drivers short? They underpay them so that executives at the top of the pyramid scheme -- not only CEOs but also hedge fund managers - are being overpaid. All of this is the other side of the deregulation that started in the 70's and 80's.
Bingo some gets it.
The production value of this is pretty fantastic. Hats off to everyone who worked on this Video. You did a fantastic job!
Thanks buddy
This is truly an eye opening subject to think about the future of e-commerce market. Hats off to everyone who made this video possible.
This documentary makes me feel so grateful as I work in Trucking industry and Appreciate all the people who are working in the field of supply chain for their limitless effort!
World is one!
It's insane that I've actually worked many of the jobs listed on here from being in a warehouse to being an Amazon DSP driver, to going on a trip in my dad's semi truck, and now working as a Logistics Truck Dispatcher. I have to say I think Amazon really doesn't understand the fundamental problem with why they have high turnover. DSP driver jobs especially are far worse than they appear because many drivers aren't even hired directly by the small transportation companies, but they're hired by employment agencies who many times don't even pay minimum wage to the delivery drivers.
Also Amazon is the type of foolish company that believes simply increasing speed of output will have zero effect on the employees. In the warehouse they always increase quotas without considering human limitations and they threaten to fire people every day just for not working as fast as the computer tells them to. This is why Amazon has such a high turnover. It has nothing to do with pay or benefits. It's entirely about physical strain.
I am SO GLAD that I quit Amazon after just 6 months because I know that it would've probably ruined my long term health.
Are you kidding?
How are these employees stressed by the demands of productivity? They all work at a snails pace!
Do they think they should have a 15 min break after each order they pick!
Pick it up people.. you move too slow!!!!!
@Proud Canadian Maybe the ones in the video seem to be slow but in the Canadian fulfillment centres they have people working extremely fast.
@Proud Canadian Also the stuff they show on camera isn't always the same as reality. Amazon heavily controls the press that goes into their warehouses.
@Proud Canadian tone deaf.
@Proud Canadian did you even watch the video? Do you have any any any experience whatsoever in logistics? Have you even ever stepped foot in a post office? Do you own a mailbox? Maybe we should start there. Amazon is by far the worst shipping company as far as how they treat their employees. Considering the demand that you have from your couch only, while never giving any thought to how stuff gets to your doorstep from the click of a button, consider everything around you from the floor tile you are standing onto the paint on the ceiling that you look up at while you roll your eyes in pure misunderstanding, did not just materialize where it is. Guaranteed everything you can spit out right now was brought to you by a truck or a boat, operated by many many people, serving a whole entire population not just you
I've only ever been a part of the pizza supply chain and I felt the stress of maintaining my vehicle from that alone. Really informative work, well-paced, expanded my understanding
The last section regarding last mile delivery pretty much summarizes the problem with the broader labor market. A UPS driver has a good job paying +$40/Hr and would be able to retire comfortably. Then Amazon finds that abominable and creates a network of ‘contractors’ who would have to use their own vehicles and be responsible for their expenses and all of that for a pay rate that is just over half the one of the UPS worker. The result? High turnover rates, no one wants to do the job and companies would then blame the workers, the $1,200 stimulus check or even the President when in reality the problem was created by their own corporate greed.
Yup now its mostly run by amazon. Ppl wearing down their own vehicles to make 20 bucks an hour. Same thing as Uber.
Not only do the companies try and blame the workers, they get others (who are likely paying more and waiting longer for something) to blame workers as well. That's just for the few industries that are left here in the USA as well. Parents and grandparents have been sending the jobs overseas for decades now as executives at companies in the US. They keep their cushy, high paying office jobs at headquarters and a few regional offices but the jobs that built our middle class went to wherever was cheapest.
Toss out TRILLIONS of dollars spent on wars overseas too and we have what has become of the USA now. Hopefully one silver lining from the last few years is we learned our lesson on relying on single points of failure in our logistical systems...
Who’s getting all that $ that the drivers aren’t getting… it’s Amazon padding their pockets!!!
Totally totally agree!! The lack of unions is killing is in a major major way, and young people they have no idea about unions and it honestly breaks my heart because unions in my opinion really have the working man a seat at the table so to speak instead of the thankless back breaking minimum wage it's turned into, all this $ and a couple guys get it and the rest of us kill eachother the scraps, there has to be a better way
Love this documentary! Very well put together. Lots of my family is or were in logistics/trucking
Great documentary on the subject!👏 Opened my eyes more on all the labor, and lives involved. Too much respect for these fulfillment and delivery agents!🙏
My uncle was a long haul trucker and I've never seen anyone drive like him. He could drive forever and his map knowledge and sense of direction was superhuman. Not everyone can do what these guys do. Go sit in a truck for 2 weeks with a long haul trucker and u will see.
This should be required viewing for 1st year supply chain students at the University of Tennessee.... cause basically the entire class in the curriculum takes you through ever single node in a global supply chain starting from demand all the way upstream to raw materials. Great work WSJ!
Go Vols!
Does the course covers product development process?
This documentary should be made a mandatory viewing for all students in business studies in every university. I rather watch this eye opening documentary than lecturers repeating boring theories in class trying to get me to understand what is shown in this real life examples.
Have you studied a business study?
I actually do have to watch this for an assignment! very interesting
we have to watch it as homework for my logistics lecture :)
As a FedX driver of 20+ years, I totally agree with the strain on all levels. With the cost of living lately, it's getting harder to retain and hire additional workers in this industry. There needs to a be a solution soon, or the supply chain will definitely take a hit. Too much overtime for those of us that continue to work definitely leads to burnout!
you guys need to protest and stand around until you get a raise. Canada post workers did that multiple times ( My Dad worked for them in the parcel plant for like 30 years ) . If people dont protest, they never get change. If postal workers protest, nothing gets delivered and their demands will certainly get met.
The harder it is to find workers, the more power current workers have to force better pay and working conditions, don't hesitate to take advantage of that situation
@GoogleSearch The Essene Gospel of Peace ⸜⁄ and the prices go up againts and the buyers protest cause the prices is too high and the problem just repeated themselves, try another solution other than asking for a raises, we are trying to make a working economy, not a massive apocalypse
The solution is sir, fed ex needs to remove that banned for life policy if some goes wrong. I was in small sort. Did 3k packages a day. 24 hr shift on peek. I got phenomena called out the message wasn't released and I got put on the banned list.
Goodfella2.0 Ouch, so the amount of work I have personally done at FX freight working 12 hr plus days in and around downtown Seattle the past couple years is not enough for an opinion? I've delivered throughout those 'protests' at chop/chaz zone & mentally ill homeless, precious materials to hospitals/ emergency response, PPE to major facilities/companies, replacement furnishings/goods that was robbed/stripped bare and burned, steel structures and equipment to well known major construction sites, ect... Extra time put in because coworkers left for various reasons, but I need to maintain income for my family and want to serve the people I care about in my community where I grew up. How is it that I have no say in the matter?
Great stuff. Those that put this together were spot on. My Dad was a driver for 45 years, I am a retired automation engineer. Everything in this video was 110% accurate.
I'm in product development, so before goods were sent from the factory, a team a product designer/developers translate trends into a specific products within specific price point, passed all types of testing regulations, importing requirements etc, then only the factory can mass produce it.
Great coverage, needs to be on every platform everywhere. People are finding out that instant gratification is the worst thing (especially in America) that we have been promised.
Well done! 👏 👏👏 👏 So many in government office, should watch this. This is free education to those politicians who don’t understand how this ‘system’ really works. I like how your production team started with the USB charger. Something benign and simple. 👏 👏👏 👏 Great cinematography too! 👏 👏👏 👏 The documentary Oscar goes to__ ? You have my vote!
Producing garments is another level of complexity, because of the fiber/fabric content. DW did a few fast fashion industry did to the environment documenteries, gives new prospective
Thank you for posting such an informative documentary!
What was especially interesting to me was how the competition is shaping up between Amazon, Fedex, and UPS...
I've definitely been frustrated that something I've ordered was a day later than expected. I knew they worked hard, and alot of moving parts. But this really makes you realize just how much goes into it. Especially when 100 years ago you would wait months.
As a truck driver I love how people just think that the product they order just appears at their door like magic.
Everything you will ever own or consume will spend part of its life cycle on a truck.
But it does appear on my doorstep like magic. I've ordered packages in a morning and had them delivered the same afternoon
@dodgeplow Yeah, unless it was sitting in a warehouse up the street someone had to drive it overnight to your city, then it was sorted to a local route where a day driver brought it to your house. You're welcome.
@TheBigGSN5 isnt a joke supposed to be funny?
I'm starting school for my CDL. Can't wait
😂 yes! & they sit there watching their phones waiting for the little delivery truck to move from one dot to the next 🙌
Common sense is not that common.
Eye-opening and heartbreaking at the same time,... thinking about the effort of all these people put and things to go through in order to stay afloat.
Yep. It's purely a leadership issue.
There's no further hack in productivity that can meet the needs of consumers while meeting those of workers AND filling the pockets of stakeholders and execs
Watching two months later (May 22), I think this situation has improved since this was posted. I often buy things from a Chinese brand, and my last order arrived in under ten days, unlike the 4-6 weeks it was previously taking. I never received one package ordered in October 2021 and am having a heck of a time getting the $140 charge reversed (this one was through Amazon). On a fixed income, this is a substantial cost for me. There was a news story that stolen Amazon packages were dumped somewhere in Southern California, maybe that’s what happened to it (I’m in Northern California).
This is an amazing and super informative documentary. I am always super grateful for every item that can be purchased today because who knows when this way of living will stop.
Right now the best news on Earth is PBS Frontline, but if WSJ keeps putting out more of these similarly detail-oriented, clarifying, specific, pocket documentaries, maybe there will be two names in news worth getting excited about. Excellent work, thank you for taking the intelligence of your audience seriously!
The more we simplify our lives the better off we will be. Good documentary - a very important issue.
I've worked in a transloading facility and saw first-hand the stress truck drivers have to put up with. Not a glorious job, but very necessary to ordinary citizens. All I can say is when on the road, give truckers the respect they deserve: they just might be heading toward your neighborhood, to deliver your next purchase
If u buy it ina store it got there by a Truck.
I don't work in logistics. But I sweared to that guy who was shouting for not getting NEWER version of PlayStation.
They don't have to wait for months for useful chemicals, medicines and other equipments to arrive like me.
@Dr. Lev Luminesk You carry wisdom in you. There are people who find themselves in a hurry to satisfy their own small wants. What you refer to are needs, and as such, take utmost priority or so should, unfortunately, in this crazy old world, wants and needs are created equal. Kudos to you for your comment! Keep that kind knowledge and share please.
@Sandy Adams Yes. Somehow, there are individuals who think a chiquita banana is grown on a chiquita tree
Well done study and documentary. What is missing - unjustified consuming patterns (expecting not important delivery same or next day). Driven by competition such patterns are irresponsible and cause big damage to the environment and also to supply chains
to be fair, the subject and title of the doco is ''Why supply chains will never be the same''. Essentially its a film about freight and the people who move it and handle it. The issues you raise ARE important, but how to include them without making a hugely long film . Perhaps a two part series could cover the environmental implications you raised.
I would gladly have my package arrive later than it does in exchange for workers along the chain getting their fair share and not being overworked. I really don't need whatever I'm ordering as fast as it currently arrives, and I'm constantly amazed at the speed at which stuff comes from places like Amazon and Best Buy, etc.
I really wish more unionized jobs like UPS existed across this supply chain to make them a better choice for young workers without making them resort to gig economy apps and the like, because their lack of benefits and training really hurts in the long run and I'd love to have the option of a good, well-paying unionized job like trucking used to be.
Kudos to all truck drivers, with the system so corrupt, I can only imagine the challenges.
Thank you.
I for one have essentially stopped unnecessary spending thanks to shortages. Now when I do purchase something it's because I NEED it. I'm not just a trained consumer anymore. My savings account loves it.
I'm starting this! Been a month and I have more money saved :) I started donating all the extra stuff I don't use. There's so much junk I was holding on to and some I didn't even use!!
Amazon always has these great words to say while their are trying mightily to shield themselves from any liability caused by the horrific pressure that they put on their workers. Bezos is smart, but I did not say he is good, nor will I ever say that.
bezos isnt doing anything abnormal for eurocentric profit ventures lol. slavery is still a thing on earth in 2022, in fact there are more people doing slave labor now than at any other point in human history. its not an amazon issue, its a class issue and a power issue. most definitely is not an amazon specific activity. outsourcing manufacturing labor to other countries where workers will have to experience unimaginably worse conditions is common practice after all and the majority of the products you use on a daily basis were made by someone who was literally worked to an early and miserable death..
Yet, you are still buying lots of China stuff and want it delivered fast, right?
Ultimately, their plans are to have everything automated in their warehouses. They've said so, that all the jobs will be replaced with robots in a few years time. And they'll have the excuse 'well the people couldn't handle the work, too much turnover, injuries, etc., so we had to do this'. There will be a lucky few people at the locations to oversee everything is running smoothly. That is one of the reasons why I don't purchase anything from Amazon anymore, unless it is just absolutely necessary.
Absolutely fascinating! Quite honestly, I am buying what I anticipate I might need for the next two years ~ as inflation, fuel shortages, truck driver shortages. I anticipate at my older senior citizen age things will get much worse in the next couple of years! Cost and availability. I expect by the end of this summer 2022, I will be ready to cut back dramatically what I order on line and it is rather high for an older single senior citizen!
Because of YouTube, my appreciation for logistics, engineering, and construction has skyrocketed. Our problem-solving skills can often be overshadowed by our problem-creating abilities.
Celebrate solutions and ignore those with unworthy problems.
Too accurate.
@Employee Of The Month....."our" problem creating abilities are one thing......BUT WHEN PROBLEMS are instead the manufactured constructs of those who are engaged in a willful orchestration of reality.......WELL THAT'S not only an overstep of authority...it's also why instead of "appreciating" YT and every single social media platform.....you should be extremely wary and suspect of ANYTHING OR ANYONE involved in the ancient art of making "the bell toll"......because one day that same bell might very well toll "for thee".
We are our own worst enemy
A independent man, I can’t believe it myself. In a commercialised world we have been too accustomed to rely on companies, when we should be relying on the knowledge out there.
Wow-what a stressful industry!
All due respect to all in the industry! I'm glad I learned a trade, most of my work is very local.
Well this scale is what’s the most daunting thing to take in. Exactly why it’s as segmented as it is. To spread to load of the work however lol we see, there’s bottlenecking from the stress load at nearly every sector..
The whole supply chain was explained and analyzed very well.
Great Video! Way to really explain the global shipping industry. I pray we navigate into a space of optimization and still humanely support our once depending factors THE WORKERS. It will be interesting in the future to see how theses systems sustain with human design.
I’m a truck driver(owner operator) and the biggest problem for me as a truck driver is that I’m making the same amount of money I was making in 2009 when I started and my cost to run the business skyrocketed. Everything went up in price but not my rates. Where is the money??? The driver on video said that he works 14 hours a day well, he is wrong 😑. We work 24 hours a day because we are on the road all the time I can’t go home in the end of the day I have to sleep in my truck. Do you think $70,000.00/year is good for a 24hour job??? That we are having not that many people interest in driving a truck.
I believe and support everything your said--truckers work 24 hr shifts. I live in California, and I was stuck in traffic for 3 hours on the freeway. It turned out a truck driver drove off a cliff!!! He feel asleep at the wheel. Broke my heart. It just comes to show you how the drivers literally get NO BREAKS for proper rest and sleep. Thank you for doing what you do!!!
Isso mesmo Beto, aqui na Austrália 🇦🇺 tá do mesmo jeito
I've worked at a Pilot for a few years of my life, being able to interact and talk with drivers has given me more respect for them than they get.
Respect to all truckers! 🙏✌️💯❣️
I'm also a driver and I agree with the 24 hour thing or the not being able to walk to your own bathroom after a day's work and take a shower
very clear video, and feels like part of a series of events taking place from long the pandemic and with just the short closure at the end about the war in Ukraine is definitely a story that is just starting to unfold. would love to hear more on the effects of the Ukraine humanitarian crisis on big international logistics, geopolitics and more.
I think the frantic pace which was considered "normal" for the world supply chain has seriously blown a gasket. We need sanity and a local self propelled way of providing for ourselves.
@gorillas B large O_o You're saying Reagan was a communist? And that outsourcing for max profits is a communist thing? Wow xD
Long overdue
I buy most things online and I was so surprised that companies like H&M reduced their staffs early in the pandemic. It was taking six weeks or more to get a delivery from them. It seemed obvious to us consumers that demand would increase, not decrease, we couldn’t shop in person!
doesnt that tell you then that the whole "we didnt anticipate the extra demand" excuse is BS?
I'm really surprised to see such a documentary done by the WSJ. Well done. 👍
Such informative and well-done documentary. Thank you Wall Street Journal!
Thanks for watching buddy
Hooray for the Amazon workers who unionized in New York. I hope this carries over to other locations.
And the union bosses that are going to make millions
Very interesting, it explains in a very detailed way the risks and changes in the way supply chains work around the world
I see this every day. Working in Industrial packaging systems for over 26 years, I see warehouses, distribution centres, factories. And it's time all countries considered local manufacturing to insulate themselves from an inarguably obvious weakness that has potential to cripple overnight. Hardly anyone realises what it takes to get a product from A to B. Also, manufactured goods MUST be serviceable - we need to halt the mindset of "it's a sealed unit, throw it away". Repair, instead of replace. This generates service industries, jobs, manufacturing of spare part industries, and a huge reduction of wasted resources (landfill). Governments are absolutely tone deaf to this. PLUS, brands have the opportunity to be reliable once again from having back-up - service what we sell. An old catch cry... but still VERY relevant.
My friend I experience the exact same principle in laboratories I worked in a high tech biotechnology industrial site making cures and the packaging, shipment the payment methods etc. there’s far more efficient means to do it, but of course governments don’t think about the long-term or sustainability they just think quick cash quick return quick favour.
I enjoy watching the YouTube channel The Post Apocalyptic Inventor, where he repairs and/or repurposes tools and other stuff he finds in junkyards. Myself, I buy old pro-quality tools because they are better made and repairable if they break compared to cheap consumer-grade stuff.
@David Hawley I can appreciate that, I love using innovation to recycle old materials instead of just buying new stuff
psst. stuff is ment to break. its called planned obsolescence
unfortunately government likes money and right to repair/unions aren't as willing to be corrupt and pay them large sums under the table as megacorps A and A
Enlightening to know what goes on at the NIT and PIT...how the supply chain really works.. ..thanks WSJ ,,for this documentary
Wall Street Journal - 2022-03-23
“This documentary has been months in the making and throughout production we kept wondering if disruptions in global supply chains would still be an issue by the time it came out. Unfortunately, with intermittent shutdowns of ports and factories in China due to Omicron, sanctions on Russia, and the invasion of Ukraine, supply chain disruptions are in some ways as big an issue as they were during the peak of the pandemic.
With every new report of goods costing more or being more difficult to get, backlogs at ports or walkouts at an e-commerce distribution center, it feels like understanding of how all of that works is more important than ever.”
-WSJ technology columnist Christopher Mims
Ronald Franklin - 2022-03-23
supply chains slowed for 10 years
Side Hustle Addict - 2022-03-23
@wsj thanks for featuring me in your awesome documentary. Also thanks to Denise and the camera crew for doing an awesome job 🙏🙏
Lionhead2028 - 2022-03-23
You guys are amazing. Thanks for sharing!
honey soy chicken flavoured oven baked potato chip - 2022-03-24
This documentary was amazing and eye-opening. Something I will share with all of my friends and family to help them stay informed.