Was I in the wrong ?
Edit: thank you to everyone for your comments and feedback! I’m probably never doing this again and just going to enjoy my summer off from teaching 😭 but nonetheless I appreciate everyone’s comments and insights !
Hey everyone! I am a pretty new Amazon Flex driver and wanted to get some insight from more experienced drivers about an incident that happened during a pickup.
This was only my second day doing Flex and my first time picking up from this facility. My previous block was at a different station, where the process was completely different.
I arrived around 3:12 AM for a 3:15 AM block and got out of my car because I wasn't sure where I was supposed to go. I was trying to ask an associate for clarification on the process since I had never been to that station before. Before I could really explain that I was new, the associate immediately started yelling at me about safety procedures and told me to get back in my vehicle. I understand safety rules are important, but the way it was communicated felt extremely aggressive. I tried explaining that I was just looking for guidance, but the interaction quickly became tense.
Eventually, I pulled up to the license verification area, and the associate told me she wasn't going to scan my license because I had an attitude. I told her I only became frustrated after being yelled at. At that point, I asked for a manager. The manager came over and sided with the associate. He said she was yelling because of safety concerns, which I understand, but I felt like neither of them acknowledged that I was new to the station and didn't know the procedures. I tried explaining my side, but I felt like I was being talked over and treated as if I had intentionally ignored instructions.
I eventually apologized and tried to move on, but the manager still refused to verify my license or allow me to complete my block. He told me an apology isn’t sufficient. As a result, I lost the entire block even though I arrived on time and was ready to work.
One thing that also stood out to me was that the manager started taking pictures of my vehicle during the interaction, which made me feel like they were building a case against me rather than trying to resolve the situation. At the other facility, the staff had been very helpful and patient when explaining procedures to new drivers, so this experience was a complete shock.
My questions for other Flex drivers are:
Have any of you experienced something similar at a station?
Can a station manager refuse to verify your license and remove for something like this?
If you've had a dispute with station staff, what was the outcome after contacting Flex Support?
Is there anything I should do beyond emailing support?
I'm genuinely trying to understand whether this is normal, whether I handled anything incorrectly, and what my options are moving forward. I appreciate any and all feedback!