#39 Amazon UK Boss: Make Work Experience Mandatory for Over-16s

About this episode

John Boumphrey, Amazon's UK boss, advocates for mandatory work experience for over-16s and discusses challenges in retail pricing and supplier relations.

Amazon's UK boss has called for work experience to be made mandatory for everyone aged sixteen and over, describing it as "the most transformative thing" he has seen for young people entering the workforce. John Boumphrey argues that the education system is not producing work-ready school leavers and that the blame should fall on the system rather than on young people themselves. The cost of living crisis and its effect on retail pricing is a constant theme. Just this week the govenment called on supermarkets to cap the price of some goods to help consumers. Boumphrey - who is the UK Country Manager - sets out how Amazon aims to match the lowest price among national competitors and resists the suggestion that government intervention could do a better job than competitive markets. He acknowledges the impact of National Insurance increases and global disruption, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, on business costs, while insisting these have not yet fed through to customer prices. Amazon's record as a supplier is challenged directly. The Groceries Code Adjudicator ranks Amazon worst among retailers for supplier complaints, and Boumphrey, UK country manager at Amazon…

People in this episode

Host: BBC News

Guest: John Boumphrey

Topics covered

• work experience
• education system
• cost of living crisis
• retail pricing
• supplier complaints
• drone delivery

Keywords

• work experience
• Amazon
• cost of living
• retail
• supplier complaints
• drone delivery
• education
• National Insurance

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Amazon, Groceries Code Adjudicator

Places: UK, Darlington, Strait of Hormuz, government

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