News

Congratulations to the December 2016 Employees of the Month! We are very pleased to recognize Idelfonso (Fonsie) I., Roxana M., Gloria J., Alex L., Preston F., and Josue M.

Every month, and especially after our busiest month of the year, it’s such a pleasure for supervisors to recognize a specific employee as having been outstanding. Our people are much more to us than human resources… we are the AMS family.

There are a number of AMS facilities, with over 300 employees, and one might think in such an environment it’s hard to create ‘family’ and give credit to individuals. But we have chosen a different route in growing to this size: from the beginning and to this day we value a close environment that takes note of and cares about the wellbeing of employees, and their job satisfaction.

The nominations and comments below demonstrate that the employee being recognized did an outstanding job during the month of December, and deserves to thanked for caring enough to go above and beyond.

Idelfonso (Fonsie) I. – Billing Coordinator (10/1/12)
HQ Office: 29010 Commerce Center Drive

Over the last three months, Fonsie has taken a leadership role in working with freight vendors to resolve billing issues, has completed his monthly invoices by the 10th with few exceptions and has proactively played a major role in the efforts to streamline the invoicing process by pointing out areas that need improvement, taking on the project and following through to conclusion. Fonsie is a very important part of the billing team, and continually demonstrates a positive, “can do” attitude. He is always willing to lend a hand to his co-workers when needed. Thank you Fonsie!

Roxana M. – Data Entry/Returns Clerk (5/23/11)
HQ Warehouse: 29010 Commerce Center Drive

Roxana is a vital employee to all in her department. She takes initiative and accepts and carries out additional responsibilities. She has demonstrated a positive attitude to her teammates and always is the first to help others. Roxana does quality work in carrying out her job responsibilities and she takes a great deal of pride with her work. Roxana is professional in all she does. We are very proud to have her in HQ returns. She is an organized worker and a very positive person who keeps the returns team in good spirits by being helpful and professional at all times. She does her best to help anyone in need of help. We can always count on Roxana!

Gloria J. – Shipping Clerk (11/09/10)
IND1: 28220 Industry Drive

Gloria was a great big help in the 4th quarter push for shipping all of the orders. She played a huge part in researching inventory and finishing the orders. We appreciate her a great deal, as she is a very quick learner and is an important part of the team.

Alex L. – Shipping Lead (2/22/16)
SCO3: 27801 Avenue Scott

Alex took his role as a shipping lead and ran with it. There are very few if any incomplete orders daily for our largest clients. He also pulls the big retail orders in record time and adheres to all the routing requirements. Alex never misses work and is always in a good mood when he is here at work. He’s an excellent employee.

Preston F. – Data Entry Clerk (7/26/12)
WIT2: 28624 Witherspoon Parkway

Preston is a great asset to the team, always resolving any issues with receivers with a great attitude, always on top of his duties and helping the team. He’s great at communicating, always going the extra mile to get an answer and finish on time. Preston has taken on more responsibility in the past few months. He does a great job in completing all daily tasks. He will also take on the lead receiving role when his lead is out. He is fun to work with and does not mind helping or teaching a new employee the ropes.

Josue M. – General Warehouse (7/12/16)
WIL1: 28936 Ave Williams

I nominate Josue because he is an excellent worker. He always shows up to work on time and ready to work with a positive attitude. When one of his co-workers is in need of help he is always willing to help. He is also willing to stay when needed and come into work early even if it is 4:00 am.

Our ‘Employee of the Month’ recognition is meant to convey a sincere Thank You to individuals in the AMS Fulfillment Family! Whether part of the management team, client services, technology, accounting, fulfillment operations, facilities, the warehouse team, taking inventory, answering the phone, training people, making decisions, doing payroll… you are the reason for our success and we Thank You!

One of the reasons that employees are dedicated and happy working for a company is the health insurance coverage that they receive as a part of their total compensation package. Great health insurance coverage with a low deductible has been considered key to attracting and retaining great employees. Unfortunately, the low deductible is becoming a thing of the past for an increasing number of workers.

Since 2011 health insurance premiums have increased 20% on top of even greater increases in the prior years. With health insurance premiums continuously rising, employers find it difficult to provide the coverage they would like to provide.

As employers are faced with the rising premiums, many have found it necessary to pass on health care costs to the workers. The most common way is to increase deductibles and other forms of cost sharing. Knowing that an increase in the deductible can be burdensome to many of their employees, companies, while reluctant to make that change, do so when they see it as their best or only choice.

Another means of lowering the cost of premiums is to reduce the coverage. But businesses that put a high priority on attracting and retaining their employees will make other adaptations in an effort to avoid reducing coverage. Some will take on the option of lowering costs by incorporating wellness programs, doing annual health risk assessments, and finding ways of assisting employees who are managing a chronic illness.

Knowing that the rising cost of health insurance has put so many businesses in a quandary, we requested an interview with two executives of AMS Fulfillment, Louise Aldrich, VP of Finance and Betty Lou Wiseman, Executive VP of Client Services. Like any other company AMS is paying higher premiums, but unlike many others, this company has not wavered on the commitment to provide affordable health insurance to all of their employees.

Betty Lou Wiseman began by offering the following: “Since 2005, AMS has maintained a Cafeteria Section 125 plan. This plan allows employees to pay their contribution for medical premiums with pre-tax dollars. Using pre-tax dollars further reduces the cost of employees’ medical, dental and vision insurance. On average employees will save 28 cents on every dollar they spend.”

Louise Aldrich went on to explain that AMS considers dental and vision coverage very important for employees as it pays for services that are extremely costly without insurance. Louise said, “AMS recently added a Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA’s) plan where employees may set aside, on a pre-tax basis, a set amount of money per year. These FSA savings may be used for paying eligible medical, dependent care, or transportation expenses.”

Betty Lou and Louise made it very clear that because of the company’s strong commitment to employees, AMS has held firm with their employee contribution percentages, even though, throughout the years, the cost to AMS has been steadily increasing. Every year AMS tasks their insurance brokers to provide the lowest, most competitive rates available in the marketplace while preserving coverage. With a steadfast commitment to employees, and management that is creative in problem solving, AMS does stand out as a very good company to work for.

“Our employees are the reason for our success,” Betty Lou said. “In the fulfillment business, employees are the greatest asset. We consider it vital to keep our commitment to employees by providing quality health insurance at the lowest possible cost to their pocketbook.”