Amazon employee benefits: 3 stories of support through grief, a cancer diagnosis, and career reinvention

Key takeaways

Amazon operations employees proactively share stories about their lives and careers, including the three here.
They share to inspire others to use benefits like paid leave, day-one healthcare, and career programs.
Their stories span parenthood, grief, medical crises, career reinvention, and more.

Amazon employs more than a million people across the globe, and each person has a life that extends far beyond what they do for work—raising families, pursuing goals, navigating change, and building new chapters. So, when we support someone through a hard time, the impact doesn't stop with that one person. It ripples outward to their family, their team, and their community.

The three employees featured here chose to share what that support has meant in their own lives—and their stories offer a glimpse into how our workplace can support the whole person.

How does Amazon support employees through parenthood and loss?

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Brittany Ghess was working two fast-food jobs when she joined Amazon in 2015 through a staffing agency in Las Vegas.

She was nine months pregnant when Amazon offered her a full-time position after her temporary assignment ended. The fact that her pregnancy was never treated as a barrier changed everything for her.

“I was so grateful,” Ghess said. “I was offered the opportunity to continue, with the benefits to have paid maternity and bonding leave with my newborn, in perfect timing.”

Those benefits proved to be the difference between stress and stability during one of life's biggest transitions.

Amazon was there for Ghess again in 2021 when she lost her father and her younger sister within seven months. Both times, we granted her leave quickly and without difficulty. We sent a care package and planted a tree in her sister's honor.

“Any questions, concerns, or requests I've had regarding time off or benefits have always been answered in a timely manner and with compassion,” Ghess said. “Amazon has a benefit or resource for just about every life experience.”

More than a decade later, Ghess is a Learning Ambassador at an Amazon facility in Atlanta, Georgia. She’s also continuing her education through Amazon’s Career Choice program, which offers prepaid college tuition, industry certifications, and skills training to eligible employees.

What's it like to start a new career at Amazon later in life?

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Tina Booth, a grandmother of 10, originally took a nighttime job with us in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic so she could watch her grandchild during the day while her daughter returned to work.

Before Amazon, she worked in medical claims processing—a career cut short when the pandemic arrived and family priorities shifted. She wasn't looking for a career when she joined Amazon, just a way to support her family.

“I wasn't planning on staying,” Booth said. “But that's exactly what happened.”

What kept her was the culture. At previous jobs, taking a day off meant negotiating and apologizing. At Amazon, time away from work was simply supported. She learned quickly, absorbed as many role types and processes as she could, and was eventually promoted to Process Assistant.

Booth said she found her calling when she became a Learning Trainer, supporting new hire onboarding, teaching the best safety practices, and introducing employees to experiences that can help grow their careers.

Now, she opens every learning session with the story of how she came to Amazon planning to leave but found a career she never expected—and a gift for helping others do the same. More than that, her role gave her back something she hadn’t realized she’d been missing: purpose.

“As we get older and our kids grow and don’t need us as much, we miss the feeling of being needed every day,” Booth said. “Helping people at Amazon is helping me.”

How does Amazon help employees through a medical crisis?

Amazon employee in navy hoodie and cap sitting at conference table

Shawn Garcia took what he thought would be a temporary job at an Amazon delivery station in Colorado after he was laid off during the pandemic.

Four years and three roles later, he works in field quality assurance at an Amazon facility in Aurora, Colorado, and his reasons for staying go far deeper than a career.

In August 2022, Garcia’s partner was diagnosed with Stage 4 colorectal cancer. Garcia braced for insurance battles and financial stress, but they never came. From the first appointment through the end of his partner’s life in September 2024, Amazon's healthcare coverage held firm. No denials, no delays.

“Despite being one of over a million employees, the support I received never felt impersonal,” Garcia said. “Amazon stood beside us every step of the way.”

After his partner's passing, Amazon was there for Garcia again. With the help of Amazon’s legal and adoption assistance benefits, he adopted two boys, Adrean and Nicholas, in June 2025.

“Through my darkest moments and my greatest joys, Amazon consistently showed up for me,” he said.

Today, Garcia is raising two boys, building a career he’s proud of, and looking ahead with optimism.

Support that extends beyond the workplace

Ghess, Booth, and Garcia each came to Amazon at different points in their lives—navigating pregnancy, grief, a pandemic career shift, and a partner’s cancer diagnosis.

Amazon supported them at every turn with benefits that went beyond helping them through a difficult moment. From healthcare coverage starting on day one and paid leave to career development and adoption assistance, that support gave each of them the foundation to build what came next.

Today, Ghess is training new associates and earning her degree. Booth is welcoming new hires through the door every week. And Garcia is raising two boys.

These are just three of the tens of thousands of stories shared through Amazon’s “I Found the Right Place” program—a way for employees to tell their own stories in their own words. And while every story is different, each reflects the stability and support that a workplace can help provide.

Next, CEO Andy Jassy shares nine things he’s learned over 28 years at Amazon.