Ontario, California warehouse torched by employee who filmed himself doing it (4/2026)

[TroutMan]

@LSLGuy

But burning down occasional warehouses doesn’t terrorize fully insured managements.

Look, I’m not a fan of the action he took. But this statement is extremely naive. Insurance isn’t some magic thing that just pays for everything and allows management and owners to not care. Their insurance premiums will jump massively, and they’ll probably be forced by their insurers to add more controls from fire suppression to employee screening. The third-party operator will find themselves without contracts if the warehouses they manage seem to burn down frequently.

There are plenty of reasons to criticize the approach. But arguing it does absolutely nothing is not a good reason.

[Gatopescado]

@nearwildheaven

The loopholes abound, don’t they?

Well, the BrightSide is he ain’t gonna have to worry about the cost of housing and food for the forseeable future most likely. But I’d wager that $18 an hour job ain’t gonna seem too bad after a few months as a guest of the State of California.

[Chronos]

@TroutMan

and they’ll probably be forced by their insurers to add more controls from fire suppression to employee screening.

Which hardship will also fall primarily on the workers, not on the fatcats.

Insurance doesn’t reduce the impact on the fatcats to nothing. But this is still having a lot less effect than Mangione’s shooting.

[Measure_for_Measure]

@Frodo

One theory I’ve seen states that Labor Unions help mitigate this kind of thing, and thus are useful not only to the workers (who get their bargaining position improved) but to the employer (who is not killed and buried in the ruins of his factory/warehouse)

Also related: efficiency wage theory. Employers pay more than the market clearing wage to discourage shirking, up to and including arson.

Efficiency wage

[Al128]

@TroutMan

Look, I’m not a fan of the action he took. But this statement is extremely naive. Insurance isn’t some magic thing that just pays for everything and allows management and owners to not care. Their insurance premiums will jump massively, and they’ll probably be forced by their insurers to add more controls from fire suppression to employee screening. The third-party operator will find themselves without contracts if the warehouses they manage seem to burn down frequently.

… AND … they (K-C) will most likely be inclined to opt for rebuilding a warehousing solution that minimizes walking-meat in the isles …b/c of past experiences.

so, the new warehouse will prob. need 300 fewer workers to function to the same or higher standards than before…

well done, burning down the current and future jobs of many local folks !

[TroutMan]

Do you think there was no move to automation before, but this incident will cause it? Come on.

[DesertDog]

@Al128

If you really wanna change the world, form a union

Yeah, right. When the oligarchs aren’t busting heads directly, they’re busy subverting union leadership.