A former assistant brain surgeon, Helen Xu, has left her high-paying medical career for a job at an Amazon warehouse, prioritizing her personal well-being over her previous hectic schedule. The 31-year-old from Brisbane, Australia, had been working as an assistant surgeon since 2018 but quit her six-figure hospital job after the intense demands of the Covid-19 pandemic left her exhausted and overworked.
Xu revealed that during the pandemic, she often worked up to 30-hour shifts, with little time for rest. The pressure on hospital staff, particularly those without caregiving responsibilities, became overwhelming. She found herself burned out, with no time for friends or family. By September 2021, she made the tough decision to leave medicine behind, looking for a change in lifestyle.
In a surprising career switch, Xu started working at Amazon in October 2021 as a casual warehouse associate, drawn to the company’s efficiency in delivering goods during lockdown. Despite the significant pay cut—she had earned around $113,792 annually in medicine and now earns about $32 per hour at Amazon—Xu says the trade-off is worth it due to her improved work-life balance.
Now a full-time operations shift manager at Amazon, Xu says the inclusive and judgment-free work culture at the company has been a refreshing change. She enjoys the diversity of her coworkers and has no plans to return to the medical field, finding herself financially stable and happier in her new role.
Her story comes as Amazon gears up for a seasonal hiring spree, with 600 job openings across Australia ahead of the Christmas season.
