Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders launched an investigation into what he calls “harmful and unlawful situations” operating rampant in Amazon’s warehouse services. In a fiery letter addressed to CEO Andy Jassy Tuesday, Sanders accused Amazon of placing income over folks and creating a company tradition that “treats staff as disposable.”
“At each flip—from warehouse design and workstation setup, to tempo of labor necessities, to medical take care of accidents and subsequent strain to return to work—Amazon makes selections that actively hurt staff within the identify of its backside line,” Sanders wrote.
The Vermont Democrat, who presently chairs the Senate Committee on Well being, Schooling, Labor and Pension (HELP) accused the corporate of willfully and repeatedly violating office security legal guidelines and setting opaque and aggressive productiveness objectives. These ruthless quotas, when mixed with the corporate’s notoriously soul-crushing efficiency monitoring system, allegedly lead staff to over-exert themselves to the purpose of bodily harm. Warehouse staff important of Amazon’s productiveness metrics have mentioned it leaves them feeling like little greater than a robotic.
Amazon’s incessant productiveness calls for, Sanders alleged, make its office “uniquely harmful.” Talking to that time, the letter cites an April report from The Strategic Organizing Heart, which estimates Amazon warehouse staff suffered round 39,000 accidents final 12 months. Amazon’s price of “critical accidents,” in keeping with the report, was greater than double the speed at non-Amazon warehouses.
“In its limitless pursuit of income, Amazon sacrifices staff’ our bodies below the fixed strain of a surveillance system that enforces unattainable charges,” Sanders mentioned.
The letter provides Jassy up till July fifth to offer documentation explaining Amazon’s famous above-industry common office harm charges as properly at its excessive charges of harm at services with robotics tools. Sanders additionally sought extra readability on the corporate’s excessive price of employee turnover in addition to any communications throughout the firm discussing potential hyperlinks between the tempo of labor in its warehouse and elevated harm charges.
Amazon pushed again towards the letter in an e-mail despatched to Gizmodo, with a spokesperson saying the corporate “strongly disagree[s] with Senator Sanders’ assertions.” The corporate referred to as into query the office harm figures cited in Sanders’ letter, together with the findings from the Strategic Organizing Heart, which the corporate described as cherry-picked.
“We take the security and well being of our workers very significantly,” Amazon spokesperson Steve Kelly mentioned. “There’ll all the time be methods to enhance, however we’re pleased with the progress we’ve made which features a 23% discount in recordable accidents throughout our U.S. operations since 2019. We’ve invested greater than $1 billion into security initiatives, initiatives, and applications within the final 4 years, and we’ll proceed investing and inventing on this space as a result of nothing is extra essential than our workers’ security.”
Maria Langholz, the Communications Director for left-leaning advocacy group Demand Progress, praised Sanders’ investigation, which she famous may mark a “important step” in the direction of a future Congressional listening to the place lawmakers can grill Amazon executives over office security.
“The dire work surroundings that Amazon staff face is preventable, and this is step one towards preserving Amazon staff protected,” Langholz mentioned.
Employees accuse Amazon of managing by means of ‘concern and surveillance’
Issues over Amazon’s unyielding productiveness necessities has contributed to an uptick in labor group exercise at warehouse throughout the nation. Khali Jama, an Amazon employee from St. Paul Minnesota organizing with The Awood Heart, attributed nearly all of the accidents they witnessed in her office to the demanding pace staff really feel pressured to keep up. Jama accused Amazon of managing her and her fellow staff by means of a brutal equipment of “concern and surveillance.”
“In case you are not maintaining with their unreasonable requirements of pace, a supervisor will come discuss to you and let you know to hurry up,” Jama mentioned in an announcement offered to Gizmodo by the Athena Coalition. “In case you are nonetheless not in a position to sustain for a second, or a 3rd time, you’re going to get fired by means of an app in your telephone. Nobody tells you that you’ve got been fired.”
Sanders’ new investigaiton comes simply months after the Occupational Security and Well being Administration (OSHA) the nation’s prime office security regulator, issued a number of citations towards Amazon for exposing staff to hazardous situations. Employee frustrations with Amazon’s perceived disregard for security led a whole bunch of warehosue staff to stroll out in protests earlier this 12 months.
“Amazon is likely one of the most precious corporations on the earth price $1.3 trillion and its founder, Jeff Bezos, is likely one of the richest males on the earth price practically $150 billion,” Sanders mentioned in his letter. “Amazon needs to be one of many most secure locations in America to work, not probably the most harmful.”
“If Amazon can afford to spend $6 billion on inventory buybacks final 12 months, it might probably afford to guarantee that its warehouses are protected locations to work,” Sanders added.
