ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Hundreds of Amazon Workers to Call in Sick to Protest Lack of Coronavirus Safety Measures

Employees say they are denied sufficient protective equipment and pressured into unsafe working practices.

More than 300 Amazon warehouse workers across the U.S. plan to call in sick this week to protest the company’s coronavirus response, The Guardian reports. Workers-rights group United for Respect say the e-commerce giant has failed to provide enough face masks for workers, didn’t implement regular temperature checks it promised at warehouses, and has refused to give workers paid sick leave. “Amazon is putting its revenue above our safety,” said Jaylen Camp, an Amazon worker at a fulfillment center in Michigan. “We are not essential to them—they just think of us as numbers and quotas. They are not protecting our health.” Workers in more than 130 Amazon warehouses have contracted COVID-19, with some warehouses reporting more than 30 confirmed cases. The workers are calling on Amazon to “immediately close down” any facilities with COVID-19 cases and provide testing and pay for workers during that time.