'Faced unfair treatment': New York sues Amazon for 'failing to protect workers' amid COVID

New York has sued e-commerce platform, Amazon for failing to protect its workers in the New York City amid COVID-19 pandemic and retaliated against the employees who attempted to raise concerns over the conditions. In a statement, New York attorney general, Letitia James said on Wednesday that the American multinational technology company failed to provide ‘adequate health and safety measures’ to its employees at NY facilities. 

Since the company failed to maintain a safe work environment, James said that it ‘violated New York State Labour Law’ and then in addition to that, Amazon also unlawfully fired the employees to raised objections. NY Attorney General Letitia James also said that during the unprecedented health crisis, Amazon and its CEO Jeff Bezos had ‘made billions’ while the hardworking employees were forces to endure conditions that posed a great risk to their health. 

She also said that since COVID-19 pandemic began, it became evident that e-commerce giant ‘valued profit over people’. The New York Attorney General had also opened an investigation into Amazon in March 2020 after receiving numerous complaints about the ‘lack of precautions’. Eventually, the same inquiry was broadened to examine whether Amazon unlawfully fired its workers. 

“While Amazon and its CEO made billions during this crisis, hardworking employees were forced to endure unsafe conditions and were retaliated against for rightfully voicing these concerns,” said James. 

“Since the pandemic began, it is clear that Amazon has valued profit over people and has failed to ensure the health and safety of its workers. The workers who have powered this country and kept it going during the pandemic are the very workers who continue to be treated the worst. As we seek to hold Amazon accountable for its actions, my office remains dedicated to protecting New York workers from exploitation and unfair treatment in all forms.” 

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4,000 Amazon Employees In UK Given Wrong COVID Test

While New York has sued Amazon over pandemic precautions, at least 4,000 Amazon employees in the UK were reportedly given fake positive results for coronavirus and were asked to self-isolate. According to the BBC, Amazon UK has been using PCR tests to check its employees for coronavirus since autumn last year and the company shares the result with NHS Test and Trace every day. Earlier this week, 3,853 employees received a message from the NHS app asking them to self-isolate, but they were told by Amazon the day before that they were negative for the virus. 

The Amazon employees were mistakenly told they had tested positive, whereas they had all tested negative for coronavirus. One test and trace call center received more than 500 calls from employees. One warehouse worker informed that they were told they were negative for COVID-19 by their employee and then wrongly notified that they were positive by NHS Test and Trace and told to self-isolate for 10 days. 

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