Amazon in our backyard
Bad treatment of employees
What I will do
I will fight for all residents employed by Amazon.
I will demand Amazon answer for their reported inexcusable treatment of employees. If Amazon is going to be in our neighborhood, they must treat you with respect. Employees should not be forced to risk their personal health or hygiene to meet Amazon’s daily production quota.
The facility must be safe. I will demand to know how Amazon expects to keep you safe. The big corporation wants you to come work for them, but it is there responsibility to ensure safe working conditions. I will ask questions like: Are you going to lower your time requirements so employees have more time to fulfil tasks and do not rush to get jobs done, which could lead to accidents? Another question: if an employee misses a day of training because they are sick or their child is sick, can you present an alternative method for them to learn the information they missed instead of terminating the employee?
The employees must be allowed to unionize, if they chose. I will demand any employee who leads a unionization effort or any employee assisting with a unionization effort be protected from termination or discrimination. This would ensure employees are not unfairly targeted or retaliated against.
Why this is important?
Inhuman treatment
Amazon puts extreme time constraints on employees. Several former employees say these time constraints leave little or no time to use the restroom during work. Some employees felt forced to defecate in bags, urinate in plastic bottles or – for women – being unable to change their menstrual pads because of the serve time constraints. One woman said she bleed through her clothes because she wanted to meet production goals and deadlines.
Unsafe working conditions
Amazon’s rate of serious injury is more than double the national average. Amazon’s average is 9.6 per 100 full-time workers. The national average is 4. Workers are constantly asking for better working conditions.
Not allowed to unionize
Amazon is very anti-union. Employees are afraid to unionize for fear they could lose their job if they organize and standup for their rights and better working conditions.
Sources:
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-drivers-say-pooped-in-bags-changed-pads-pee-bottles-2021-3
