As COVID-19 continues to ravage through the economy and home life, the pandemic is directly impacting the consumers’ desires. To employ social distancing and “flatten the curve”, Americans are turning to online shopping, whether it be for groceries or miscellaneous goods, increasing the demand on these companies, and in turn, on their employees. Amazon employees have been hard at work in both the factories and delivery trucks, yet they are not receiving a standard measure of health.
According to a letter NPR received, Letitia James, New York’s Attorney General, states “While we continue to investigate, the information so far available to us raises concerns that Amazon’s health and safety measures taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are so inadequate that they may violate several provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.” This kind of inattention has led to more than 50 different Amazon warehouses facing cases of coronavirus.
It is important that Amazon creates a method in which they can measure if the warehouses are meeting a healthy and feasible standard for these workers. If not, the company should designate its own outline of what comprises a safe working environment. For example, it could allot more masks, enforce wider distance between the employees, increase the number of tests for the virus, or provide stricter enforcement of paid leave, so that the employees who potentially are carrying the disease are stopped from spreading it, as it is unsafe for them and anyone they may come in contact with.
It is important to recognize that Amazon has become an essential tool to millions of Americans, especially given the current circumstances, and naturally that requires more work from employees. But Amazon would virtually fall to pieces without its warehouse workers, as they are a fundamental part of the company. Corporate leaders around the world, including those of Amazon, face the task of minimizing loss, and of course it is difficult to manage, especially amid a global pandemic, but these employees cannot operate properly in this manner. Not only does this kind of environment put these workers at risk, it hinders their productivity. These employees should be treated with a greater level of decency and sympathy, especially during these trying times.
Works Cited
Bain, Marc. “Amazon Faces New Legal Scrutiny over Its Employees' Health and Safety.”
Quartz, Quartz, 28 Apr. 2020, www.qz.com/1847108/amazon-faces-legal-scrutiny-overworkers-safety-from-….
Selyukh, Alina. “Amazon Warehouse Safety 'Inadequate,' N.Y. Attorney General's Office
Says.” NPR, NPR, 27 Apr. 2020, www.npr.org/2020/04/27/846438983/amazonwarehouse-safety-inadequate-n-y-….
Weise, Karen, and Kate Conger. “Gaps in Amazon's Response as Virus Spreads to More Than
50 Warehouses.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 5 Apr. 2020,
www.nytimes.com/2020/04/05/technology/coronavirus-amazon-workers.html.