Revealed: Amazon told workers paid sick leave law doesn’t cover warehouses
California workers say the company is pressuring sick employees to show up – and flouting a California law meant to protect them from Covid-19
Gosh.
On 16 April, the California governor, Gavin Newsom, passed an executive order providing food sector workers two weeks of supplemental paid sick leave if they have to isolate due to Covid-19 concerns. The law covers “workers at warehouses where food is stored” and is aimed at protecting consumers from the virus and offering additional support to essential workers whose jobs involve the food supply.
Amazon warehouses in the industrial neighborhoods of San Bernardino and Riverside counties handle a wide range of packages, including food items. But employees say that when they have asked about Newsom’s order in recent weeks, the human resources department has ignored their questions or responded that the facilities are not considered part of the food sector.
That’s a little less appalling than the headline, isn’t it. And could someone call Sorites to decide here? Is an Amazon warehouse that is 98% not food but which has a case of Marmite in the corner actually part of the food sector?
” Is an Amazon warehouse that is 98% not food but which has a case of Marmite in the corner actually part of the food sector?”
From my experiences in warehouses, “Food” only applies to those warehouses that are specifically designed to deal with (perishable) foodstuffs for human consumption. From refrigeration to specific sections where only food items ( even if they’re died/canned/preserved) are stored.
Amazon may be a law unto itself in its opinion, but the US regs aren’t that different from europe in general, so they won’t be storing Marmite next to , say, bleach. Same as in supermarkets, which mirror the same rules®s at a smaller scale. The larger outlets for catering and professionals even more so..
So an Amazon Drone would only be working in “Food” , assuming a particular warehouse even has a Food section, unless the drone was permanently and contractually employed in that specific section. Which they generally aren’t. To avoid exactly this kind of claims.
An honestly, Amazon in that respect just has “improved” on Common Practice in the distribution sector in general in that respect. It’s simply that they’re a bigger target.
Is an Amazon warehouse that is 98% not food but which has a case of Marmite in the corner actually part of the food sector?
If being part of the food sector means added costs (e.g. absent sick workers) – no.
If being part of the food sector means added income (govt. operating permit?) – yes.
There’s a garden centre not too far from me that opened this week because a tiny but genuine part of their business was selling fruit and veg. On the same basis that Tescos can sell flowers while being a food retailer, the council and police gave them the green light after checking the social distancing arrangements.
Back when I did premises licensing, it was a common trope that petrol stations were actually grocery stores with petrol as a side product. They made more money from groceries than from petrol.
My local gas station has a cool room for the wines and beers. They probably make more money from booze than from groceries, newspapers and petrol combined.
Newsom’s executive orders are not law. He has no such authority.
Imagine pressuring employees to show up!
True heartless capitalists would just sack them for not turning up. It’s not like there is a shortage of unemployed to replace them with.
Bear in mind that Amazon also fulfills for Whole Foods…