Amazon has fire an employee at its Staten Island facility who engineer a smasher against his employer over conditions in the troupe ’s warehouses amid the deadly coronavirus pandemic .
On Monday , Amazon employee at the adroitness organized a bang against the companionship for conditions that have do under flak by employee , the workers groupAmazonians United , andseveral U.S. senators . The corporate military action followed a positive case of covid-19 at the quickness , which remain open despiteconcerns among employeesthat the individual could have circularize the disease . The direction assistant at JFK8 who led the strike and was fired , Chris Smalls , toldCNBCthat working inside the facility has been “ scary , ” adding that striking — despite it be him his job — was “ the ripe thing to do . ”
“ All we ask for was a round-eyed building closure and then to be professionally sanitized , ” Smalls say CNBC . “ We had a confirmed case and people were afraid , and that ’s all we were necessitate for . ”
Image: Getty
Smalls tell the electric outlet he was ask to remain home by the company after interact with an employee for “ two to five minutes ” in rescript to post her abode , adding that the individual tested positive for covid-19 . Smalls said that had he not , it ’s possible the individual could have circulate the disease among workers at the facility . Smalls tell the outlet he returned to the deftness daily to carry meeting with management to necessitate for the impermanent facility closure conform to the positively charged covid-19 case .
He also tell the electric outlet that workers had not been provide with decent personal protective equipment , and that the daily temperature scan the company recently constitute were unsatisfactory , as individuals with covid-19 can be asymptomatic .
In a statement , Amazon said that Smalls was fired after receiving “ multiple warning for outrage societal distancing guidepost and putting the guard of others at risk . ”
“ He was also find to have had tight contact with a diagnosed associate with a confirm casing of covid-19 and was asked to remain home with salary for 14 - day , which is a measure we ’re taking at web site around the reality , ” the company said . “ Despite that direction to bide home with pay , he come onsite on March 30 , further putting the team at risk . This is unacceptable and we have terminated his employment as a resolution of these multiple safety effect . ”
New York Attorney General Letitia James said Monday in astatementthat it was “ disgraceful that Amazon would fire an employee who courageously stood up to protect himself and his colleagues . ”
“ At the height of a global pandemic , Chris Smalls and his colleague publicly protested the lack of precautions that Amazon was taking to protect them from COVID-19 . Today , Chris Smalls was arouse , ” James said . “ In New York , the right to organize is codified into practice of law , and any retaliatory action at law by related thereto is strictly disallow . At a meter when so many New Yorkers are struggle and are deeply concerned about their safety , this action was also base and inhumane . The Office of the Attorney General is considering all legal options , and I am calling on the National Labor Relations Board to enquire this incident . ”
Meanwhile , several lawmakersled by Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Ilhan Omar have also demanded solvent about the way that Amazon has respond to the covid-19 crisis . In a varsity letter to CEO Jeff Bezos last calendar week , they ask that the company “ deepen your efforts to protect the health and safety of your warehouse worker . No employee , particularly those who play for one of the wealthiest corporations in the earth , should be force to work on in unsafe conditions . ”
Update 4/1/20 : New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday ordered an investigation of Amazon over the sack of the employee who led a smash over conditions at the facility in Staten Island during the coronavirus pandemic .
“ I ’ve regularize the metropolis ’s commission on human rights to investigate Amazon immediately to determine if that ’s true , ” de Blasio during a news conference , perCNBC . “ If so , that would be a violation of our city ’s human rights jurisprudence and we would act on it at once . ”
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