One former reality-TV host gets COVID and it’s world-wide news. But the 19,000 “essential workers” for Amazon who have caught it so far are only covered in “Business Insider,” as PayDay Report takes note:
Over 19,000 Amazon Workers Test Positive for COVID-19
With people choosing online over in-store shopping, Amazon’s business has boomed. However, it comes at a high cost for its workers.
On Thursday Amazon announced that since March, 19,816 of its workers have contracted COVID-19. Amazon claims the rate is lower than the general population’s, but workplace safety advocates warn that the company has had a history of hiding injuries.
Frontline employees working for both Amazon and Whole Foods have repeatedly gone on strike, filed whistleblower complaints with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and individual states’ workplace safety agencies, sued the company, and reached out to media organizations to draw attention to what they say are unsafe working conditions during the pandemic.
Amazon also has a long history of workers raising the alarm about workplace safety which resurfaced this week with a report from Reveal detailing how the company downplayed injury rates. The company has also aggressively cracked down on whistleblowers, firing multiple employees during the pandemic who spoke out about issues, monitoring their private social media conversations, and using technology to track workers seeking to organize for better conditions and pay.