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Amazon hit with a new OSHA probe over alleged safety issues in its warehouses
https://www.whatjobs.com/news/usa/us-business-news/amazon-hit-with-a-new-osha-probe-over-alleged-safety-issues-in-its-warehouses
By Nithya Bose in US business news, posted August 3, 2022
Amazon has been hit with more warehouse probes from Occupational Safety and Health Administration over alleged workplace hazards.
Investigators from the Labor Department's OSHA visited its facilities in Albany, New York, Denver, and Boise, Idaho.
The inspections are part of an ongoing probe conducted by OSHA and the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) last month.
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In response to referrals from SDNY prosecutors, OSHA authorities inspected three more Amazon facilities in New York, Chicago, and Orlando in mid-July.
The US Attorney's Office said last month that the civil division is looking into potential workplace safety issues at Amazon warehouses around the country.
It is also checking for alleged fraudulent activities aimed at concealing accidents from OSHA and other regulators.
So far, OSHA has focused on Amazon's accident and illness records, ergonomics program, and Power Industrial Truck (PIT) operations.
Employees in PIT positions must operate forklifts or other gear to reach things on high shelves or move large objects throughout the warehouse.
Federal prosecutors inquired about the working conditions of its former and current employees through an online form.
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A representative for the Department of Labor confirmed that OSHA has initiated investigations at Amazon warehouses in Colorado, Idaho, and New York.
The probes are based on complaints of safety and health breaches at "several Amazon facilities".
Amazon has been criticized several times for its treatment of warehouse and delivery personnel.
As a threat to worker safety, critics and legislators have referred to the company's fixation on speed and strict deadlines.
Employees frequently allege that if they fail to achieve productivity requirements, they will be disciplined and dismissed.
The company has denied using such quotas in its facilities and has refuted accusations of hazardous working conditions.
OSHA investigators have conducted several inspections of its warehouses due to concerns about working conditions, including a deadly warehouse collapse and coronavirus-related health and safety issues.
When an OSHA violation is revealed, the fines are often insignificant in comparison to the tech giant’s yearly sales of hundreds of billions of dollars.
Source: CNBC
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