Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Report alleges high injury rates for warehouse workers as Amazon pushes the pace on fast fulfillment

Amazon says study misinterprets the data, points to ergonomic improvements and paid time off for recovery.

amazon package delivery

As e-commerce giant amazon.com inc. prepares to launch its annual Prime Day sale in October after a series of pandemic-related delays, a new report is alleging that the company’s automated warehouses push workers to fulfill orders so fast that Amazon employees suffer injuries at greater rates than the industry average.

The report, “How Amazon hid its safety crisis,” was published Tuesday by Reveal, a unit of the Emeryville, California-based Center for Investigative Reporting. According to that analysis, the company’s own statistics show that Seattle-based Amazon ignores its internal safety standards during the rush to process e-commerce orders during peak periods such as Prime Day and the winter holiday shopping season.


In a statement, Amazon said “We strongly refute the claims that we’ve misled anyone,” calling the report “misinformed” and claiming that the reporter is misinterpreting data. Specifically, the company said the report mistakes a statistic known as a DART rate—an acronym for “days away and restricted or transferred work,” as measured by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)—as being equivalent to a serious injury rate.

“The reality is that there is no such OSHA or industry ‘serious injury rate,’ and our DART rate is actually supportive of employees as it encourages someone with any type of injury, for example a small strain or sprain, to stay away from work until they’re better,” Amazon spokesperson Rachael Lighty said in an email. “While we often accommodate employees with restrictions so that they can continue to work with full pay and benefits, we don’t believe an employer should be penalized when it encourages an associate to remain away from work if that will better promote their healing.”

According to Amazon, it has actually seen improvements in injury prevention and reduction, due to programs such as: improved ergonomics, guided physical and wellness exercises, mechanical workstation assistance equipment, improving workstation setup and design, forklift telematics, and forklift guardrails to separate equipment from pedestrians, Lighty said.

However, the report gives new weight to accusations that the company has long pushed its workers too hard. In 2019, government regulators with the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH) released a report called “Time Off Task: Pressure, Pain, and Productivity at Amazon” that focused on the company’s workplace practices at a Staten Island, New York facility.

In reaction, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) applauded that criticism. “Testing hundreds of thousands of workers’ physical limits is the wrong approach to increasing productivity,” RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum said in a release. “Operating at speeds where ‘80% of workers feel pressured’ means Amazon needs to hire more workers, under more sustainable speeds that don’t put worker’s lives in jeopardy. Amazon needs to understand that human beings are not robots.”

The latest report from Reveal echoes many of those charges, saying that Amazon’s massive deployment of robots to fulfillment centers was originally intended to reduce the physical strain on workers by bringing racks of inventory to them, instead of requiring employees to walk through miles of aisles every day in search of items to pick.

However, the report says that Amazon soon raised its expectations for how many inventory pieces each worker had to pick and pack per hour, and those high expectations led many laborers to cut corners or skip safety steps, leading to increased rates of injury such as muscle strains caused by repetitive use or improper lifting stances.

The Latest

More Stories

Logistics economy grew in October

Logistics Managers' Index

Logistics economy grew in October

Economic activity in the logistics industry continued its expansion streak in October, growing for the 11th straight month and reaching its highest level in two years, according to the most recent Logistics Managers’ Index report (LMI), released this week.

The LMI registered 58.9, up from 58.6 in September, and continued a run of moderate growth that began late in 2023. The LMI is a monthly measure of business activity across warehousing and transportation markets. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

port of vancouver

West coast dockworker strike could dent Canadian economy

The port worker strike that began yesterday on Canada’s west coast could cost that country $765 million a day in lost trade, according to the ALPS Marine analysis by Russell Group, a British data and analytics company.

Specifically, the labor strike at the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, and Fraser-Surrey will hurt the commodities of furniture, metal products, meat products, aluminum, and clothing. But since the strike action is focused on stopping containers and general cargo, it will not slow operations in grain vessels or cruise ships, the firm said.

Keep ReadingShow less
allitix supply chain planning

Accenture acquires supply chain consulting firm

Consulting firm Accenture has taken another step to bulk up its supply chain advisory capabilities, announcing Monday that it has acquired Allitix, a California-based consulting and technology company specializing in Anaplan solutions with capabilities across financial planning and analysis, sales performance management, and supply chain.

Anaplan is a Florida provider of corporate performance management (CPM) systems, which it defines as enterprise cloud software that empowers organizations to see, plan, and lead better business outcomes by aligning their strategic objectives and resources.

Keep ReadingShow less
trucks used by jillamy 3PL

Texas 3PL Mode Global acquires Jillamy’s freight brokerage arm

The Texas third-party logistics firm (3PL) Mode Global has acquired the freight brokerage business of supply chain service provider Jillamy, saying on Monday that the deal advances its strategy of expanding its national footprint.

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, but Mode Global said it will now assume Jillamy's comprehensive logistics and freight management solutions, while Jillamy's warehousing, packaging and fulfillment services remain unchanged. Under the agreement, Mode Global will gain more than 200 employees and add facilities in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida, Texas, Illinois, South Carolina, Maryland, and Ontario to its existing national footprint.

Keep ReadingShow less
Clorox partnership helps suppliers meet carbon reduction targets

Clorox partnership helps suppliers meet carbon reduction targets

Consumer packaged goods (CPG) provider The Clorox Co. has partnered with Manufacture 2030 (M2030) to help Clorox's suppliers meet their carbon reduction targets and advance the company's long-term goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

In addition to its flagship Clorox bleach product, Oakland, California-based Clorox manages a diverse catalog of brands including Hidden Valley Ranch, Glad, Pine-Sol, Burt’s Bees, Kingsford, Scoop Away, Fresh Step, 409, Brita, Liquid Plumr, and Tilex.

Keep ReadingShow less