Warehouse workers at Amazon’s largest air freight facility on the West Coast walked off the job Monday, demanding greater pay and reduction from scorching circumstances they are saying are unsafe.
Organizers with a bunch referred to as Inland Empire Amazon Workers United mentioned in a Facebook post that 160 staff walked out at the San Bernardino International Airport facility, which is a vital a part of Amazon’s logistics community and one of many firm’s three U.S. “air hubs.”
In an announcement, Amazon officers disputed the quantity, saying that 74 out of roughly 1,500 staff at the ability walked out.
About 900 staff at the San Bernardino airport have signed a petition calling for base pay to be elevated from $17 per hour to $22 per hour, Inland Empire Amazon Workers United mentioned in an announcement.
“Amazon could deliver a higher standard for workers, but they don’t,” mentioned Sara Fee, who has labored at the air hub because it opened in March 2021. “A warehouse is just a warehouse. A company is just a company. The people are what makes it all work, and we are strong and united to fight for what we deserve.”
Amazon is the most important non-public sector employer within the Inland Empire, organizers mentioned. Of the greater than 200,000 warehouse workers within the area, 1 in 5 work at Amazon amenities.
“Amazon promised the Inland Empire quality jobs,” organizers mentioned in another Facebook post. “They failed to deliver. Amazon has forced us to work in extreme heat, barely paid us enough to afford rent, and now we are being retaliated against for speaking up.”
Paul Flaningan, an Amazon spokesperson, mentioned the corporate respects staff’ proper to make their opinions recognized outdoors the office and that there have been “many established ways” that workers can voice considerations internally.
“We are proud to provide full-time employees at our San Bernardino Air Hub and throughout the region a minimum starting wage of $17 an hour,” Flaningan mentioned. “Depending on their shift, our full-time employees can earn up to $19.25 an hour and receive industry-leading benefits including healthcare from Day 1, 401(k) with 50% company match, and up to 20 weeks paid parental leave.”
Amazon officers are constantly listening to considerations and looking out at methods they will enhance, he mentioned, including that the corporate gives aggressive pay, complete advantages and an “engaging, safe work experience.”
In July, workers submitted a petition calling for pay will increase throughout Amazon’s Prime Week gross sales occasion, saying their wages are usually not sufficient to reside on in Southern California.
In the petition, staff mentioned workers making $17 per hour and dealing 40 hours per week take house about $2,200 per thirty days, however the common hire in California is $1,700 and the typical in San Bernardino is $1,650, “meaning that over 75% of our income is going to rent alone.”
“We can barely afford to live in today’s economy,” the petition mentioned.
The workers additionally expressed involved about unsafe working circumstances brought on by extreme warmth.
During July, temperatures reached at least 95 levels at the airport on 24 days, organizers mentioned.
When staff confronted managers, Amazon created a further relaxation space, however unsafe circumstances stay “in many work areas,” in line with the assertion.
“Working in the heat feels like you are suffocating,” mentioned Melissa Ojeda, who has labored at the ability for greater than a yr. “You need to take breaks and you can overheat really easily. They don’t make it easy to take breaks to allow your body to cool down.”
When the San Bernardino air hub opened final yr, organizers mentioned, some in the neighborhood raised considerations concerning the high quality of jobs at the ability and its results on air air pollution.
A 2018 research discovered that Amazon’s flights into and out of airports in Riverside and San Bernardino counties launched about 620,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the ambiance and that the 2 counties had the worst ozone air pollution within the nation, air pollution that was largely attributed to the warehousing trade, in line with Amazon Workers United’s assertion.
Amazon operates 14 flights a day out and in of the 24-hour facility on the positioning of the previous Norton Air Force Base, the organizers mentioned.
“Amazon has said its goal is to operate 26 flights a day,” they mentioned. “The number of workers at the warehouse fluctuates, currently about 1,300 but more than 1,800 in peak season, demonstrating the lack of stability in these Amazon jobs.”