'You will be infected or you will die of starvation': Amazon contractors reportedly say their office is still unsafe months after first complaining of 'subhuman' conditions

I am disgusted by people who say on Facebook that they are "boycotting" some business they seldom if ever use, for some matter of conscience, but who continue to shop at Amazon because it's cheaper, even though they know full well it's so cheap because they pay workers so poorly, while making the owner and executives extremely rich.

https://news.yahoo.com/infected-die-starvation-amazon-contractors-194113024.html

https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-ring-contractors-scared-poor-working-conditions-2020-10

 

You can read the full report on NBC News here.

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/we-don-t-have-choice-amazon-ring-call-center-workers-n1243439

Katie Canales
Oct 15, 2020, 3:41 PM

Contractors for Amazon's Ring division say they're still scared to go to work six months after first complaining of poor working conditions, per a Thursday NBC News.

In April, workers at a Philippines call center said they were working under "subhuman" conditions, with no room for social distancing and limited sanitation. Photos of employees sleeping on the floor of the center in close proximity to each other were circulated online as workers said they felt pressured to stay near the office to make it to their shifts on time, as the Financial Times reported. Teleperformance, the contractor who employs the workers at the call center, said it would address their complaints.

But according to workers who spoke to NBC News, working conditions have only gotten worse as the coronavirus disease continues to spread across the globe. Teleperformance stopped letting employees sleep on the floor of the call center, according to the report, but the contractors says it didn't offer an alternative.

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Dozens of the call center's employees have developed flu-like symptoms, which are characteristic of COVID-19 infection, according to the report. Workers say that workstations aren't properly sanitized, and when shifts overlap, it's difficult to socially distance. Cleaning staff comes through sporadically and when they do, it's with a bucket of water and a towel, employees told NBC.

"People are scared because we don't know who has it and who doesn't have it," a contractor told the outlet. "But people don't have a choice, because it's either you will be infected or you will die of starvation."

•••••

The report highlights tech's ongoing tendency to outsource much of its operations, resulting in criticism from some who say workers are being exploited for the sake of cutting costs for the billion-dollar companies. It's a business practice that has been employed long before the pandemic set in earlier this year, but the health crisis has only made the issue more acute as reports of poor working conditions have come into focus.

Amazon employees in the US have expressed concern over the company's handling of the coronavirus. Business Insider in April spoke with workers in Texas, California, and other states who say they were afraid to go to work with Amazon's facilities acting as "breeding grounds" for infection due to a lack of social distancing and hand sanitizers.