When he brought his doctor’s forms to Amazon, Omar says he was told he couldn’t attend the recommended physical therapy because it wasn’t approved. Eventually he couldn’t tolerate the pain any longer and visited his own doctor, who recommended physical therapy, pain medication and light duty accommodations. Once at Amcare, he downplayed the pain he was feeling so he would be sent back to work, and continued working for a few weeks while visiting Amcare about twice a day for ice and ibuprofen. I’m thinking about my family, my pregnant wife, my kids, about all the bills that I have and worrying about not being able to work because I’m the breadwinner in my house,” said Omar. “At this time, I’m thinking ‘oh my God, if I say that I have an injury, that I’ve hurt myself, I might lose my job.’ Because they already instilled fear in me about me being the one that was getting in trouble. All of us want to come home safely, and when people get injured they should be taken care of Mustafa Omar Omar said he felt like he was in trouble when he asked the manager to take him to the clinic, where he was given ice and ibuprofen. He flagged down a senior manager to get his station covered so he could go to Amcare. In early November 2021, Omar fell back onto a pallet, injuring his back. He has experienced back pain due to the repetitive motions and lifting heavy items involved in his job. He picks and loads items that weigh up to 80lbs, typically working on six or seven different stations. Mustafa Omar started working at Amazon in 2016, but left in 2017 and returned in 2018, and has worked there for the past three years. In December 2021, the National Employment Law Project released a report on injury rates at Amazon’s six warehouses in Minnesota, revealing those facilities have injury rates twice as high as rates for other warehouses in the state, and more than four times the average for all industries in the state.Īn Amazon spokesperson said in response to the report: “While we know we’re not perfect, this report ignores the perspectives of the vast majority of our employees in Minnesota, who tell us that they’re proud to work at Amazon and feel supported in their roles.” On 1 January 2021, the state of Washington increased workers compensation premiums for Amazon due to higher injury rates at Amazon warehouses compared with other warehouses in the state. I was trying to get credit for the box – if I did not, they could let me go simply because I did not meet the rates, so safety was basically out the window when they chose rates over safety.” “Their safety rules are that I’m supposed to report it and they will bring it down, but their rate is 40 boxes an hour. “I suffered a high sprain on my right wrist when I was attempting to bring a box in the back of the pallet,” Crowley said. His rate for stacking boxes on pallets was 40 boxes an hour, and he cited the rate as the reason for his injury. Jerald Crowley worked at an Amazon distribution center in Greenville, South Carolina, for six months before he resigned on 3 November due to a wrist injury he sustained on the job, as he is deaf and couldn’t afford to lose use of his hand to communicate in sign language with his children. Photograph: Mike Segar/ReutersĪ May 2021 report published by the Strategic Organizing Center found Amazon’s injury rates were double the injury rate in the warehousing industry and 80% higher than the industry average for serious injuries in 2020. Workers move goods at Amazon’s fulfillment center in Robbinsville, New Jersey.
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