Current:Home > NewsCalifornia fines Amazon nearly $6M, alleging illegal work quotas at 2 warehouses-LoTradeCoin
California fines Amazon nearly $6M, alleging illegal work quotas at 2 warehouses
View Date:2024-12-23 18:27:19
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California has fined Amazon a total of $5.9 million, alleging the e-commerce giant worked warehouse employees so hard that it put their safety at risk, officials said Tuesday.
The two citations issued in May by the California Labor Commissioner’s Office said Amazon.com Services LLC ran afoul of the state’s Warehouse Quota Law at facilities in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, east of Los Angeles.
The law, which took effect in 2022, “requires warehouse employers to provide employees written notice of any quotas they must follow, including the number of tasks they need to perform per hour and any discipline that could come” from not meeting the requirements, the labor commissioner’s office said in a statement.
Amazon was fined $1.2 million at a warehouse in Redlands and $4.7 million at another in nearby Moreno Valley.
The company said Tuesday that it disagrees with the allegations and has appealed the citations.
“The truth is, we don’t have fixed quotas. At Amazon, individual performance is evaluated over a long period of time, in relation to how the entire site’s team is performing,” company spokesperson Maureen Lynch Vogel said in a statement. “Employees can — and are encouraged to — review their performance whenever they wish. They can always talk to a manager if they’re having trouble finding the information.”
The citations allege that Amazon failed to provide written notice of quotas.
Labor Commissioner Lilia García-Brower said Amazon engaged in “exactly the kind of system” that the quotas law was put in place to prevent.
“Undisclosed quotas expose workers to increased pressure to work faster and can lead to higher injury rates and other violations by forcing workers to skip breaks,” she said in a statement.
The agency began investigating in 2022 after employees at the two Southern California facilities reported that they were subject to unfair quota practices, said the Warehouse Worker Resource Center, a nonprofit that advocates for improving working conditions.
Similar legislation has been enacted in Minnesota, New York, Oregon and Washington, the resource center said. In May, U.S. Sen. Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, introduced a federal version of the warehouse worker protection act in Congress.
veryGood! (1245)
Related
- School workers accused of giving special needs student with digestive issue hot Takis, other abuse
- Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards' Daughter Sami Clarifies Her Job as Sex Worker
- Fiancée speaks out after ex-boyfriend shoots and kills her husband-to-be: My whole world was taken away
- Connecticut Passed an Environmental Justice Law 12 Years Ago, but Not That Much Has Changed
- Don't Miss Cameron Diaz's Return to the Big Screen Alongside Jamie Foxx in Back in Action Trailer
- Union wins made big news this year. Here are 5 reasons why it's not the full story
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: This $360 Backpack Is on Sale for $79 and It Comes in 8 Colors
- Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards' Daughter Sami Clarifies Her Job as Sex Worker
- Bitcoin has topped $87,000 for a new record high. What to know about crypto’s post-election rally
- Amazon launched a driver tipping promotion on the same day it got sued over tip fraud
Ranking
- Seattle man faces 5 assault charges in random sidewalk stabbings
- Contact lens maker faces lawsuit after woman said the product resulted in her losing an eye
- New HIV case linked to vampire facials at New Mexico spa
- Amid blockbuster decisions on affirmative action, student loan relief and free speech, Supreme Court's term sees Roberts back on top
- Judge set to rule on whether to scrap Trump’s conviction in hush money case
- Sam Bankman-Fried to be released on $250 million bail into parents' custody
- Pregnant Tori Bowie Tragedy: Autopsy Reveals Details on Baby's Death
- Biden cracking down on junk health insurance plans
Recommendation
-
Mike Tyson concedes the role of villain to young foe in 58-year-old’s fight with Jake Paul
-
These 7 charts show how life got pricier (and, yes, cheaper!) in 2022
-
Extremely overdue book returned to Massachusetts library 119 years later
-
For the Sunrise Movement’s D.C. Hub, a Call to Support the Movement for Black Lives
-
Disney Store's Black Friday Sale Just Started: Save an Extra 20% When You Shop Early
-
What Does a Zero-Carbon Future Look Like for Transportation in Minnesota?
-
Shop The Katy Perry Collections Shoes You Need To Complete Your Summer Wardrobe
-
Long-lost Core Drilled to Prepare Ice Sheet to Hide Nuclear Missiles Holds Clues About a Different Threat