{"id":25111,"date":"2022-12-21T20:09:58","date_gmt":"2022-12-21T20:09:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/12\/21\/new-york-targets-amazon-with-new-warehouse-worker-protections\/"},"modified":"2022-12-21T20:09:58","modified_gmt":"2022-12-21T20:09:58","slug":"new-york-targets-amazon-with-new-warehouse-worker-protections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2022\/12\/21\/new-york-targets-amazon-with-new-warehouse-worker-protections\/","title":{"rendered":"New York Targets Amazon With New Warehouse Worker Protections"},"content":{"rendered":"

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a bill into law Wednesday that aims to crack down on stringent warehouse work quotas at companies like Amazon.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The law, known as the Warehouse Worker Protection Act, requires distribution centers to disclose work speed data to their employees so they better understand their productivity rate and the company\u2019s expectations. It also bars companies from firing workers because they failed to meet quotas that weren\u2019t transparent or didn\u2019t allow enough time for rest and bathroom breaks.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The law applies to any company with a large distribution center in the state, but the most obvious target is Amazon. The Seattle-based online retail giant is the largest employer of warehouse employees in the country. Workers have long complained about <\/span>the pressure to \u201cmake rate\u201d<\/span><\/a> and avoid discipline as they pick, pack and ship orders to customers.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the law Wednesday. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Hochul said in a <\/span>statement<\/span><\/a> that she was proud to be signing the bill into law just ahead of the holidays, the busiest period of the year for many warehouses as retailers like Amazon fill a crush of orders. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cEvery worker in New York state deserves to be treated with fairness, dignity and respect,\u201d Hochul said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The New York law mirrors <\/span>another bill<\/span><\/a> signed into law in California last year. That legislation was the first of its kind in the country to be explicitly aimed at warehouse work quotas.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed the new warehouse worker law on Wednesday.<\/figcaption>
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Pacific Press via Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

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The new law in New York had the support of the Amazon Labor Union, which formed the first Amazon union in the U.S. on Staten Island earlier this year, and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, a New York-based union that has tried to organize an Amazon facility in Alabama. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A recent analysis from the union coalition known as the Center for Strategic Organizing found that Amazon\u2019s injury rate was <\/span>twice as high<\/span><\/a> as other non-Amazon warehouses. Last week the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced that it was issuing citations to several Amazon facilities for failing to properly record injuries and report them to OSHA. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Those OSHA inspections came about due to a referral from the <\/span>U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Southern District of New York, which is investigating workplace safety practices at the company.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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State Sen. Jessica Ramos, who sponsored the New York bill, called it \u201cthe first step in addressing rampant injury in a quickly growing job sector.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe have made sure that corporations like Amazon and UPS can\u2019t wring all the profits they can out of their employees, leaving the workers to deal with their injuries,\u201d Ramos said in a statement.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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New York lawmakers are also pursuing a <\/span>new bill<\/span><\/a> to end \u201cat-will\u201d employment for many workers. To fire a worker, an employer will need to demonstrate \u201cjust cause,\u201d such as worker misconduct or the economic need for layoffs. A similar law is already in effect for fast-food workers in New York City. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n