Amazon’s holiday catalog has arrived in mailboxes, and children are circling over the toys that will arrive in boxes bigger than them — some even bigger than the workers who packed them for delivery. Warehouse workers are already feeling the pain of surviving the two-day Amazon Prime shopping trip, putting them under significant physical, mental and emotional stress to ship a rush of packages in record time.
Governor Hochul can help alleviate this problem in part for Amazon workers by signing the Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Act, which was passed earlier this year. We need her to lead the way, just as she once did for warehouse workers. New York can alleviate so much suffering for workers by implementing this simple law.
As leaders of two unions who stood up to Amazon and held the company accountable, we worked together to improve conditions here in New York warehouses.
Last year, we took the first step toward changing working conditions for Amazon workers, the Warehouse Worker Protection Act, which creates transparency, protects workers from excessive quotas, and ensures that they have access to fair breaks. This law made New York a leader in warehouse worker safety, and now it must lead the way again. Even with transparent and limited quotas, workers still experience injuries due to workplace design and layout, which can simply be avoided with this new legislation.
Every year the situation gets worse and worse for workers as more and more of our daily purchases are made online. In fact, warehouse workers, who are overwhelmingly workers of color, are injured more frequently than workers in any other industry in New York State.
The numbers don’t lie: in New York, warehouse workers are in the midst of a health and safety crisis. 1 in 11 warehouse workers are injured each year – an injury rate that is 54% above the national average. This number is growing rapidly and the injury rate is now more than double what it was just a few years ago. in 2017and more serious as well, the share of injuries requiring days off work or a job transfer now stands at 89%, compared to 60% in 2017.
And in Amazon’s warehouses, which make up about a quarter of New York’s warehousing and logistics industry, the problem is even worse, with Amazon workers suffering workplace injuries. 37% more often than the average warehouse worker. It doesn’t have to be this way: There’s a common-sense solution on the governor’s desk right now.
Shockingly, there is no state or federal law that requires employers like Amazon to pay attention to how they arrange their workplaces in an effort to prevent worker injuries. In some cases, the adjustments that can be made are minor for the company, but would make a big difference to the workers at the station.
The Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Act would be a game-changer for warehouse workers in New York – and it is urgently needed now. This landmark bill, co-sponsored by Sen. Jessica Ramos and Assemblyman Harry Bronson, would require annual warehouse assessments by certified safety experts called ergonomists – and require employers to implement plans to address any hazards identified to reduce injury, including an assessment of potential risks. risk of musculoskeletal disorders – the most common serious debilitating injury among workers in the warehousing industry.
Hochul led the way when she signed the Warehouse Worker Protection Act in 2022, demanding transparency from companies like Amazon on work speed quotas. The Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Act would close the remaining gap, ensuring that the very design and layout of each warehouse meets ergonomic standards and creating safer, more sustainable jobs with lower rates of lower rotation. These simple adjustments would help prevent and reduce injuries due to stressful posture and equipment positioning.
This holiday shopping season, New York warehouse workers will be shipping everything from tiny packages of dolls and yo-yos to heavy, backbreaking boxes of bikes and games. No matter how big they are, they will move millions of injury-causing packages through every conveyor belt in a warehouse to your home.
Warehousing is one of the fastest growing industries in our state. Every day without necessary ergonomic standards for warehouse workers is another day Amazon workers will suffer completely preventable injuries. Governor, we urge you to quickly sign the Warehouse Worker Injury Reduction Act – Amazon workers can’t wait.
Appelbaum is president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). Spence is president of the Amazon Labor Union (ALU).
