The giant of internet commerce Amazon announced the day before yesterday Thursday that 19.816 employees in the US were infected by coronavirus, a percentage lower than that observed in the total American population.
Η company, which has developed its own infection detection system and conducts "thousands of tests a day», Had 1,37 million employees in the period from March 1st to September 19th.
The rate of infections by Covid-19 among employees in Amazon amounts to 1,44%, while for the entire US population the percentage isι 2,06%, according to the calculations of Johns Hopkins University, which compiles the report of coronavirus cases in the country.
This number does not include the company's seasonal staff or those employees who may have been infected by Covid-19 out of work.
Amazon plans to strengthen its capabilities so that it can conduct 50.000 tests a day in its warehouses and logistics centers until November.
Employees of the company had staged work strikes at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and had staged protests in front of its warehouses demanding better protection from Covid-19.
The company has also come under fire for failing to disclose how many of its employees have been infected with the coronavirus.
«We now know why the company refused: Amazon allowed Covid-19 to spread like dust on its premises, endangering the health of tens of thousands of people working there, as well as their families, neighbors and friends. Amazon is undoubtedly a threat to public health»Complained the Dania Rahendra, the head of Athena, a group of anti-Amazon organizations, in a statement calling for a public inquiry.
Η Amazon has assured that it has distributed more than 100 million masks to its employees and that it has taken a number of measures, such as keeping distances in its warehouses, controlling the temperature of its employees and deep cleaning procedures.
NGOs often accuse the company of not adequately protecting the health and safety of its employees, despite ongoing investments, especially in automating many tasks.
