Amazon delivery drivers scolded for ‘defecating in bags’ due to lack of toilets

AFP via Getty Images
Leah Sinclair26 March 2021

Amazon delivery workers have been scolded by bosses after defecating in bags and urinating in bottles due to a lack of access to toilets, a leaked memo has revealed.

The email was sent from an Amazon manager working in Indianapolis, in the US, to delivery drivers in May last year.

A copy of the email was sent to online publication the Intercept and has been widely shared on social media.

“This evening, an associate discovered human faeces in an Amazon bag that was returned to the station by a driver,” the email reads.

“This is the third occasion in the last two months when bags have been returned to station with poop inside.

“We understand that DA’s [driver associates] may have emergencies while on-road, and especially during Covid, DAs have struggled to find bathrooms while delivering.

“Regardless, DAs cannot, MUST NOT, return bags to station with poop inside.”

The email continued: “We’ve noticed an uptick recently of all kinds of unsanitary garbage being left inside bags: used masks, gloves, bottles of urine.”

Workers told the Intercept the issue of being caught short on the road was frequently discussed among colleagues,

One former Amazon employee told the publication that drivers are “implicitly” forced to relieve themselves in the vans otherwise “we will end up losing our jobs for too many ‘undelivered packages.’”

Earlier this week, Amazon denied reports that delivery workers lacked access to bathrooms after Wisconsin congressman Mark Pocan scrutinised the company over its working conditions.

In a tweet shared by the official Amazon News account, they wrote: “You don’t really believe the peeing in bottles thing, do you? If that were true, nobody would work for us. The truth is that we have over a million incredible employees around the world who are proud of what they do, and have great wages and health care from day one.”

This is the latest controversy for the online retail giant after Vice reported drivers were being forced to sign “biometric consent” forms to continue working for the company.

These forms would allow AI-powered cameras to keep watch over the drivers while on they were on the clock.

It comes as Amazon workers in Alabama are attempting to form a union, which has gained widespread political interest and national coverage.

Union organisers and workers have also held solidarity rallies across the country.

Workers at the Bessemer plant are voting to determine their membership with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union - a move that could have a ripple effect among Amazon facilities and US workplaces.

Voting ends on March 29.

On Friday, Senator Bernie Sanders is expected to appear alongside a small set of other liberal figures at a public event to meet Amazon workers looking to unionise.

He will be joined by actor and activist Danny Glover and rapper Killer Mike.

Amazon has been approached for comment.

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