SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San Jose) released a statement today in support of workers at Amazon facilities across the state:
“On International Workers’ Day, I join the Los Angeles Labor Federation in solidarity with the hardworking Amazon workers in Los Angeles County who are facing alarmingly unsafe working conditions during this pandemic. I am disturbed to learn that COVID-19 cases in Amazon facilities are prevalent and on the rise. Within the past several weeks, a manager at an Amazon warehouse in Hawthorne passed away due to COVID-19. Just in the last week, there have been four more confirmed COVID-19 cases at an Amazon facility in Rosemead.”
“It has come to my attention that Amazon has not followed the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for workplaces where there is a confirmed case of COVID-19. I urge Amazon to immediately follow the CDC guidelines and, at minimum, protect its workers by providing them with paid sick leave, paid health care benefits, protective equipment, cleaning products, and adequate time to wash their hands and stay safe.
“Amazon delivers products to thousands of homes in Los Angeles County and some of these products come from facilities with confirmed COVID-19 cases. Protecting these workers at Amazon facilities means protecting the broader public health of Los Angeles County residents. I stand in support of the Amazon workers in Los Angeles County and across the country.”