Amazon Faces Legal Pressure Over Alleged Discrimination Against Pregnant Warehouse Workers
By Thea Felicity
Jul 12, 2024 01:17 PM EDT
Jul 12, 2024 01:17 PM EDT
(Photo : DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
This photograph taken on November 22, 2023, shows the Amazon logo on the facade of Amazon's logistic site in Bretigny-sur-Orge, some 30 km south of Paris.
U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield dismissed Amazon's objections that the subpoena was overly broad and irrelevant, citing the necessity of the requested data for the EEOC's investigation.
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The EEOC's probe stems from complaints filed by five women who allege experiencing discrimination based on pregnancy while working at Amazon facilities in multiple states, including New Jersey, Connecticut, North Carolina, and California.
The commission is specifically interested in records detailing requests made by pregnant workers for accommodations such as reduced lifting duties and additional break times, and whether Amazon granted or denied these requests.
Court documents indicate that Amazon provided over 200,000 pages of data in response to the subpoena but did not include the specific information the EEOC sought. Judge Schofield's stated that the withheld information is crucial for the EEOC to determine whether Amazon violated anti-discrimination laws.
The ruling gives Amazon until August 9 to comply with the subpoena.
This isn't the first time Amazon got caught violating labor laws.
Business Insider reported that in 2022, a state agency in New York filed a complaint alleging that Amazon forced pregnant and disabled warehouse employees to take unpaid leaves instead of providing necessary accommodations, an accusation Amazon denies while acknowledging room for improvement in its practices.
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