What the numbers say: Amazon's warehouse injury rate per 100 full-time workers (FTEs) dropped from 7.5 in 2017 to 6.5 in 2020. Amazon's injury rate remains higher than Walmart's, which stood at 3 injuries per 100 FTEs in 2020. Relevance: The Strategic Organizing Center (SOC) claimed in 2022 that the serious injury rate at Amazon warehouses is over double that of non-Amazon facilities in the U.S. Amazon responded to the allegations by claiming that the term "serious injury rate" used by the SOC's report was "misleading." The e-commerce giant also noted that the number of incidents requiring workers to take time off work at Amazon warehouses was below the industry average. What's next: U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders launched an investigation into allegations that Amazon's safety practices include "dangerous and illegal" elements. Sanders referenced a report from the SOC claiming that Amazon warehouse workers sustained almost 39,000 injuries in 2022. |
