Amazon India has acknowledged workplace safety violations at its warehouse in Manesar, Haryana. This is as per a report by the Economic Times.
While assuring the government that it will take swift corrective measures, Amazon admitted to breaching safety standards on May 16, 2024, at its Manesar warehouse in a submission to the central labor commissioner, according to the report.
Amazon India told the labor ministry that one of the employees of the warehouse led a small group of coworkers and associates in a pledge after they took both breaks. This was done as a motivational exercise for the team, according to the report.
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In a letter to the government, Amazon India reportedly said, "This was an unfortunate and isolated incident and a clear violation of our workplace safety standards.” The company told the government that prompt disciplinary action would be taken against the particular employee.
Amazon had reportedly responded to ten workplace safety and standard questions that were raised by the government. This comes after a report by the Indian Express that mentioned that workers at the Manesar warehouse were made to take oaths that they wouldn’t take any toilet or water breaks until their targets were fulfilled. The target involved unloading 24-foot packages from six trucks.
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A June 14 report by the Indian Express shows that the outbound team of the warehouse was made to take this pledge to get reminded of their daily targets. The inbound team of the company had to take this oath as many as eight times in a day, according to the report.
Speaking to the Indian Express, a worker at the warehouse said, “Just two days ago, we took a pledge that we would forgo water and washroom breaks to improve performance and attain the target.” Following this incident, the matter went to the labor ministry, and the company was asked to respond to the queries by the ministry.
While assuring the government that it meets international standards with regards to the health and safety of the employees, Amazon India told the government that it also took the government’s suggestions into consideration, which include revamping sitting capacity in the warehouse, deploying female nurses, and others.
According to Amazon India's submission, the investigation found that employees were not compelled to take a pledge, nor were the contents of this pledge enforced at the Manesar warehouse on the day of the incident or any other day. Employees continued to take breaks as usual. The company emphasized that it takes the lessons from this incident seriously and will intensify efforts to retrain managers on workplace health, safety, and well-being.
