Iraq war veteran and two Colorado delivery women sues Amazon for having to pee in bottles

Three Amazon delivery drivers in Colorado have filed a class action lawsuit against the tech giant, alleging poor working conditions. Austin Elblatt of CBS Colorado reports..

In a 16-page lawsuit filed in Denver District Court last week, drivers urinated in bottles and dog excrement in delivery vans to avoid being reprimanded for not keeping pace with deliveries. Claims he had to defecate in a bag. their deliveries.

Amazon also alleges that employers violated Colorado’s mandate to give workers a paid break every four hours.

Drivers say the company has a “work policy that requires Colorado delivery drivers to urinate in bottles, defecate in bags and refrain from using the often unsafe toilets in the back of their delivery vans. is maintained.” Amazon operates this system through demanding labor quotas and sophisticated tracking and workplace surveillance technology, making it impossible for Amazon’s delivery drivers to meet basic human needs while on the job. “

Amazon denied the allegations to multiple local media outlets, but did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CBS Colorado.

The company has received a number of similar allegations in other states and the UK, with similar working conditions for both drivers and warehouse workers, as well as union-busting allegations.Amazon initially denied those claims, but then apologized for one instance of denying them.

In 2021, the Federal Trade Commission’s Office of Consumer Protection announced that Amazon will Keep $62 million in tips for drivers He ordered the company to tip the driver.

Drivers are employed by “delivery service partners” who contract with Amazon, but these DSPs “must acquiesce to Amazon’s control over virtually every aspect of their business. Amazon has a blanket no-negotiate policy.” We set working conditions for each DSP through possible contracts.” according to the complaint.

“I fought for this country in Iraq and it was easier to go to the bathroom in a war zone than when I worked for the Amazon,” said one of the three drivers who sued Amazon. Ryan Schilling said in a statement. I had to poop so badly that I had to load dog waste bags in the back of my delivery van. I knew that if I parked my car to go to the gas station, I would get yelled at and possibly lose my job. What options do Amazon drivers have? “

“As a woman, I can’t just pee in a bottle,” plaintiff Leah Cross said. “When I worked for Amazon, I had to bring a change of clothes in case I peeed in my pants while trying to meet Amazon’s delivery standards. I had to bring a change of clothes to go get my sanitary products. I was told I couldn’t even stop.With this lawsuit, I am fighting for Amazon to treat humans like humans.”

The three promoters are represented by non-profit organizations. towards justiceSeattle-based Terrell Marshall Law Group LLC, and the nonprofit Public Justice.

“Workplace health and safety laws protect the right to reasonably access toilets, but for decades workers have suffered from poor enforcement of these protections.” Towards Justice, Executive Director David Seligman said in a statement. “In 2023, it is morally abhorrent that people working for one of the richest and most powerful companies in the history of the world have to bring a change of clothes to work in case they pee.”

According to the lawsuit, the drivers are seeking unpaid wages, fines and a change in Amazon’s policy, asking Amazon to “give drivers the dignity to meet basic human needs.”