Amazon temporarily closed the French warehouse, due to insufficient new corona virus measures

Amazon temporarily closed six warehouses in France from April 16 to 20 following a court order that said that countermeasures against new coronavirus infection (COVID-19) to protect employees were insufficient It turned out to do.

Amazon to close French warehouses until next week after court order-Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-amazon-france/amazon-to-close-french-warehouses-until-next-week-after-court-order-idUSKCN21X192

Amazon to close French warehouses over coronavirus concerns | Technology | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/15/amazon-to-close-french-warehouses-over-coronavirus-concerns

Demand for home delivery services is increasing as many people are forced to spend their time at home. At Amazon, the demand is increasing as household items run out of stock, but on the other hand, employees working at Amazon's warehouse said, 'The measures Amazon is taking to ensure their safety are not sufficient. 'There is also a strike . On April 14, 2020, it was reported that some of the Amazon warehouse workers died from COVID-19.

Amazon's warehouse worker complains about the new corona countermeasures causes the first COVID-19 fatal-GIGAZINE

Meanwhile, it became clear that Amazon in France will close six domestic warehouses. About 10,000 employees work in the six warehouses, but according to Amazon public relations, it will be closed for at least 5 days from April 16th to 20th.

This is because the French court told Amazon that 'COVID-19 measures for employees are insufficient', 'Limit sales to only necessary supplies such as food and hygiene products, and upgrade procedures considering health' Because I asked. If you break the court order, Amazon will be fined 1.1 million euros a day (about 130 million yen). Amazon was ordered by the court on Tuesday, April 14th, and was given a 24-hour grace period to make its decision.

Amazon has decided to temporarily close the warehouse, saying that the category shown by the court is rough and vague, so it is very difficult to comply with the order.

Since the blockade by COVID-19 began in France, Amazon has given priority to shipping important items, and measures have been taken to delay the shipment of non-essential items such as copy paper and umbrellas. It has also been pointed out that the closure of warehouses could lead to confusion, causing important items to be out of reach of consumers.

Amazon claims that it is 'taking appropriate measures' that it distributes masks to staff and also conducts temperature checks, but the court said that 'Amazon has a sufficient social distance' It has not been taken, and the situation is that the virus is easily infected at the entrance and locker room. ' Meanwhile, Amazon is considering an appeal against the court's decision.

In addition, it is also reported that the employee who was collecting petition regarding health risk of warehouse worker and the employee who accused Amazon's response were dismissed at Amazon.

Amazon fires two employees who condemned treatment of warehouse workers | Technology | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/14/amazon-workers-fired-coronavirus-emily-cunningham-maren-costa

Amazon fires two tech workers after they publicly criticized warehouse conditions-The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/14/21220353/amazon-covid-19-criticism-protest-fired-employees-cunningham-costa-climate-change