EDWARDSVILLE (KMOV.com) – One month after a deadly Amazon warehouse collapse in Edwardsville, workers continue to push for better safety procedures during emergency situations.
On Dec. 11, six people were killed when an EF-3 tornado rolled through. About 150 yards of the Amazon building collapsed. The 11-inch-thick, 40-feet-tall walls could not sustain the tornado that hit the building.
Families of the victims are searching for answers on what safety procedures were in place when the storms came. Questions about Amazon’s phone policy have been brought up as well. For years, Amazon has required workers to leave their phones in a locker or cars before work. Now because of the pandemic, the policy has changed.
Organizers claim they were unaware of the weather service alerts since they did not have their phones. The group is asking Amazon to take the following steps to immediately improve workplace safety:
- Fully cooperate with the ongoing OSHA investigation into the tragedy and any other investigations by local, state, or federal agencies;
- Provide workers and contractors with appropriate training and protective equipment for emergencies and other workplace hazards;
- End its ban on cell phones in its workplaces;
- Give workers and contractors the power to stop or refuse work assignments that they believe pose a serious risk of injury, illness, or death to themselves or their coworkers;
- Publicly commit to not retaliating against workers who speak out about unsafe working conditions.
OSHA inspectors will investigate whether workplace safety rules were followed and will have six months to complete the investigation.
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