Amazon Employment Discrimination: Why Amazon Workers Are Suing the Tech Giant for Discrimination

Amazon, the second-largest private employer in the U.S. with more than 610,000 employees, has a problem with employment discrimination, or at least that’s what many former and current employees are saying.

Just this past month alone, Amazon has been sued for racial discrimination, wrongful death on the basis of disability discrimination, and, as a cherry on top, was rallied against by Muslim workers over its alleged failure to provide enough time to pray.

Our Los Angeles workplace discrimination attorney from Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers has looked into the problem of Amazon employment discrimination, and here’s what he has managed to find out based on the most recent news.

Racial Discrimination At Amazon

At the end of November 2018, six former Amazon delivery drivers filed a class-action lawsuit against the company, whose founder, Jeff Bezos, is the richest person in the world according to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index. In their lawsuit, the drivers alleged that Amazon wrongfully terminated them on the basis of racial discrimination.

Their lawsuit is stemming from their firings in 2016, with the six former delivery drivers claiming that they had been fired because of old and minor offenses that Amazon had previously agreed to overlook. The plaintiffs allege that there has been a change in the company’s background check policy, which disproportionately affected minority employees.

According to Oren Sellstrom, the six former delivery drivers’ discrimination attorney, Amazon’s background checks have built-in biases against certain races. In its statement following the filing of the lawsuit, Amazon defended its “comprehensive background checks” for delivery drivers by claiming that these background checks focus on job-related criminal and motor vehicle convictions.

Disability Discrimination Leads To Wrongful Death

“But this is not the first time Amazon has come under fire for its treatment of workers,” says our discrimination attorney in Los Angeles. That same month, in November 2018, the tech giant was sued by family members of a deceased Amazon employee.

In their wrongful death lawsuit, the relatives of Ronald Ashley, 53, claimed that Amazon’s negligence and discrimination led to Ronald’s wrongful death. According to the lawsuit, which was filed in the New York Supreme Court at the end of November, the family members of the deceased alleged that Amazon’s failure to provide disability compensation and other contractually mandated benefits resulted in their relative’s death.

In their complaint against Amazon, the plaintiffs blamed Amazon’s “neglect and inefficiency reflect the bureaucratic mess” at the company, which is said to be the by-product of the tech giant’s rapid expansion in the U.S.

Religion Discrimination At Amazon

However, racial and disability discrimination is not the only type of Amazon employment discrimination. Earlier this month, Muslim workers rallied against the company over its strict hourly packing quota, which makes it impossible for them to pray.

It is estimated that the vast majority of all warehouse workers at Amazon are Muslim immigrants. Practicing Muslims tend to pray five times a day, but Amazon’s strict hourly packing quota makes it difficult to take a prayer break.

Moreover, Amazon’s warehouse workers are pressured by supervisors to keep up with the rate of 240 to 400 boxes an hour, or else they will be penalized for failure to fall behind this rate. Muslim workers at Amazon have yet to file a class-action lawsuit against the company over its alleged religious discrimination.

Are you one of Amazon’s employees who has been discriminated against on the basis of race, gender, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, or any other protected characteristic? Schedule a free consultation with our Los Angeles discrimination attorney at Rager & Yoon – Employment Lawyers by calling 310-527-6994 today.