‘Amazon Won’t Let Us Leave’

Deadly storms swept through parts of the U.S. last Friday, killing at least 90 people. Six of those worked in an Amazon warehouse in Illinois. As the deadly tornado hit the warehouse, the walls fell inward, the roof collapsed. Moments before his death, worker Larry Virden texted his girlfriend to say “Amazon won’t let us leave.”

If you’ve ever worked retail or shipping during the holidays, you know that what is a restful period of joy and relaxation for much of the world is a stressful nightmare for you. Winter brings inclement weather, icy roads, and snow. Sometimes the choice is either putting yourself in danger or losing your job.

This week on Cyber, Motherboard Senior Staff writer and expert on all things labor, Lauren Kaori Gurley explains Amazon’s policies around inclement weather, worker safety, and why OSHA has opened an investigation into what happened the night of the deadly Tornado in Illinois.

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