A powerful tornado hit an Amazon logistics facility in Edwardsville, Illinois, as part of a spate of deadly tornados Friday evening across the Midwest, killing at least six Amazon workers and injuring another.
Photos from the scene show about one half of the 1.1 million square foot facility had been destroyed by the powerful twister that some are saying formed in the parking lot of the Amazon building. The faclity was about 40-feet high.
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This being Amazon, its approach to the disaster and protections for workers more generally are now being called into question.
“The tragedy raises concerns about the ecommerce giant’s use of contractors, a New York Times article said.
Among the areas being scrutinized is the mix of permanent versus temporary workers at the site. Reports indicated of the 190 workers at the facility, just seven were full time company employees.
Local Edwardsville officials told the Times that with so many of the workers at the facility being temporary made it more challenging to account for all those who might be missing in the wake of the tornado, “complicating initial rescue efforts.”
The facility had at least one tornado shelter, but it is unclear how many people it could hold and how much warning time employees had.
“Time and time again Amazon puts its bottom line above the lives of its employees. Requiring workers to work through such a major tornado warning event as this was inexcusable,” said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union in a statement.
This union led the effort to organize workers at an Amazon fulfillment center in Bessemer, AL that went down to a big defeat. Now the National Labor Relations board has ordered a new vote based on alleged labor law violations by Amazon.
The union does not specify how exactly Amazon was putting profits above worker safety, though the statement suggests Amazon knew tornados were in the area.
Others are saying the tragedy should bring up questions regarding Amazon’s cell phone policies for FC workers.
Amazon has for years prohibited workers from carrying their phones into the work area, requiring phones to be left in vehicles or employee lockers before passing through security checks that include metal detectors.
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The company backed off on this rule during the pandemic, but has been gradually adding it back at facilities around the country, but apparently not yet at the Edwardsville site.
 The Time magazine web site says Amazon workers it spoke with said they wanted access to updates on potentially deadly weather events through their smartphones and other safety related information.
The workers also noted that having phones can also enable them to communicate with emergency responders or loved ones if they are trapped.
Meanwhile, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is investigating the deadly collapse.
OSHA has six months to complete its probe, issue citations and propose monetary penalties if violations of workplace safety and/or health regulations are found, OSHA spokesperson Scott Allen told CNBC in a statement. OSHA has had compliance officers at the warehouse since Saturday to lead the investigation, Allen said.
In a statement, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement that “OSHA investigates all workplace fatalities and we are supporting them.”
In the face of the deaths of its workers and the near leveling of the facility, Amazon has sad plans to rebuild the Edwardsville FC, according to John Felton, senior vice president of global delivery services for Amazon.
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