Dozens of UK Amazon workers suffer serious injuries, sparking union anger

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Dozens of Amazon workers in the UK have suffered serious injuries in recent years, including blindness or needing amputations, according to new data that is prompting new calls for the e-commerce giant to improve the treatment of vulnerable staff.

The $2.4 trillion Big Tech group and related entities reported 119 serious injuries due to workplace accidents to the country’s workplace health and safety regulator between 2019 and 2024, according to a response to a freedom of information request. of the United Kingdom presented by the Financial Times.

Figures reveal that Amazon workers have suffered 106 bone fractures, lost consciousness eight times, there were at least three finger amputations and two eyes were blinded.

The injured’s roles included warehouse and sorting employees, delivery drivers, engineering apprentices and a safety coordinator.

The estimated average rate of non-fatal workplace injuries is 1,890 per 100,000 workers in 2023/24, according to the UK Health and Safety Executive.

However, the figures obtained through Amazon’s freedom of information request only cover so-called “specific injuries,” which are limited to certain serious cases and not all non-fatal injuries.

Amazon said using figures provided by the HSE “to suggest our workplace is dangerous is completely inaccurate – the opposite is true”. He added that in 2022 the company had “50 percent fewer injuries than the rest of the transportation and storage sector” when its injury rates were compared to national data.

Founder Jeff Bezos promised in 2021 that the company “will be the world’s best employer and the world’s safest place to work.”

However, union leaders have repeatedly raised concerns about Amazon’s safety record. Stuart Richards, a senior GMB organiser, who earlier this year tried to force the group to recognize a union in the UK for the first time, said the new injury data “revealed a serious catalog of problems”.

Richards added that it was “time for Amazon bosses to take the health and safety of their workforce seriously.”

Injury data published in the Financial Times freedom of information request shows the rate of serious injuries across its network was at its lowest level in six years, while the number of its employees had more than doubled during the same period, Amazon said.

However, the 2024 figures do not cover the entire year, such as the Christmas holiday period, which is among the busiest trading periods.

“We are proud of our work environment and encourage everyone to visit one of our sites and see firsthand the safe and modern workplace we offer,” Amazon added.

Employers and other persons in charge of workplaces are required to report so-called specific injuries due to workplace accidents to the HSE. The employment statuses of those with reported injuries included employees, self-employed, and employed.

Amazon also reported five diagnoses of occupational illnesses during the same period, including tendonitis, dermatitis, and an illness caused by occupational exposure to biological agents. But the Seattle-based company has not reported any deaths due to a workplace accident in the past six years in the UK, according to the HSE response.

Martha Dark, co-chief executive of Foxglove, a technology campaign group, said some workers at Amazon’s UK businesses were “being seriously injured”.

He added that “evidence from the United States has shown that the pace of work that Amazon requires of its workers – especially in robotic warehouses – is a major driver of workplace injuries and forces workers to work faster than they would otherwise.” It’s safe.”

Amazon said that “robotics helps reduce injuries” by reducing the need for employees to perform repetitive or strenuous tasks, and the company has allocated $750 million to improve workplace safety this year. “Safety is a critical area where robotics is making a significant difference,” he added.

The GMB’s Richards said he was also “concerned that official statistics only tell part of the story” as the union had heard of cases where accidents and injuries were “not adequately treated” and workers they were “sent home in taxis instead.” be sent to the hospital in an ambulance.”

Amazon said in response: “Don’t get your hopes up, we will always call an ambulance when colleagues need it in an emergency, whether it is a work or non-work incident. Yes, taxis have been used to take staff home or to hospital, but surely that is the right thing to do?

The HSE in a statement said that “the majority of work-related incidents in Amazon warehouses occur in fulfillment centres, which are regulated by local authorities” and that the regulator “will take action” when it finds breaches of labor laws. health and safety in workplaces that fall under its application.

Data visualization by Jana Tauschinski