GMB highlights concerns for Amazon workers

The figures – some of which were broadcast on the BBC’s Panorama programme on Monday February 17, 2020 – are the result of Freedom of Information Act requests submitted by GMB to local authorities across the UK.

They show that between 2016/17 and 2018/19 a total of 622 reports have been made from Amazon warehouses to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) – with the number rising each year.

Examples of injuries reported to HSE from Amazon warehouse include:

• A worker at a London warehouse was knocked unconscious and stopped breathing following a head injury. The accident investigation report found that 'the main root cause of this incident was failing to provide a safe working environment.'
• In Manchester, an Amazon Worker fractured their hand after their fingers got caught in between the station sliding gate and the surrounding gate support
• At a London warehouse, a forklift driver collided with a column, causing a mezzanine floor to become unsafe in a serious ‘near miss’ incident.
• A worker in Manchester suffered head injuries after a number of boxes fell on them, they were later diagnosed with an inter vertebral disc prolapse.
• A worker at Bardon Hill, in Leicestershire, suffered internal bruising after being knocked down and wedged under a heavy goods vehicle.

For workplace injuries to be reported to the HSE, they must severe enough to prevent someone from performing their usual work duties for at least seven days, or be from a specified list of injuries that includes fractures, amputation, crushing, scalping and burning.