{"id":12839,"date":"2022-08-23T10:57:12","date_gmt":"2022-08-23T10:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scienceandnerds.com\/2022\/08\/23\/amazon-is-fixing-the-ac-at-a-warehouse-where-a-worker-died-on-prime-day\/"},"modified":"2022-08-23T10:57:13","modified_gmt":"2022-08-23T10:57:13","slug":"amazon-is-fixing-the-ac-at-a-warehouse-where-a-worker-died-on-prime-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scienceandnerds.com\/2022\/08\/23\/amazon-is-fixing-the-ac-at-a-warehouse-where-a-worker-died-on-prime-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Amazon is fixing the AC at a warehouse where a worker died on Prime Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source: https:\/\/www.theverge.com\/2022\/8\/22\/23317209\/amazon-ac-ewr9-warehouse-worker-death-osha-investigations<\/a>
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Amazon is reportedly installing new air conditioning equipment and additional fans at its EWR9 warehouse in New Jersey, according to a report by NBC News<\/a>. This comes after Reynaldo Mota Frias, a worker at the facility, died on July 13th, during the Prime Day rush, on a day when temperatures rose<\/a> to 92 degrees. Amazon reportedly blames Frias\u2019 death on \u201ca personal medical condition\u201d and denies<\/a> reports<\/a> that he told managers he was feeling unwell. An investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (or OSHA) is listed as ongoing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Another employee at EWR9 told NBC that the warehouse gets hot, even in areas that have fans. The company has faced criticism from workers before about how it handles workloads during the increasingly warm summers<\/a> \u2014 last year, some of the company\u2019s warehouse workers in Kent, Washington said they had to work \u201cpower hours\u201d<\/a> during a historic heat wave in the region. Earlier this year, a letter from US lawmakers<\/a> cited that incident while demanding answers from the company about its severe weather policies.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s still unclear what if any role heat played in Frias\u2019 death, Amazon doesn\u2019t have the greatest reputation when it comes to keeping its workers safe. Earlier this year, an advocacy group published a report<\/a> claiming that the company\u2019s warehouse employees were twice as likely to be injured than people working similar jobs at other companies. And last month, OSHA reportedly expanded a nationwide investigation<\/a> into workplace safety at the company, looking into whether the pace it sets for its workers<\/a> pushes them to act in unsafe ways. The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York says<\/a> the investigation is also trying to see if the company has \u201cappropriately reported on-the-job injuries\u201d to government agencies.<\/p>\n