Jeff Bezos is flourishing. In the midst of the backlash Amazon is facing due to its alleged treatment of employees, Bezos’ wallet remains obscenely healthy. As of last week, his net worth has reportedly increased by five percent, or better put, by a staggering $23.6 billion.
Over the last months, Amazon has seen a rise in demand as its customer base continues to self-isolate. To cope with the surge of orders, it has already hired thousands of new employees and aims to hire an additional 175,000. It has also pledged to prioritize essential items such as sanitizers and baby formula.
Amazon has fired employees who’ve publicly criticized the company for its coronavirus response; the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is currently looking into these claims. Last week, the New York Post reported that an Amazon warehouse employee had passed away from the virus.
“We are calling out because Amazon is putting its revenue above our safety,” Jaylen Camp, an Amazon worker told The Guardian. “We are not essential to them – they just think of us as numbers and quotas. They are not protecting our health.” This failure is leading to huge warehouse strikes after over 130 Amazon warehouses in the US have contracted the virus, leading to more than 30 confirmed cases.
