Report Finds Amazon's Prime Day Is More Dangerous Than Most For Its Employees
Amazon Prime Day is a peak shopping time for Prime customers who seek to buy their favorite products for a cheaper price. During the 2-day period that the sales event lasts, millions of orders are created. In 2024, the event generated a record-breaking $14.2 billion in online sales from the 180 million prime customers who ordered off of the company’s platform.
Amazon workers are pushed to the max during this time to keep up with the rapid pace of incoming orders, and many of them work longer hours. This increased speed of productivity has led to workers getting injured at a higher rate than on normal workdays.
This informational article is based on a report released in July of 2024 by Senator Bernie Sanders. It includes a compilation of injury data between the years 2019 and 2020. The purpose of this article is to shed light on Amazon’s high worker injury rate and to promote safer injury practices within the industry.
What Is Amazon Prime Day?
Amazon Prime Day is a 2-day sales event on July 16-17 that is tailored exclusively to Prime members. Items such as appliances, electronics, wearables, toys, and more are discounted anywhere from 30% to 90% off. These discounts are often the lowest prices of the year for these items on Amazon. Popular items such as headphones and tablets are typically reduced by more than a hundred dollars.
Amazon’s productivity quotas are at an all-time high on Prime Day. In addition to the large volume of orders, Amazon guarantees delivery for most items on the same day or the following day after purchase. In fact, the company offers one-day delivery for more than 15 million items.
When Is Amazon Prime Day?
Amazon Prime Day occurs during the summer each year on July 16th and 17th. The event officially begins at 12:01 AM Pacific Time (PT) and ends at 11:59 PM (PT). Prime members have a total of 48 hours to get their shopping done while the sales last. For residents who live in Texas, this period starts 2 hours earlier than the Pacific Time.
Prime Day is strategically scheduled during the mid-summer slump to drive sales during a typically slow period. This event was initially launched in 2015 and since then has gained immense traction throughout the years. While customers enjoy the year's biggest discounts, the burden falls on the workers who package and deliver their orders.
Why Amazon Prime Day Is Especially Dangerous for Workers
According to a report written by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Amazon warehouse workers face more than double the risk of injury during the Prime Day event compared to all others in the industry. In 2019, the report found that for every 100 workers, there were about 10 or more who were injured. Additionally, this rate increased to 45 injuries per 100 workers when including minor and serious injuries that were not reported to the federal agency, OSHA.
The speed at which Amazon employees are expected to perform their duties, combined with the constant flow of packages, produces dangerous conditions on Prime Day. Some workers are even pressured to work overtime to compensate for the understaffing of their Amazon warehouses. A worker informed Senate investigators that their facility cut corners while installing a new conveyor belt by removing a safety feature, resulting in packages—some weighing up to 50 pounds—stacking up, falling, and injuring employees.
The committee also alleged that the company failed to refer their employees to medical professionals outside of Amazon’s on-site medical facilities to reduce the amount of documented injuries to OSHA. This action jeopardized the well-being of employees by restricting their access to further medical care, leading to the deterioration of many injuries.
How Amazon Employees Are Injured During Prime Day
Due to Amazon’s higher-than-usual demands of productivity on Prime Day, Amazon employees obtain a variety of injuries due to:
Limited Medical Assistance
On-site medical clinics typically only offer basic first-aid services to injured employees and are known to downplay injuries, refusing to refer employees to medical professionals outside of their facility.
Insufficient Breaks
Employees are pressured to limit their break times, even when they need hydration, bathroom breaks, or medical attention.
Heat Exhaustion
Amazon warehouses are often poorly air-conditioned, with high ceilings that distribute heat disproportionately and a large amount of heavy machinery that generates heat, which forces employees to work in excessively hot temperatures.
Overexertion & Repetitive Strain
Workers are given tasks that force them to use repetitive movements at a rapid speed, which can cause musculoskeletal (RSI) injuries.
Falling Objects
Objects often fall when the conveyor belts are overloaded with too many items that are compacted too close to one another.
These conditions intensify during Prime Day, as employees are expected to work 60-hour weeks without any time off. The overwhelming pressure to hit targets often leads to lapses in safety enforcement.
Amazon Now Added Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days
Rather than respond to the increased worker safety issues by decreasing the length or scope of its Amazon Prime Days, Amazon has responded by adding a new, and larger, sales event canned Amazon’s Prime Big Deal Days.
Beginning in 2024, this 48-hour sales event gives Prime members exclusive access to discounted goods in all of its top-performing categories, including electronics, home goods, toys, fashion, kitchen, toys, and more. The event started October 8, 2024, but there is already a rumor that the 2025 event will span five days in October.
This information is disheartening to hear considering the workplace safety issues currently existing within the company’s warehouse and fulfillment centers. Amazon's Super Bowl Sunday, Turkey Days sales, and the “12 Days of Deals” in December are all additional times during which workers are pressured by heightened deadlines and company expectations.
Amazon’s Disposability Model: A Recipe for Injury
Amazon’s workforce strategy relies on high turnover, treating employees as easily replaceable. A steady stream of new, uninjured workers keeps operations running, and this approach becomes especially apparent during Prime Day.
Amazon’s disposability model looks like this:
Fear of Repercussions: Workers hesitate to report injuries out of concern for termination or disciplinary action.
Lack of Responsibility: Managers often place blame on workers for injuries, fostering a culture of silence.
Seasonal Employees: A significant number of Prime Day workers are temporary "white badge" staff who are not offered any job benefits or security. They are usually only hired for Prime Day and fired at a later time.
This disposability model makes it challenging for workers to blame Amazon for negligence or file workers’ compensation claims.
Amazon’s Non-Subscriber Status in Texas: What It Means for Injured Workers
Amazon does not subscribe to the Texas workers' compensation system, opting instead to manage claims through its own private administrators rather than the state's government-run insurance program. However, as a non-subscriber, Amazon faces greater legal liability and is held to a higher standard, increasing the risk of lawsuits.
Injured workers may sue Amazon for their negligence to receive compensation such as:
Economic Damages: Lost income, current and future medical expenses, cost to repair or replace property damage, physical therapy, transportation costs to doctor visits.
Non-Economic Damages: Physical pain, emotional distress, loss of consortium, and diminished quality of life.
The amount of compensation an Amazon worker is entitled to depends on how negligent the Amazon administrator was and the extent of their injuries. The burden of proof falls on the plaintiff in personal injury cases, so hurt workers must present enough compelling evidence to win a case and receive compensation.
Oftentimes, claims involving minor injuries can be resolved after a personal injury lawyer sends a demand letter to the assigned insurance adjuster. However, if negotiation fails, the case may need to be heard before a jury.
For a better chance of proving liability and winning your case, injured workers should also consult with an experienced attorney experienced at litigating cases against Amazon.
The Myth of Worker Safety: Amazon’s Broken Promises
Executive chairman of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, released a letter in 2020 promising shareholders that Amazon would be committed to making it “Earth’s safest place to work.” Unfortunately, this promise seems to not have come to fruition, as reports show the worker injury rate to still be higher than the rest of the industry. Not only do workers feel overworked and disposable, but they often risk their health and even their lives while working for Amazon.
On Amazon Prime Day in 2020, warehouse worker Rafael Mota Frias suffered a heart attack while in the middle of his shift. Although OSHA attributed the death to a medical condition they discovered he had during their investigation, his coworkers disputed this claim. In their words, Frias was “overworked and overheated.” Just hours before Frias’s death, in the midst of a heat wave, the workers pleaded with Amazon administrators to implement fans in the work area. Amazon carried out this request, but only after the tragedy had already occurred.
Amazon workers Rodger Boland and Eric Vadinsky also lost their lives in New Jersey warehouses just weeks after Frias's death. Boland fell from a three-foot ladder, striking his head on the ground, and Vadinsky was hospitalized after being injured in a delivery facility, passing a few days later. The medical examination of Boland revealed that his body temperature was extremely high when he fell. These deaths sparked a workers’ rights group called WarehouseLife to file a lawsuit against Amazon, seeking access to inspection records of its warehouses.
Fighting Back: Workers’ Rights and Legal Recourse
Amazon workers across the nation are uniting together through multiple organizations and union groups to fight for better working conditions and to give workers a voice that can be heard. Additionally, numerous workers are pursuing legal action by filing lawsuits against the company.
If you are an Amazon worker seeking to fight back against your company or employer you can take action by:
Filing a Workers' Compensation Claim (if applicable): You must notify your employer of your injury as soon as possible or within 30 days of your injury through a written notice. Seek medical treatment, record evidence, and fill out your accident report with your employer. This claim has an expiration date of one year from the day you were injured to be filed.
Pursue a Civil Lawsuit: If Amazon’s negligent actions directly caused your injury, you can file a civil lawsuit against them. You need clear and compelling evidence to support your claims, which a lawyer can assist in gathering and presenting. To file a civil lawsuit against Amazon, you must submit a complaint to the county court about your grievances.
Join a Union: You can join worker unions to support and fight for your cause by signing up on their websites and submitting your information to receive daily updates.
It’s recommended that you consult with an attorney before attempting to pursue a lawsuit against a company like Amazon, as they have many legal defenses that they often use to counter claims made against them. An attorney can protect your rights and use their legal expertise to hold Amazon accountable for their actions.