An Amazon worker allegedly lay dead in a warehouse for more than an hour as his colleagues were told to carry on with their work, according to a new report. Workers in Amazon’s distribution centre in Troutdale, Oregon, were reportedly discouraged from helping a man dead on the floor in the warehouse, with one employee claiming a manager told them “just turn around and not look. Let’s get back to work”.
An employee, identified under the pseudonym Sam, said he saw a body lying “lifeless” at his workplace but was told by a supervisor to “please get back to work”.
Sam, who is trained in CPR, added that multiple workers wanted to help a woman who ran to the person to perform chest compressions, according to The Western Edge.
An investigation by the outlet alleged Amazon attempted to prevent news of the worker’s death on April 6 from becoming public.
Sam said: “I started sobbing and said, ‘I want to help, please.I know she’s going to get tired and need to be subbed out.”
He alleged his supervisor, who he said had tears in his eyes, told him: “It has to be management or safety team” and instructed him to “just turn around and not look. Let’s get back to work”.
Sam added: “Between being told we should get back to work while a coworker is getting CPR and being told not to help, I just can’t support a corporation like that. We are just numbers.”
Emergency services later attended the scene and the area was closed off. The incident is said to have shocked workers at the facility, with some blaming middle management for what they described as a cold response.
In a statement to the Mirror US, Amazon said: “We’re deeply saddened by the passing of a member of our team, and our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with their loved ones during this difficult time. We’ve been in touch with his family and have provided resources to support them. For employees at our PDX9 facility, we’ve provided on-site grief counsellors and additional support.”
Amazon said site operations were suspended shortly after emergency services arrived and remained closed for the rest of the day. When work resumed, staff were offered voluntary time off. The incident was ruled to be non-work-related.
The Daily Express has contacted Amazon for comment.
