Amazon suspended 50 workers who refused to work after a fire broke out at its Staten Island warehouse, union leaders confirmed on Tuesday.
Amazon Labor Union noted in a statement on Twitter that the suspension was “clear retaliation against workers who refused to work in unsafe conditions.”
The suspensions came after hundreds of workers participated in a “work stoppage” Monday night, in protest against “abnormally dangerous working conditions” and “health and safety concerns” related to a fire that broke out at the Amazon JFK8 distribution center in Staten Island earlier that same day.
Union members said that the retail giant had refused to send workers home with pay despite “dangerous fumes pervading the warehouse” and the building being “flooded and filled with smoke.”…