Amazon safety concerns: Ambulances rushed to delivery site’s warehouses 1,400 times in just five years
More than 1,400 ambulances were called to Amazon warehouses over a five-year period, according to new figures.
New statistics revealed by The Observer raise questions about workplace safety at e-commerce giants across the UK, with the GMB union calling the new findings “shocking”.
Amazon warehouses in Dunfermline and Bristol topped the list for the highest number of ambulance call-outs, with 161 and 125 respectively over a five-year period.
In a third case, the Scottish Ambulance Service reported chest pain, while other cases reported convulsions, strokes and breathing difficulties.
A third of calls from Scottish Ambulance Service to the Amazon site in Dunfermline were for chest pain, with calls also being for convulsions, strokes and respiratory problems.
More than 1,400 ambulances were called to Amazon warehouses over a five-year period (pictured: an Amazon centre in Sutton), according to new figures.
Amazon warehouses in Dunfermline and Bristol topped the list for ambulance callouts, with 161 and 125 respectively over a five-year period (stock image)
Since 2019, 84 ambulances have been dispatched from the Mansfield facility alone.
More than 70 percent of calls were for Category 1 or 2 incidents, which are among the most serious, such as heart attacks or strokes.
Psychiatric incidents or suicide attempts have occurred at Amazon workplaces in Chesterfield, Mansfield, Rugeley, London and Bolton, and several other locations.
Miscarriages and pregnancy-related workplace incidents, as well as suspected heart attacks and traumatic physical injuries, were also recorded at several locations.
In other incidents, workers were exposed to acids and hazardous gases, suffered serious electrocution or suffered severe burns over large areas of their bodies.
According to the Observer, the current figures are likely an underestimate, as the 12 ambulance services surveyed did not have all the figures from the 30 Amazon warehouses.
Amanda Gearing, a GMB organiser, said while the figures were “shocking” they did not come as a surprise.
She has called on Health and Safety Executives and local authorities to launch investigations into the conglomerates’ workplace safety standards.
“Amazon workers are routinely pushed to their limits, beyond the limits of human endurance,” she said. The guard.
“They are forced to work towards a hidden goal that is not based on working safely, but on a Hunger Games algorithm.”
“Even these disturbingly high numbers may mask just how common injuries and illnesses are at Amazon.
The current figures are likely to be an underestimate as the 12 ambulance services surveyed did not have full figures from the 30 Amazon warehouses (Pictured: Striking Amazon staff outside a warehouse in Warrington in July)
“We know from our members in Amazon warehouses that first responders are actively discouraged from calling ambulances and instead are told to take taxis.”
Martha Dark, executive director of Foxglove, a nonprofit that supports Amazon workers, also shares her thoughts.
“We are seeing again how dangerous it is to work at Amazon,” she said.
“That so many workers are being taken away in ambulances simply for doing their jobs is unacceptable and underscores Amazon’s disregard for health and safety.”
MailOnline has asked Amazon for comment.