Amazon warehouse worker in New York dies of COVID-19

An Amazon employee who worked in a warehouse in New York died COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus, the internet retailer said on Tuesday. The employee last worked at the facility on Staten Island on April 5 and was quarantined on April 11.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of an employee at our Staten Island, New York location,” said Kristen Kish, Amazon spokeswoman, a previous one report by The Verge. “His family and loved ones are in our thoughts and we support his colleagues.”

Amazon said it had contacted the employee’s family and was offering advice and support to workers. The company said the employee who was not identified was believed to have had no contact with other workers.

A number of Amazon warehouse workers have tested positive for the corona virus, and at least five have died, news reports say. Workers in Amazon camps in Hawthorne and Tracy, California, died of COVID-19. Two employees of the supermarket chain Whole Foods Market, which Amazon owns, also died, one in Massachusetts and another in Portland, Oregon.

Amazon has been heavily criticized for its treatment of warehouse workers during the coronavirus pandemic with workers Organize a handful of demonstrations across the country call for safer working conditions. Many of these workers fear that their warehouses are potential breeding grounds for the virus and that they could eventually spread it to their families and Amazon customers.

Last month, Amazon announced that it had provided over 100 million masks to its global operations network and Whole Foods stores, which were shared with all Amazon employees, delivery service partners, seasonal workers, and others across the company. The e-commerce giant said that everyone who works in their facilities must use a mask. The masks are part of a series of Measures taken by Amazon in the name of protecting workers, including Temperature tests.