The New York State Division of Human Rights has filed a complaint against Amazon claiming the e-commerce giant has discriminated against pregnant and disabled workers. According to a press release from Governor Kathy Hochul’s office, the company has allegedly forced workers to take unpaid leaves of absence rather than provide them with “reasonable accommodations.” In one egregious alleged case, a pregnant worker received an accommodation that allowed her to “avoid lifting packages over 25 pounds,” but her manager refused to abide by the exemption, and she was forced to continue lifting heavy items, resulting in an injury. “Subsequently,” the press release said, “the worker required further accommodations as a result of the injury. Amazon denied the request and forced the pregnant worker into indefinite unpaid leave.” In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson said, in part, “Ensuring all our employees, including those with disabilities and expectant mothers, feel safe and supported is extremely important to Amazon and we have numerous programs to ensure that’s the case.”
