Bush, Maloney, Ocasio-Cortez Demand Amazon Comply with Oversight Investigation into the Company’s Labor Practices
WASHINGTON, D.C.,— Today, Congresswoman Cori Bush, Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sent a letter to Andy Jassy, President and Chief Executive Officer of Amazon.com, demanding that Amazon comply with the Committee’s March 31, 2022, request for documents and information related to Amazon’s labor practices during severe weather events following the deaths of six Amazon workers during a December 2021 tornado in Edwardsville, Illinois.
“The Committee’s investigation is of crucial importance to the American people,” the Members wrote. “Employers like Amazon must prioritize worker safety over the corporate bottom line. Our investigation into Amazon’s response to the events in Edwardsville and other extreme weather events seeks to determine whether Amazon’s corporate practices put employee safety first, or whether your company, which now employs nearly one million people in the United States, is merely paying lip service to this principle.”
Nearly seven weeks have passed since the April 2022 deadline, yet Amazon still has not produced any of the key categories of documents identified by Committee staff, let alone the full set of materials the Committee requested in March. For example, Amazon has failed to produce any internal communications related to the December 2021 tornado that affected Amazon’s Edwardsville facility.
Amazon has also refused to produce any documents related to its own internal investigations and reviews of the Edwardsville incident, which are central to the Committee’s inquiry. Over the course of nearly seven weeks, Amazon produced only an incomplete set of policies and procedures, despite claiming it was conducting a thorough investigation into the Edwardsville events and cooperating with an inquiry by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. After receiving yesterday’s letter, Amazon produced a limited set of documents but has still failed to fully address the Committee’s key requests.
“Amazon’s failure to provide key documents has obstructed the Committee’s investigation,” the Members wrote. “As an additional accommodation, the Committee will grant an extension until June 8, 2022, for Amazon to complete its document production. If Amazon fails to do so, the Committee will have no choice but to consider alternative measures to obtain full compliance.”
Shortly after the collapse of the Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Congresswoman Bush led her colleagues in demanding answers from the corporation in regards to the safety of the building. She later spoke at a vigil for victims of the collapse, including several from Missouri’s First District.
Most recently, in May 2022 Congresswoman Bush joined Senator Elizabeth Warren and Congresswoman Ocasio Cortez in calling out Amazon’s “lackluster response” to Congressional inquiries thus far.
A full copy of today’s letter can be found here.
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Congresswoman Cori Bush sits on the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees, serves as the Progressive Caucus Deputy Whip, and proudly represents St. Louis as a politivist in the halls of the United States Congress.