Some Instacart and Amazon warehouse workers in the U.S. walked off the job Monday demanding greater safeguards against the coronavirus, even as both companies are speed-hiring hundreds of thousands of new workers to handle a surge in delivery orders.
The one-day strikes had little impact on consumers, but the unrest called attention to mounting discontent among low-wage workers who are on the front lines of the pandemic, serving the needs of those who can keep safe working from home. Whole Worker, a workers group for Whole Foods employees, is calling for a country-wide "sick out" on Wednesday.
CBC News has been in touch with one of the organizers of the strike in the U.S., who said she was unaware of any plans for similar actions in Canada.
...But a rush of hiring is likely to dilute any attempts by existing workers to organize walk-offs. Many people are applying for the new jobs as layoffs surge in restaurants, retail, hospitality, airports and other industries that have shut down. Nearly 3.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, almost five times the previous record set in 1982.
While many Instacart workers said they would stop taking orders Monday, other, newer workers were reluctant to give up a source of income at a time of mass layoffs.
"I'm grateful to have some way to make money," said Summer Cooper, 39, who started working as an Instacart shopper in the Tampa Bay, Florida, area recently after losing her position as a server at a hotel restaurant.
<section id="inread-wrapper-id-41" style="font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"></section>San Francisco-based Instacart said it is nearing its goal of hiring 300,000 more workers — more than doubling its workforce — to fulfil orders it says have surged by 150 per cent over last year's levels in the past weeks.
...Several Amazon workers, meanwhile, walked out of an Amazon warehouse, in Staten Island, N.Y., on Monday demanding the facility be shut and cleaned during a paid time off after a co-worker tested positive for the virus. About 100 workers were expected to attend the rally, but Amazon said the number was much lower.
... At the Staten Island facility, which employs 4,500 people, Amazon implemented daily temperature screenings.
...Walmart, Dollar General and Pizza Hut and other companies are hiring thousands more, both to meet a surge in delivery order and more in-store demand for basics like cleaning supplies and toilet paper.
