A New York City judge has ordered Amazon to reinstate a former warehouse worker who was fired in the early days of the pandemic in 2020.
The ruling states that the e-commerce giant unlawfully terminated the warehouse worker who led a protest calling for the company to do more to protect its employees against COVID-19.
Amazon Ordered to Reinstate Fired Worker
The dispute involving former Amazon employee Gerald Bryson, who used to work at the company's warehouse in Staten Island, New York, has stretched on since June 2020, according to The Verge.
Bryson filed an unfair labor practice complaint with The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), claiming that the e-commerce giant retaliated against him after the protest.
In late 2020, the NLRB said that it found merit in Bryson's complaint that Amazon unlawfully fired him for workplace organizing. Amazon did not accept the findings, and the federal board filed a formal complaint against the e-commerce company, triggering a long administrative court process.
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On Apr. 18, administrative law judge Benjamin Green said that Amazon needed to offer Bryson his job back and pay him his lost wages and benefits resulting from the discriminatory discharge, according to CBS News.
In a statement, Kelly Nantel, the Amazon spokesperson, said that the company would appeal the ruling.
Nantel said that the company disagreed with the ruling, and they are surprised that the NLRB would want an employer to condone Bryson's behavior.
Nantel added that the reason why Bryson was fired was that he defamed, bullied, and cursed at a female co-worker over a bullhorn in front of the workplace.
The spokesperson also said that Amazon do not tolerate that type of conduct in their workplace and intend to file an appeal with the NLRB.
Amazon Safety Protest
Bryson participated in a March 2020 protest over working conditions led by another warehouse employee, Chris Smalls, who the e-commerce giant fired.
Smalls was the head of the Amazon Labor Union, the group which won a union election in early April at the Amazon facility where both of them worked. After Smalls was fired, Bryson led another protest in April 2020 in front of the Amazon warehouse, according to ABC News.
Even though he was off the job during the protest, he got into a dispute with another worker and was later fired for violating the company's vulgar-language policy. Court filings account the dispute between Bryson and a female employee.
A recording of their altercation detailed by the NLRB showed both the female employee and Bryson using profanities during a heated argument that lasted for minutes.
The filings revealed that the woman began the vulgar exchange and twice tried to provoke Bryson into a physical altercation with her, which he did not enter into.
The female employee was given a "first warning" by Amazon. The female employee also called Bryson slurs, which the judge pointed out in the court ruling.
Bryson testified that he told an Amazon manager who spoke with him about the incident about the female employee's comment.
The manager has denied Bryson made a reference to any racial comment, but the judge sided with Bryson's account.
In 2019, Amazon fired an employee with Crohn's disease and was sued because of its controversial policy on bathroom breaks.
In 2022, Amazon fired an employee because of unionization attempts.
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Written by Sophie Webster
