'Treat humans like humans': Amazon drivers file 16-page lawsuit alleging inhumane working conditions

Although Amazon was the world's #1 e-commerce company long before COVID-19, the pandemic made Amazon even more prosperous. The New York Times reported, in April 2021, that Amazon's profits had increased by 220 percent.

But Amazon's working conditions have drawn a great deal of criticism.

On February 1, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) had given citations to three Amazon warehouses for "exposing workers to ergonomic hazards." The Labor Department has found high injury rates in Amazon warehouses.

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Amazon drivers have also complained about working conditions.

Three Amazon delivery drivers in Colorado, CBS News reports, have filed a 16-page lawsuit in which they claim that they had to "urinate in bottles and defecate in dog waste bags" in order to keep up with the schedule that was expected of them. Amazon has denied those allegations.

Ryan Schilling, an Iraq War veteran and one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, complained, "I fought for this country in Iraq, but I had an easier time going to the bathroom in a combat zone than I did while working for Amazon. Twice, I've had to defecate so badly that I've had to use dog waste bags in the back of delivery vans. I knew that if I tried to stop to go to a gas station, I'd get yelled at and maybe lose my job. What choice do Amazon drivers have?"

Leah Cross, another plaintiff, told CBS News, "As a woman, I can't just easily pee in a bottle. When I worked for Amazon, I had to bring a change of clothes in case I peed my pants while trying to hit Amazon's delivery metrics. I was told I couldn't even stop to pick up some sanitary products. With this lawsuit, I'm fighting for Amazon to treat humans like humans."

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Find CBS News' entire report at this link.