Amazon fulfillment center in Airway Heights cited for unsafe conditions

Amazon is facing $85,800 in fines for knowingly putting workers at risk of injury at its fulfillment center in Spokane, according to the Washington state Department of Labor and Industries.

The state has reviewed more than 400 worker compensation claims at the Airway Height location since its opening in 2021, according to L&I.

The claims originate from Amazon requiring its workers to execute repetitive motions, lifting, and other physical work at a fast pace, according to the complaint.

Those actions put workers at risk for work-related disorders like carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, shoulder injuries, muscle strains and lower-back injuries, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Amazon has been cited for similar violations at three other Washington locations.

Because of the previous citations, department officials said Amazon executives were aware of the unsafe working conditions, which is why the recent violation are considered “willful” and carry a higher penalty.

Craig Blackwood, assistant director for the L&I Division of Occupational Safety and Health, said Amazon has no excuse for not improving work conditions.

“Perhaps more than any other company, Amazon has the means and the know-how to invest in solutions that keep their workers safe,” Blackwood said in the complaint.

Reached by email, Amazon’s Global Safety spokesperson Maureen Lynch Vogel said the company disagrees with the allegations, especially the willful characterization.

Amazon has active appeals in the three previous Washington cases, and plans to appeal the most recent violation, Vogel said.

“L&I is relying on prior citations we have challenged – and that are being challenged in court right now – as a basis for alleging that we willfully exposed employees to ergonomic hazards,” Vogel said. “That is categorically false.”

As of November 2022, Amazon employed about 3,700 people in Spokane County, according to data compiled by the Spokane Journal of Business.

The Airway Heights facility posted the highest injury rates for all Amazon fulfillment centers in the state, department officials said.

In addition to ergonomic violations, the Airway Heights facility was also cited for three serious, and one general, violations for noise levels that were too high for workers who were not wearing appropriate hearing protection, L&I officials said.

Amazon officials disagreed with the department’s “characterizations of noise hazards” at their sites, Vogel said.

She noted the company seeks “fair hearings regarding the citations” and said it has taken steps to improve employee safety.

The department said any fines paid as a result of citations are placed into a pension fund that helps workers and families of those who have died on the job.

Further changes are coming that are designed to reduce warehouse worker injuries.

Starting on July 1, 2024, Washington state law will require large distribution centers to disclose any production quotas that workers are expected to meet, according to L&I.