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Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

arstechnica.com

21–30 of 66 posts

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#21
In any poor Eastern European country they would go for months-long paid leave long before the birth and then for months-long paid maternity leave.

If they decided to work during pregnancy they would get preferential treatment.

How are Americans not revolting against this bullshit is beyond me. The problem isn't even Amazon - it's the system that makes Amazon doing this shit even a possibility.

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#22
I skimmed the lawsuit. As far as I can tell, the complaint is about getting 4 x 15 minute extra breaks during the day and lighter work. Amazon did grant them, but the complaint is that they didn't do it fast enough. There's also something of a disagreement where she expected to be paid for the extra hour of break time every day, but Amazon was counting it as unpaid. She was reassigned to lighter work at her request, but the complaint is that she still had to lift heavy things and they didn't give her a job where she could sit down.

The word "bathroom" shows up a lot but that doesn't appear core to the lawsuit. I think an editor was engineering the headline for maximum clickbait to link back to the previous Amazon bathroom break stories.

Regardless of what you think about Amazon, this reporting could use a little less clickbait and little more details from the actual lawsuit.

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#23
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Turns out depending on the metro they already solved that problem. Just let them piss. They actually do let bus operators randomly stop the bus at rush hour to pee in some cities. In Ottawa (Ontario), for instance, as long as an operator is within their 5 minute "late standard" window, they can stop and make a quick pee break or Timmy's break as long as they keep the bus in time. The busses lock down with a PIN when…

> The busses lock down with a PIN when they get out of the seat (generated that morning at the depot) so you can't take it out of neutral anyways to try to steal it. Huh, it would never have occurred to me to raise the objection "but someone could steal the bus while the driver is in the bathroom!" Why does the bus need to stay in neutral with a special system of daily rotating PINs, rather than having the driver tak…

Transit buses generally actually don't use keys, amusingly. You pop the drivers' window open and reach in for the manual door release, then climb on board.

The headlight switch is also the 'master on' switch for the bus, then you slap an engine starter button and off to the races you go. It's assumed you keep the bus stabled somewhere secure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GtuUBEeTVg

https://www.cleverdevices.com/products/secure-bus-access/

Clever Devices is one of the large players of the bus telematics industry and they just sit on the CANbus of the bus (heh!) and block the gear shift from being able to shift over it until you enter the PIN.

If you've ever played with a bus simulator, OMSI 2's Chicago Downtown addon requires you sign onto the bus to take it out of gear, too - you just look up and see the post-it note with that driver's ID and PIN ;)

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#24
post #19
post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Turns out depending on the metro they already solved that problem. Just let them piss. They actually do let bus operators randomly stop the bus at rush hour to pee in some cities. In Ottawa (Ontario), for instance, as long as an operator is within their 5 minute "late standard" window, they can stop and make a quick pee break or Timmy's break as long as they keep the bus in time. The busses lock down with a PIN when…

> The busses lock down with a PIN when they get out of the seat (generated that morning at the depot)... How do drivers remember their daily PIN?

When they show up to the depot and get their bus assignment they get a slip with the PIN (IIRC), otherwise they can call dispatch back up, identify themselves, and be given a reset remotely. (https://www.cleverdevices.com/products/secure-bus-access/)

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#26
It amuses me when adults need permission to perform basic human needs because a small group will always take advantage of common courtesy and ruin it for everyone else.

When I was in grade school I pissed my pants in the library because the librarian wouldn't let me go to the bathroom. We both learned a lesson that day. I learned to seek forgiveness over permission, and she learned that sometimes kids aren't bullshitting when they say they need to use the bathroom.

We are all at the mercy of the bottom quintile.

Re: Amazon refused to give pregnant workers bathroom breaks

#27

At this point is anyone surprised at what Amazon will do to the plebeian workers that fuel them?

At this point, do people prefer to accept a claim in a lawsuit as the truth if it happens to conform to their model of reality?

When it comes to a company known to hire union-busters rather than deal with a burgeoning union in good faith? Yes. Yes they do.
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