NHRC Seeks Report From Centre On Labour Law Violations At Amazon’s Manesar Warehouse

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a detailed report from the Centre over allegations of labour law violations at Amazon India’s warehouse in Haryana’s Manesar.

The NHRC took suo motu cognisance of a report by the Indian Express which alleged harsh working conditions at the ecommerce major Amazon’s warehouse. While the NHRC, in its statement, didn’t mention Amazon’s name, instead calling it a warehouse of a multinational company, a latest report by the Indian Express pointed out that the company in question was Amazon. 

The Commission expressed concerns over the allegations and directed the labour secretary to submit a detailed report on the matter within a week. 

“The Commission has observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of human rights of the workers in violation of the labour laws and the guidelines issued by the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment… The Commission has issued to the Secretary, Union Ministry of Labour and Employment calling for a detailed report in the matter within one week,” the NHRC said in the statement. 

As per the news report, a worker alleged that they are paid a mere INR 10,088 for working ten hours a day for five days a week. A female worker also claimed that she has to keep standing for nine hours daily and is required to evaluate 60 small products or 40 medium-sized products per hour while on duty. 

A worker at the facility was also reportedly asked by his supervisor to take a pledge that he would not take toilet or water breaks till the unloading of packages from six trucks was completed. According to the report, a worker at the Manesar warehouse said that even if they work continuously without breaks, including the 30-minute lunch and tea breaks, they cannot unload more than four trucks per day. 

Additionally, a female employee alleged that no restroom facilities are available at the Manesar unit. 

“… Reportedly, the labour associations in India have accused five warehouses in and around Manesar of violating regulations outlined in the Factories Act, 1948. While labour Inspectors can demand corrections, there is limited enforcement,” the NHRC added. 

Responding to the allegations, an Amazon spokesperson previously said that the company was probing the claims. 

“We’re investigating these claims, but to be clear, we’d never make these kinds of requests on our employees as part of standard business practice. If we discovered an incident such as the one that’s been alleged, we’d immediately put a stop to it and ensure the manager involved was re-trained on our expectations of team support, health, and safety. We’ll continue to investigate,” the Amazon spokesperson reportedly said. 

This is not the first time that the ecommerce major has landed in a soup over its alleged labour law violations. Last month, an association of Amazon warehouse workers alleged that they were reportedly “facing distressing conditions inside warehouses” amidst the ongoing heatwave that has sent temperatures soaring to 50°C in some areas. 

For the past four years, Amazon’s Indian warehouse workers have organised a protest on November 24 to coincide with Black Friday, the day when online sales see a major uptick across the US. In the past, these workers alleged inhumane working conditions at these warehouses and demanded better wages.