By Nicole Norfleet

A nonprofit group that represents Somali workers plans to stage a protest at Amazon’s Shakopee fulfillment center at the height of the busy holiday season next month over complaints of how the online retailer manages productivity at its large facility and other issues.

The protest planned for Dec. 14 follows discussions between Amazon officials and leaders in the East African community to discuss workplace conditions that, among other things, have workers fearing for their jobs and uneasy about religious accommodation.

“We are not asking them to cater to East African workers,” said Abdirahman Muse, community activist and executive director of nonprofit Awood Center. “We are just asking them to treat workers humanely.”

Amazon’s 885,000-square-foot fulfillment center in Shakopee employs more than 1,500 workers. Amazon estimates that about 30 percent of workers at the Shakopee fulfillment center are East African.

Amazon administrators met with Muse and other East African community leaders in September and October to address the concerns. Amazon said it offered that one of its Somali-speaking managers could be a point of contact to workers who have concerns about procedures and policies. Amazon administrators also agreed to meet with Awood as well as other organizations on a quarterly basis.

“The safety and well-being of our employees is our number one priority,” said Amazon spokeswoman Ashley Robinson in a statement. “Amazon has operations around the world, and we deeply value our connection to the communities where we are located. Each community is a little different and in each one, we work to ensure our employees have a great experience with the most important element being our direct connection to our employees.”

While conversations with the company were a start, they failed to resolve concerns, Muse said.

Amazon workers have complained to Muse and others that the e-commerce giant had dramatically increased its production quotas for employees to unrealistic levels, causing many employees to fear for their jobs.

Abdukadir Ahmed Hayir, of Minneapolis, has worked at the Amazon facility for more than a year. During that time, he said the number of boxes he’s expected to pack has increased by 50 percent.

“It’s really difficult,” he said in a translated interview.

Sometimes after he gets off work at 5 p.m., he said doesn’t have enough energy to take a shower and just goes to bed with his shoes on.

Read more: Amazon, East African workers at odds over conditions at Shakopee center

Source: Star Tribune