SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House approved a sweeping package of safety protections for workers at Minnesota warehouses, including at Amazon facilities. Additionally, lawmakers approved legislation guaranteeing Earned Sick and Safe Time for all Minnesota workers, as well as a bill approving worker contracts for Minnesota state employees.
“It’s apparent that Amazon warehouses have an abhorrent safety track record, and right now our state’s workplace protections don’t address the grueling quotas they use to push workers to the max. The legislation we passed today will help provide some overdue accountability for a multibillion-dollar corporation to keep folks safe on the job,” said Rep. Mike Sundin (DFL – Esko). “I was also proud to support a statewide Earned Sick and Safe Time standard so all workers can afford to take time off if they’re sick, as well as the labor contracts for our dedicated state employees. All Minnesota workers deserve to be safe, and deserve fair compensation and benefits and these bills were easy ‘yes’ votes.”
The House approved legislation to protect and empower Minnesota’s warehouse workers and to address practices that have led to high injury rates at Amazon facilities. For example, Amazon subjects their employees to quotas that change frequently and often aren’t disclosed, with an intense pace and pressure to meet high quotas endangering workers. According to a report by the National Employment Law Project, Amazon warehouse workers have an annual injury rate four times the injury rate for all workers in private industry, and more than double that of non-Amazon warehouses in the state.
The legislation applies to Amazon and other large companies that operate a warehouse distribution center with more than 250 employees. It requires these corporations to provide warehouse workers with written notice of all quotas and performance standards they are subject to and how they are measured. The bill stipulates that employers can’t fire or take disciplinary action against a worker who fails to meet a quota that wasn’t disclosed.
The House also approved legislation to require Minnesota employers to provide workers Earned Sick and Safe Time. The legislation would ensure, at a minimum, one hour of paid Earned Sick and Safe Time for every 30 hours worked, up to at least 48 hours per year. Upwards of 900,000 Minnesota workers, including two-thirds of workers in the lowest wage positions, lack access to paid time off when they or a family member are ill or need to go to a doctor’s appointment.
Earned Sick and Safe Time can be used to attend to physical and mental health needs – including illness, injury, or a doctor’s appointment – for workers and their family members. Absence following domestic abuse or sexual assault, if a job site is closed, or if a family member’s school is closed are also eligible uses. Sixteen states have adopted similar policies guaranteeing paid sick leave for workers, as have numerous cities including Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and Duluth.
The House also approved legislation ratifying the 2020-21 Minnesota Law Enforcement Association contract and the 2022-23 contracts with AFSCME, MAPE, Middle Management Association, the State Residential Schools Education Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and employees covered under the managerial and commissioner’s compensation plans. The other agreements include 2.5% across the board increases for state employees in both FY22 and FY 23. The agreements submitted by Minnesota Management and Budget cover nearly 39,000 individuals who work across state government serving the citizens of the state. The bill also ratifies contracts and plans for approximately 4500 Minnesota State employees and faculty.
Video recording of today’s floor debate can be found on House Public Information Services’ YouTube channel.