By Nathalie Voit
Amazon workers will no longer be eligible for COVID-19 paid time off, the company told staff members on April 28 in a notice reviewed by CNBC.
All U.S.-based frontline workers who contract the coronavirus will receive up to five days of excused, unpaid leave. A representative for Amazon told CNBC workers may rollover any unused sick days if they wish to.
Amazon initially covered up to two weeks’ pay for any employees who caught the disease or were placed into quarantine. The pandemic-era policy was reduced to one week or 40 hours’ worth of paid leave in January as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated its public health guidance to reflect shorter isolation and COVID-19 quarantine requirements.
Additionally, workers waiting on COVID-19 test results will no longer be excused for time off, Amazon said, noting that COVID-19 rapid tests are now widely available.
“The sustained easing of the pandemic, ongoing availability of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, and updated guidance from public health authorities all signal we can continue to safely adjust to our pre-COVID policies,” Amazon said in the notice.
As part of the cutbacks, Amazon will no longer alert other workers of positive cases in its facilities. The e-commerce giant will also stop encouraging staff members to get vaccinated.
The new policy will go into effect May 2, Amazon said.
The policy changes arrive as shares of the company tumbled to their worst days since the Great Recession, fueled by a less-than-stellar first-quarter earnings report. The tech giant rounded out the month with a 23.8% loss in the value of its stock, its largest one-month decline since November 2008.
As of May 2, near close-of-day, Amazon stock is trading at $2,488.00 a share.
