Amazon just sacked a woman employee for taking too many bathroom breaks

A file photo of an employee at Amazon’s JFK8 distribution center in Staten Island, New York, US. A woman has reportedly sued Amazon for unjustifiably sacking her recently for taking too many toilet breaks. — Reuters

We have all heard how tough an employer Amazon is. Now, here is a case that shows to what lengths the mega-corporation will go to enforce discipline – with an iron hand.

Amazon is a mega-corporation and is able to generate massive amounts of profit year after year by ensuring discipline among the ranks – after all, this is the corporate ethics there that has made its founder Jeff Bezos the richest man in the world with a total net worth of US$187bil (RM788.39bil) according to Bloomberg Billionaires index.

However, that kind of work environment can lead to unfortunate incidents. A woman has reportedly sued Amazon for unjustifiably sacking her recently for taking too many toilet breaks. The woman says she suffered from irritable bowel syndrome and therefore had to rush to the bathroom on a number of occasions throughout the day – sometimes as many as six times a day. However, that did not go down well with the tough Amazon bosses. And even though the woman explained the situation, her boss told her to get a certificate from a doctor indicating her medical condition, Business Insider reports.

Unfortunately, the woman, named Maria Jennite Olivero, who worked in an Amazon warehouse, took too long to get the document even after she was warned that there was a deadline involved.

Finally, Amazon gave her five days to get the doctor’s note or face disciplinary measures. Ultimately, she was sacked as this deadline too passed, with the woman this time claiming a doctor’s appointment was not available for the next six days.

Calling her condition a disability, the woman has sued Amazon for discrimination. A case has been filed in court and she is seeking damages to the tune of US$75,000 (RM316,200) for the unfair dismissal.

Amazon is contesting the same and it even went to the extent of calculating the wages she had lost since her sacking. The grand total was just over US$17,000 (RM71,672) – gross. – Hindustan Times, New Delhi/Tribune News Service