Amazon urges U.S. officials to prioritize its staff for COVID-19 doses

By Nikita Chaurasia  | Date: 2020-12-18

Amazon urges U.S. officials to prioritize its staff for COVID-19 doses

Amazon.com Inc., an American multinational technology firm, has reportedly asked the government of United States to consider its employees in data center, grocery store, and warehouse to reclassify them as essential workers in order to acquire early access of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The letter shows how Amazon, with over 800,000 employees in the U.S., considers the importance of the workers’ safety to keep its facilities operational. It is also worth mentioning that the U.S. National Retail Federation had also made a similar request on behalf of the industry, cite credible sources.  

Nursing home residents and healthcare professionals have been granted early access to the dosages, with administration of the vaccine starting this Monday, following the emergency-use authorization last week, sources confirmed.

Dave Clark, Senior VP at Amazon, reportedly sent a letter to head of advisory panel at U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, ACIP, stating that the company agrees that the vaccine should be given first preference to the healthcare professionals, followed by essential workers, in accordance with the  government’s vaccine guidelines.

In addition, Clark requested the ACIP to prioritize vaccination of essential workers, also including those who cannot work from home, such as the employees at Whole Foods Market stores, AWS data centers, and Amazon fulfillment centers.

If reports are to be believed, the Seattle-based technology giant has invested over USD 10 billion to fight COVID-19 in its offices and has also introduced various in-house testing initiatives.

It is to be noted that Amazon is not the only company requesting to classify its staff as essential workers. Uber had recently sent a request to various U.S. state senators appealing to reclassify its drivers as essential workers in an effort to acquire early access to the vaccines.

 

Meanwhile, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly informed his employees that they will not be required to get vaccinated in order to resume work at office premises.

 

Source Credits –

https://in.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-vaccine-amazon-com/amazon-asks-u-s-to-include-warehouse-grocery-staff-in-vaccine-rollout-idINKBN28R0AD

 

 

About Author

Nikita Chaurasia     aeresearch.net

Nikita Chaurasia

An accomplished professional in the field of content development, playing with words comes naturally to Nikita Chaurasia. After completing her post-graduate MBA degree in Advertising and PR, Nikita worked across numerous content-driven verticals, undertaking diverse r...

Read More >>

More News By Nikita Chaurasia

Pacific Island pushes Japan to delay wastewater release from Fukushima

Pacific Island pushes Japan to delay wastewater release from Fukushima

By Nikita Chaurasia

Pacific Island nations have reportedly pushed Japan to postpone the release of Fukushima nuclear power plant wastewater due to concerns that it may pollute fishing grounds. An appeal was made on Wednesday when Japan announced that treated sewage f...

Activist groups take Danone to court over excessive use of plastics

Activist groups take Danone to court over excessive use of plastics

By Nikita Chaurasia

Danone, the French bottled water and yogurt firm, is reportedly being sued in court by three environmental activists’ groups for failing to cut its plastic footprint significantly. According to the groups, the maker of Evian and Volvic miner...

Bosch expands security with dashcams designed for rideshare drivers

Bosch expands security with dashcams designed for rideshare drivers

By Nikita Chaurasia

Bosch, the German technology company, has reportedly expanded its security footprint in the ridesharing market with the launch of its latest security dashcams. At CES 2023, Las Vegas, the German tech firm unveiled a new integrated smart camera on ...

Australia: PM Albanese denies potential $450M payout to Rio Tinto

Australia: PM Albanese denies potential $450M payout to Rio Tinto

By Nikita Chaurasia

Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has reportedly denied rumors that Rio Tinto and its partners could receive a $450 million settlement for the Gladstone power station, which would bring the total compensation for the coal price limit to...

UK: Firms still struggle with post-Brexit trading and red tape

UK: Firms still struggle with post-Brexit trading and red tape

By Nikita Chaurasia

Businesses in the UK are still reportedly grappling after two years following the beginning of post-Brexit trading, as suggested by a new report. According to the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), firms are still battling increased red tape and ...