Amazon worker in Lexington tests positive for COVID. Here’s what the company is doing
At least one worker at an Amazon facility in Lexington has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to the company.
“We are supporting the individual who is recovering,” said Alyssa Bronikowski, an Amazon spokeswoman in an email. “We are following guidelines from health officials and medical experts, and are taking extreme measures to ensure the safety of employees at our site.”
The employee who tested positive for COVID-19 worked at the LEX2 Amazon Fulfillment Center at 172 Trade St., according to the email. That Lexington facility handles returns from customers.
A voicemail, obtained by the Herald-Leader, to workers at the LEX1 Amazon Fulfillment Center on Mercer Road notified them on April 4 that “Today we learned of a confirmed case of COVID-19 at LEX 2. The affected employee was last on site on March 20, 2020.”
According to the voicemail, “the site has been undergoing multiple enhanced cleanings during this time.” For those who did not work closely with the employee, the risk of transmission “is low,” the voicemail said.
Amazon confirmed that all employees who worked with person who tested positive have been notified, asked to not return to the site and to self-quarantine for 14-days. According to the company, the quarantined employees, as well as the employee who has coronavirus, will receive 14 days of pay.
At this time, both facilities remain open. The company is consulting with local and federal health authorities and medical experts on how to handle building closures for deep cleaning when an employee tests positive for COVID-19.
“We’re continuing to monitor the situation in our facilities and corporate offices, and we are taking proactive measures to protect employees and associates who have been in contact with anyone who has been diagnosed or becomes ill,” Bronikowski said. “Like most global companies, we’ve had employees affected by this, and we’re doing all that we can to protect our employees and take the proper precautions as stated in WHO guidelines.”
It is unclear where the Amazon worker with COVID lives.
The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department said it knew of no Lexington cases of coronavirus linked to Amazon facilities, but if the employee lives in another county, the case could be tracked there.
Fayette County health department spokesman Kevin Hall said that officials don’t usually contact the company to ask if a worker there has tested positive without a report from a health care provider.
“It needs to be reported to us from the business, a provider or the case in order to look into it,” Hall said via email. “Otherwise, we’d have to respond to every rumor.”
Both Clark and Madison county health departments declined to comment; Jessamine, Franklin, Scott and Woodford county health departments said they knew of no case in their counties linked to the Amazon facility in Lexington.
According to published reports, an Amazon warehouse in Shepherdsville also has had multiple confirmed cases of the coronavirus. WDRB in Louisville reported that employees there were notified by letter that there were several cases and that the warehouse was undergoing enhanced cleanings. That warehouse reopened last week after being closed for a week for cleaning.
Amazon is letting employees take unpaid leave if they have concerns about coming to work. The company instituted temperature checks on employees and has spaced out workers to follow social distancing guidelines.
But many workers are concerned that the steps are not enough and have protested. One worker in New York was fired after organizing a walk-out protest working conditions.
This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 1:11 PM.
