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Amazon Loses Appeal of French Order to Stop Selling Nonessential Items Amazon Loses Appeal of French Order to Stop Selling Nonessential Items
(32 minutes later)
PARIS — Amazon lost an appeal on Friday of a French court decision ordering the e-commerce giant to stop delivering nonessential items in France during the coronavirus crisis to protect workers, raising questions about the immediate future of its business in the country.PARIS — Amazon lost an appeal on Friday of a French court decision ordering the e-commerce giant to stop delivering nonessential items in France during the coronavirus crisis to protect workers, raising questions about the immediate future of its business in the country.
The Versailles Court of Appeals upheld a lower-court ruling from last week that prompted Amazon to shutter its six mammoth warehouses around France for a week and put its 10,000 workers on paid furlough.The Versailles Court of Appeals upheld a lower-court ruling from last week that prompted Amazon to shutter its six mammoth warehouses around France for a week and put its 10,000 workers on paid furlough.
Under the ruling, Amazon can deliver only health items, food, pet food and electronics until it carries out a risk evaluation of its sites with French unions, which have clashed with Amazon for refusing to engage with them on health protocols to protect employees from the threat of the virus at Amazon’s warehouses.Under the ruling, Amazon can deliver only health items, food, pet food and electronics until it carries out a risk evaluation of its sites with French unions, which have clashed with Amazon for refusing to engage with them on health protocols to protect employees from the threat of the virus at Amazon’s warehouses.
The court said Amazon would be fined 100,000 euros, or around $108,000 for every delivery not meeting the requirement. The court said it would review Amazon’s progress in a month.The court said Amazon would be fined 100,000 euros, or around $108,000 for every delivery not meeting the requirement. The court said it would review Amazon’s progress in a month.
In a statement, Amazon said it had “taken note of the outcome” and remained “perplexed” by the decision. It added in a statement on Twitter that it was assessing the consequences for its business and employees in France, as well as the impact on its consumers and the numerous small and midsize French businesses that sell on its platform.In a statement, Amazon said it had “taken note of the outcome” and remained “perplexed” by the decision. It added in a statement on Twitter that it was assessing the consequences for its business and employees in France, as well as the impact on its consumers and the numerous small and midsize French businesses that sell on its platform.
The decision Friday raises the stakes for Amazon in France, where unions wield outsize power and have been leveraging the coronavirus crisis to press companies on employee rights. Amazon also faces mounting scrutiny in the United States over the effectiveness of safety measures it has used to protect employees from the coronavirus while trying to meet a huge demand for orders.The decision Friday raises the stakes for Amazon in France, where unions wield outsize power and have been leveraging the coronavirus crisis to press companies on employee rights. Amazon also faces mounting scrutiny in the United States over the effectiveness of safety measures it has used to protect employees from the coronavirus while trying to meet a huge demand for orders.
Amazon last week criticized French unions that brought the court case, saying it had provided “concrete evidence” that it had worked to strengthen safety measures at warehouses around France. Frederic Duval, the chief executive of Amazon France, told French television last week that the company had spent “colossal amounts” on health precautions, including sanitary gels and face masks.Amazon last week criticized French unions that brought the court case, saying it had provided “concrete evidence” that it had worked to strengthen safety measures at warehouses around France. Frederic Duval, the chief executive of Amazon France, told French television last week that the company had spent “colossal amounts” on health precautions, including sanitary gels and face masks.
The lower court did not order Amazon to shut its French warehouses, but the online giant decided to do so because the court threatened it with a €1 million fine for every day that it did not comply with the ruling.The lower court did not order Amazon to shut its French warehouses, but the online giant decided to do so because the court threatened it with a €1 million fine for every day that it did not comply with the ruling.
Employees were told to stay home, and Amazon informed customers in France that their orders would be fulfilled by warehouses in Germany, Belgium and other European countries.Employees were told to stay home, and Amazon informed customers in France that their orders would be fulfilled by warehouses in Germany, Belgium and other European countries.
The ruling Friday still allows Amazon to deliver a restricted array of products from its French warehouses, but requires it to restart its whole risk assessment of the warehouses in consultation with the unions.The ruling Friday still allows Amazon to deliver a restricted array of products from its French warehouses, but requires it to restart its whole risk assessment of the warehouses in consultation with the unions.
Updated July 15, 2020
The coronavirus can stay aloft for hours in tiny droplets in stagnant air, infecting people as they inhale, mounting scientific evidence suggests. This risk is highest in crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation, and may help explain super-spreading events reported in meatpacking plants, churches and restaurants. It’s unclear how often the virus is spread via these tiny droplets, or aerosols, compared with larger droplets that are expelled when a sick person coughs or sneezes, or transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces, said Linsey Marr, an aerosol expert at Virginia Tech. Aerosols are released even when a person without symptoms exhales, talks or sings, according to Dr. Marr and more than 200 other experts, who have outlined the evidence in an open letter to the World Health Organization.
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles.
A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico.
The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth.
The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave.
So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
The Versailles court upheld the lower court’s ruling that Amazon had not provided adequate sanitary conditions in certain areas of the workplace, including locker rooms and entrances. It also upheld a union demand that Amazon take into account the mental well-being of employees working under fear of getting sick, including reorganizing work schedules and work teams to alleviate duress.The Versailles court upheld the lower court’s ruling that Amazon had not provided adequate sanitary conditions in certain areas of the workplace, including locker rooms and entrances. It also upheld a union demand that Amazon take into account the mental well-being of employees working under fear of getting sick, including reorganizing work schedules and work teams to alleviate duress.
The ruling pointed to a critical dilemma facing companies during the pandemic, said Lionel Vuidard, a labor lawyer at the Paris office of Linklaters law firm.The ruling pointed to a critical dilemma facing companies during the pandemic, said Lionel Vuidard, a labor lawyer at the Paris office of Linklaters law firm.
“The decision raises the question of: How do you balance two principles, which is protecting the health and safety of employees while keeping the business running and preserving jobs?” Mr. Vuidard said.“The decision raises the question of: How do you balance two principles, which is protecting the health and safety of employees while keeping the business running and preserving jobs?” Mr. Vuidard said.
One way or another, the court ruling Friday was “stringent,” Mr. Vuidard said. Amazon had put in place a number of measures to preserve the health and safety of its employees, but it nonetheless failed to consult with employee representatives and labor unions — a condition of doing business in France.One way or another, the court ruling Friday was “stringent,” Mr. Vuidard said. Amazon had put in place a number of measures to preserve the health and safety of its employees, but it nonetheless failed to consult with employee representatives and labor unions — a condition of doing business in France.
Not everyone is happy with the union’s lawsuit. Many Amazon workers are worried about losing their jobs in a French economy that has been hammered by a monthlong quarantine to contain the virus. This week, around 15,000 workers signed a petition urging the reopening of distribution centers.Not everyone is happy with the union’s lawsuit. Many Amazon workers are worried about losing their jobs in a French economy that has been hammered by a monthlong quarantine to contain the virus. This week, around 15,000 workers signed a petition urging the reopening of distribution centers.
“The unions didn’t ask us what we thought,” said Priscilla Soares, one of two employees at an Amazon site in northern France who started the petition.“The unions didn’t ask us what we thought,” said Priscilla Soares, one of two employees at an Amazon site in northern France who started the petition.