EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — When Dawn Mushill learned that a tornado killed six people at the Amazon delivery center near Edwardsville, she sprang into action to try to help the survivors and others who worked there.
“Imagine working one day, then having no work the next day,” wrote Mushill on the Facebook page of the Troy-Maryville-St. Jacob-Marine Chamber of Commerce, where she is the executive director.
Mushill on Saturday urged people who might need temporary work to contact the chamber. She heard from a woman who was a delivery driver for a contractor company, like most of the people who worked at the delivery station that Amazon refers to as DL14.
The woman told Mushill that employees of the contractor would receive their base pay, but would not receive the mandatory overtime, incentive pay and bonuses available during Amazon’s “peak” season, which stretches between Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve.
“The base pay is about half of what she currently earns,” Mushill said in an interview Monday. “So many people with one paycheck may be in the same situation.”
Amazon said Monday there were 46 people at the delivery center when the tornado struck, demolishing a large portion of the structure. Seven were Amazon employees and 39 worked for contractor companies. Total employment was 190.
“Everyone will receive paid time off and any additional resources they may need during this difficult time,” an Amazon spokesperson said in an email Monday.
Amazon said it is providing employees and contract workers with relief supplies and services with transportation, food and clean water, and other immediate-needs support. The giant e-retailer also is reaching out to the victims’ families to “see how we can best support them through this challenging time,” the spokesperson said.
Read the full story on the St. Louis Business Journal website.