A TUBERCOLOSIS (TB) outbreak at Amazon’s Coventry warehouse has sparked a call from a trade union for the site to be temporarily closed.
Ten people at the fulfilment centre tested positive for non-contagious TB in September, after which staff were tested for the infection.
In line with guidance from the NHS and the UK Health Security Agency, an expanded screening programme is currently being undertaken at the site by the NHS, and no further cases have been identified.
But the GMB Union has written to Amazon bosses calling for the site to be immediately closed and all staff sent home.
The union is also calling for workers be medically suspended on full pay, and for the site to remain closed until ‘appropriate infection control measures’ are implemented to prevent the further spread of TB.
GMB Senior Organiser Amada Gearing said: “Currently, Amazon is putting all workers, site visitors, and the local and wider communities at risk of exposure to a serious infectious disease.
“Immediate and decisive action – including the temporary closure of Amazon Coventry – is required to prevent this.”
An Amazon spokesperson said nothing was more important than the safety and wellbeing of staff.
They added: “Last year, ten people who work at our Coventry fulfilment centre tested positive for non-contagious TB.
“In line with best practice safety procedures, we immediately followed guidance from the NHS and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and made all potentially affected employees aware of the situation.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we are currently running an expanded screening programme with the NHS. To date, no additional cases have been identified, and our site continues to run as normal.
“We will continue to follow guidance from the experts in the NHS, and would respectfully remind public organisations of the need for responsible communications where matters of public wellbeing are concerned.”
