West News Wire: Labor board prosecutors have alleged that Whole Foods Market, which is owned by Amazon, illegally prevented its workers from wearing Black Lives Matter (BLM) masks, and punished those who broke the ban.
Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement protesting against incidents of police brutality and all racially motivated violence against black people.
According to Jill Coffman, the regional director of the San Francisco National Labor Relations Board, the grocery keep chain laid down look rules at its US outlets to forbid personnel from exhibiting Black Lives Matter messages by means of capability of their clothes.
“Issues of racial harassment and discrimination are central to employees’ working conditions, and the National Labor Relations Act protects employees’ proper to suggest for change,” she said in a statement considered via Bloomberg.
“Through this complaint, we searching for to put into effect the act and protect workers’ rights to communicate up about these necessary issues.”
The submitting additionally alleged Whole Foods Market sent home, fired, or implemented different punitive measures against the employees in California, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, Georgia, Washington, and Indiana at some point of 2020 for wearing masks, pins or other apparel presenting the initials BLM.
“Our dress code policy is designed to ensure we are giving Team Members a administrative center and clients a buying trip targeted absolutely on terrific carrier and gorgeous food,” Whole Foods said in a statement, commenting on the allegations.
“We do no longer agree with we have to compromise that trip by using introducing any messages on uniforms, regardless of the content, that shift the focal point away from our mission,” the business enterprise added.
