[imagesource:flickr]

A former housekeeper who worked for uber-rich Jeff Bezos has launched a lawsuit against the billionaire and two property management firms, alleging inhumane working conditions.

Mercedes Wedaa is claiming that Bezos exposed her and fellow employees to “hazardous and unhygienic conditions” in a lawsuit filed in November last year.

One of the most disturbing claims centres around the gruelling working hours endured by his in-home employees, which seems to echo claims of less-than-ideal conditions endured by Amazon warehouse employees too. Wedaa is however taking a multi-million dollar swing at both Bezos and two companies responsible for managing his properties.

Wedaa alleges that she and her colleagues were “subjected to 14-hour shifts without any breaks”, a practice that she contends is both “dangerous and inhumane”. In addition, employees were instructed to keep a low profile around the Bezos family as they preferred not to see staff around the property. This she claims adds to the “overall stress and a far from welcoming atmosphere”.

The most shocking of the claims in the lawsuit refers to the limited access to toilette facilities for the housekeeping staff. Apparently, when the Bezos family were home, housekeepers were not allowed into the house, except for strictly necessary cleaning duties. As a result, this meant that staff had no access to the property’s restrooms.

Instead, they were instructed to use a facility that was allegedly dangerous to reach, requiring staff to “climb through a window before making their way through a dirty mechanical room and a chemically saturated laundry room”. This scurrying through engine rooms and climbing through windows like burglars resulted in a number of health consequences among staff, including frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs).

Wedaa went even further and highlighted the absence of designated rest areas for the staff, forcing housekeeping employees to eat their meals in the washing room. She also describes instances of discriminatory treatment toward her Hispanic colleagues.

Wedaa claims she did raise these issues with her bosses, but it only resulted in a demotion and eventual dismissal -which is why the ex-employee is now asking for damages in the region of $9 million (R173 million).

If these claims are indeed true, it would be a minor financial blow to Bezos, but we suspect he will throw an army of lawyers at the poor lady.

It’s unlikely though that Jeff is going to change his attitude towards workers. Billionaires rarely care what the peasants think. As they say, bokant blink, onderkant stink.

[source:dmarge]