Amazon founder Jeff Bezos sued by former housekeeper

A girl who says she labored as a housekeeper for Jeff Bezos is suing the Amazon founder and firms that handle his properties, claiming she endured “unsafe and unhealthy work situations” and was topic to racial discrimination by different workers.

Mercedes Wedaa stated she was employed by Bezos’ workers in 2019 to assist preserve the billionaire tech magnate’s Seattle-area property. Wedaa and different housekeeping workers repeatedly labored between 10 to 14 hours a day, and weren’t given satisfactory meal or relaxation breaks, she alleged within the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in King County Superior Courtroom in Seattle.

The lawsuit claims there was no designated break room or relaxation space, and no simply accessible lavatory. Wedaa and different housekeepers have been prohibited from utilizing a bathroom in a close-by safety room, which resulted in staff climbing out the laundry room window to entry a rest room, in line with the lawsuit, which was earlier reported by GeekWire.

The grievance alleges that Wedaa and different housekeepers regularly developed urinary tract infections as a result of they “needed to spend giant elements of their day unable to make use of the bathroom.” Housekeeping workers additionally was allegedly prohibited from coming into the residence when the Bezos household was there, except they have been cleansing.

Family managers allegedly handled Wedaa and different Hispanic cleansing workers poorly, whereas they have been “respectful and well mannered” to Bezos’ white groundskeepers and upkeep workers, the grievance states.

Wedaa claims she was in the end fired from her position after she raised complaints about working situations and discriminatory habits.

Harry Korrell, a lawyer for Bezos and different defendants, which embody Zefram and Northwestern, two firms that handle his pursuits and properties, stated Wedaa was fired for efficiency points.

“We’ve investigated the claims, and so they lack benefit,” Korrell stated in an emailed assertion. He stated that Wedaa remodeled six figures yearly and that there have been a number of bogs and break rooms obtainable for her and different workers.

Patrick McGuigan, an lawyer representing Wedaa, informed CNBC in a press release: “No employer is above the regulation, not even Jeff Bezos and the organizations he makes use of to find and rent folks to work for him at his dwelling and at his different properties. Federal and state labor and employment legal guidelines dictate that working folks should be paid for the work they carry out and that they need to be capable to carry out their work in a discrimination free, secure, sanitary, and wholesome office. These legal guidelines should be adhered to by all employers.”