Amazon expands coronavirus testing pilot to frontline staff in the UK
Amazon has expanded its coronavirus testing regime to frontline staff in the UK, the company has announced.
It follows the launch of a testing pilot in the US in March after Covid-19 was reported at more than 50 Amazon facilities. At the time, the company said it had ambitions of reaching 50,000 tests a day by November.
The tests in the UK, which will be analysed at a new lab in Manchester, will be provided to employees delivering goods and working in warehouses throughout the pandemic.
The testing pilot is being led by Antoine Dreyfus, who was formerly director of Amazon devices in the EU.
“Providing regular testing for our employees will allow us to identify asymptomatic cases who might not otherwise be tested,” he said.
“We’re able to catch the virus earlier and place those individuals in quarantine, with full pay, so they can recover before infecting others. We believe this programme will help save lives.”
The expansion of the pilot comes after the company revealed that almost 20,000 of its US staff tested positive for Covid-19.
Amazon said that the proportion of positive cases among its workforce is lower than the rates throughout the general population once age and location are factored in. A similar ratio to the wider population would have led to 33,952 cases.
Jeff Bezos’ behemoth came under pressure early on in the pandemic as several virus outbreaks were reported across the US.
The testing regime in the UK will be across the company’s 50 sites and will involve around 40,000 permanent members of staff.
