The settlement comes nearly two years after the Los Angeles Times first exposed that Amazon was dipping into customer tips to cover the base pay guaranteed to Flex drivers, who deliver Amazon Fresh, Prime Now and other orders. Read more from the Los Angeles Times here.

We have always felt that Global Animal Partnership has been a deceptive marketing tool for Whole Foods. It's profitable #HumaneWashing that dissuades consumers from confronting the reality behind their choices. Many animal welfare groups that originally signed on with them have since pulled out once they realized their relationships were being used to benefit Whole Foods' bottom line and not the animals. Investigations have shown that even the lauded Step 5 rating is not "humane." See the story from Civil Eats here.

In a distressing email received by former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, a worker at Amazon’s Whole Foods delivery warehouse in Industry City, Brooklyn, New York, said that six of her co-workers had tested positive for COVID since October 22, because “safe social distancing is not only being ignored but discouraged,” adding that “when we express our discomfort to management, we are yelled at about filling orders faster, or told that we can take a leave of absence without pay.”

Read more from Common Dreams here.

Dozens of leaked documents from Amazon’s Global Security Operations Center reveal the company’s reliance on Pinkerton operatives to spy on warehouse workers and the extensive monitoring of labor unions, environmental activists, and other social movements.
The documents offer an unprecedented look inside the internal security and surveillance apparatus of a company that has vigorously attempted to tamp down employee dissent and has previously been caught smearing employees who attempted to organize their colleagues. Read more from Vice News here.

From mapping possible Unionizing activities to stopping those at warehouses from speaking out, both Whole Foods and Amazon show no shame in their actions. Read these stories from Business Insider regarding the company's "heat map" and efforts to stop a virtual event for workers dealing with the pandemic.