Mei W.
As some of the most destructive wildfires in Californian history continue to burn through Los Angeles, forcing over 180,000 people to evacuate, workers have been forced to continue working in areas under warnings of fire risk and hazardous air quality.
Since the outbreak of the first fires on January 7, Starbucks has continued to keep stores open across the city. A worker at a store less than 10 miles from the Eaton Fire, which has caused 17 out of the 27 deaths from the wildfires, told The Worker, “The AQI was over 300 and they still had us open the store, under modified hours […] the sky was orange from all of the fires and the only kind of masks Starbucks provided were surgical masks instead of ones with filtration.” When workers brought up concerns to managers, they were dismissed and were told that the fires were “pretty much over.”
The American Lung Association designates AQIs (Air Quality Index) over 300 to indicate “hazardous” conditions and advises all people regardless of health status to “avoid all physical activity outdoors.” According to Science Advances’ 2024 study conducted by University of California Los Angeles researchers, pollutants from wildfires in California have caused premature deaths of over 52,000 people between 2008 to 2018.
According to Starbucks Workers United, managers told other Starbucks workers that stores must remain open because “the community depends on us,” despite some workers having had to evacuate their homes themselves. Starbucks denied these claims and told monopoly media that “Partner [employee] safety is our priority, and we work closely with local authorities on decisions about store closures.”
Less than a mile from a mandatory evacuation zone, restaurant workers at Jon & Vinny’s were also forced to work as management kept the restaurant open even as the glow of the Palisades fire could be seen from the front of the restaurant. Workers told monopoly media that many of them sustained headaches and sore throats from the smoke.
Amazon delivery drivers in Los Angeles have also been pressured to continue delivering packages through fallen trees and decreased visibility from smoke in the sky. A delivery driver reported to Amazon Teamsters that managers did not contact drivers about the wildfires apart from handing out masks. An Amazon Flex driver told monopoly media that managers brushed him off when he asked them whether it was safe to continue delivering packages. Due to fears that his Flex app ratings would decline if he didn’t deliver packages, he decided to work despite road closures, surges in the number of packages, and winds knocking him over and cutting off signal during deliveries. Another driver reported waking up with a bloody nose after delivering packages amidst the smoke. Amazon responded by claiming that it was “adjusting [its] operations to keep employees and those driving for us safe.”
Capitalists forcing workers into danger for the sake of profits is nothing new. Earlier this month, Amazon delivery drivers in Cincinnati were threatened to be fired after they couldn’t drive to warehouses in the deadly snow storm. In Tennessee, Impact Plastics workers were killed during Hurricane Helene last October after they were pressured to stay at the plant.
Photo: Palisades fire in Los Angeles, CA. Retrieved from Toastt21 from WikiCommons.
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