Amazon Asks N.Y. Federal Judge to Dismiss Fired Worker’s COVID-19 Class Action

NEW YORK — Amazon has asked a New York federal judge to dismiss a putative class action filed a former employee who was fired after he led a workplace demonstration to protest the e-commerce giant’s alleged failure to protect minority workers from the COVID-19 virus.

In a March 5 motion filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Amazon says plaintiff Christian Smalls has not plausibly alleged that he was fired because of his race or any protected activity and that his state- and local-law retaliation claims are preempted by the National Labor Relations Act.