EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Amazon is putting a policy that banned workers from using their cell phones on hold after the fatal tornado strike at a fulfillment center in downstate Edwardsville.
Amazon is backing off on plans to ban cell phones in warehouses, allowing employees to keep their devices with them at work. Some Amazon warehouse workers received messages from the e-commerce giant on Friday that mobile phones will be allowed "until further notice."
The reversal is due to the more contagious strain of COVID-19 that's making its way through the country, and the tornado in Edwardsville that killed six Amazon workers when a warehouse partially collapsed.
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Amazon workers said they wanted access to their smartphones, so they could have access to information on potentially deadly weather events, as well as communicate with dispatchers and first responders or loved ones in the event of an emergency.
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For years, Amazon prohibited employees from having their phones on warehouse floors and required them to leave the phones in their cars or in lockers near break rooms. Amazon had previously said cell phones can pose a safety risk, if workers are distracted.