Slave to the Grind

Posted on Nov 25, 2025 by

I’ve been fortunate to live on the same street my entire life. We are tucked away in the far northwest corner of Kimberly, so, for 50 years, the only cars that drive past my house belong to a handful of neighbors. That was until e-delivery services took off.

Now, Door Dash, Uber Eats and Instacart drivers are constantly dropping off meals and groceries in our neighborhood. But those vehicles pale in comparison to the number of Amazon vans zipping around all hours of the day and night. Some drivers deliver so many packages that they’re on a first-name basis with our neighbors.

With the holidays fast approaching, Amazon drivers will be busier than ever. Apparently, many fear losing their jobs if they literally can’t deliver.

Earlier this month, a class action lawsuit was filed against the e-commerce juggernaut in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan. The suit alleges that Amazon uses an automated system to track employee attendance, and then threatens employees with discipline and possible termination when they make legally protected accommodation requests. The plaintiffs characterize the practice as “punitive attendance policies.”

“Under this system, employees live under constant threat of punishment if they get sick or injured or need time off to care for a family member,” the suit claims. The case could be monumental, as Amazon is the country’s second largest private-sector employer after Walmart.

The complaint alleges that Amazon’s actions violate the Americans with Disabilities Act, along with the New York State Human Rights Law and New York’s Lawful Absence Law, which explicitly prohibits points-based deductions for legally protected time off.

“It’s basically putting workers in the position of needing to choose between their safety and their paycheck,” said Inimai Chettiar, the president of A Better Balance, a national nonprofit legal advocacy organization dedicated to promoting justice in the workplace, especially for women, caregivers, and people with health needs of their own. The organization helped with the lawsuit, which was filed after it concluded a five-year investigation where it documented hundreds of abuses against pregnant and disabled Amazon workers who requested time off.

The primary plaintiff in the lawsuit is Cayla Lyster, who started working as an Amazon employee in 2022 in upstate New York. Because she has a permanent genetic connective-tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Lyster requested certain accommodations from Amazon in 2023, including a chair to sit on. According to her suit, Amazon delayed in accommodating her request.

Lyster further claims that her supervisors asked inappropriate questions about her medical condition, docked her unpaid time off and then threatened her with discipline and termination while she was waiting for her accommodation request to be approved. She is requesting compensatory and punitive damages as well as a jury trial.

“Ms. Lyster came perilously close to termination for her UPT deductions while on an unwanted, unpaid waiting period pending accommodation, despite several attempts to communicate with Amazon and explain her absences,” the lawsuit says. “The case that we filed today is specifically about workers with disabilities, but this is part of a broader issue at Amazon around their attendance and disciplinary policies,” Chettiar added.

Amazon has denied the allegations, claiming that “ensuring the health and well-being of our employees is our top priority, and we’re committed to providing a safe and supportive environment for everyone.”

The parties are purportedly in negotiations and Amazon supposedly offered a sizable settlement package – they just haven’t figured out who’s going to deliver it.



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Reg P. Wydeven

Elder Law and Estate Planning Attorney at McCarty Law LLP
Hoping to follow in his father’s footsteps from a young age, Reg’s practice primarily consists of advising individuals on estate planning, estate settlement and elder law matters. As Reg represents clients in matters like guardianship proceedings and long-term care admissions, he feels grateful to be able to offer families thorough legal help in their time of need.
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