Amazon lawyer's unfortunate memo....

Nothing like using a virus to hide bad news. With Amazon facing mounting criticism of the way it has treated and protected its workers through the pandemic, David Zapolsky (GC for the retail giant) tried to deflect these concerns by suggesting that they focus on the "immoral, unacceptable, arguably illegal" actions of Christian Smalls. Mr Smalls had been responsible for organising a walkout of one of the Amazon distribution centres. He was then fired although Amazon insisted that this was because he had violated quarantine rules.

Mr Zapolsky who described Mr Smalls as "not clever, or articulate" suggested that they use the dismissal of Mr Smalls as the focal point of its response to how it has protected workers during the crisis which in turn would deflect from the wider criticism it has faced. He later apologised for his "personal" and "emotional" memo.

View: Whilst the issue itself is an embarrassment for Amazon, it is the underlining point on how businesses are using the crisis to deflect criticism that should be the main concern. At a time when businesses and individuals are suffering immense hardship, this is an opportunity for businesses to step up and show loyalty to its customer and employee base.