AMAZON EXTENDS HAZARD PAY

Amazon is extending a $2 hourly pay raise for workers through the end of May, company spokesman Timothy Carter told The Hill on Tuesday.

It will also extend double overtime pay in the U.S. and Canada.

“These extensions increase our total investment in pay during COVID-19 to nearly $800 million for our hourly employees and partners,” Carter said in a statement.

The online retail giant first instituted the hazard pay for warehouse and fulfillment center workers in March. It was set to expire at the end of April before being extended through May 16.

Amazon has seen demand for its services surge during the coronavirus pandemic and has hired well over 100,000 new workers.

Workers at warehouses and fulfillment centers — as well as tech workers — have been critical of Amazon’s handling of that new demand and the pandemic more broadly.