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Amazon warehouse employees speak out about the 'brutal' reality of working during the holidays, when 60-hour weeks are mandatory and ambulance calls are common

Touring the UK warehouse in Tilbury, England, Business Insider saw signs saying "a big peak thank you," as well as ads for a February "post-peak party" — tickets were about $7 and good for three drinks plus food, an Amazon warehouse tour guide told BI.

Tilbury post peak party
An ad for the UK warehouse's post-peak party. Isobel Hamilton/Business Insider

But Oates didn't stick around to see the end of peak. He told us he ended up quitting for good on December 15. Before he left he weighed requesting a transfer to an Amazon warehouse in California but ultimately decided against it.

He drove away from Kansas City without clocking in for his shift. On the road, he got an email confirming his voluntary resignation due to job abandonment. Amazon's HR department wished him the best in his future endeavors.

Update, March 22, 2019:  Local Los Angeles news outlets are reporting that charges were filed Tuesday against Nicholas K. Oates, who is accused of setting a fire inside the Amazon store at Westfield Century City and pointing a gun at a store employee, prompting a mass evacuation of the shopping mall, and that Oates pleaded not guilty to six counts of arson and one count each of assault with a firearm and burglary.

Ruqayyah Moynihan, INSIDER's associate translation editor, also contributed to this report.

Do you work at Amazon? Got a tip? Contact these reporters via email at ihamilton@businessinsider.com or acain@businessinsider.com. You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.

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