Amazon HR Sent Termination Notices to Worker On Covid Leave

Tony Banks told Amazon.com Inc. right away when he tested positive for Covid-19. More than a month later, he’s on the mend, but struggling with fatigue and shortness of breath that makes most physical activity feel like he’s just sprinted up a hill. Banks says he’s in no shape to return to work at the Indiana warehouse where he walks miles every shift.

Yet somewhere in an Amazon human-resources operation that already extended his medical leave once, Banks is seen as an employee abandoning his job. The company has twice in recent weeks initiated automatic termination proceedings against him for missing shifts.

“I understand that it’s ...