FRONTLINE workers at Amazon in Warrington are being tested for Covid-19 as part of a pilot programme.

Members of staff from Amazon have left their day jobs to focus on the pilot, which will take place at the Omega hub, – including research scientists, engineers, procurement specialists, operators, financial analysts.

The testing programme is being led in the UK by Antoine Dreyfus, formerly director of Amazon devices in the EU.

He said: “Providing regular testing for our employees will allow us to identify asymptomatic cases who might not otherwise be tested.

"We’re able to catch the virus earlier and place those individuals in quarantine, with full pay, so they can recover before infecting others.

"We believe this programme will help save lives.”

Speaking in the early weeks of the project, Jeff Wilke, CEO worldwide consumer, said: "If we can build lab capacity and testing capacity that adds to the capacity that's available in the world, then we have made the world a safer place. I can't imagine anything more rewarding in this time of crisis."

In addition to the original prototype lab in the US, there is now a lab in Manchester.

Kristin Turner, who designed apps and retail stores for Amazon customers in her pre-pandemic life and now spends her time at Amazon fulfillment centers refining the design of testing sites, is motivated by what employees tell her after they learn they're Covid-19 negative.

"They feel safer going home," she said. "They feel like they can go up and cuddle their kids. So knowing that this is creating some relief and some ability to exhale and breathe is really rewarding."