Nearly 70% of Amazon employees surveyed reported having to take unpaid time off due to physical pain or fatigue suffered on the job within the past month, while 34% had to do so on three or more occasions. This is indicative of the physical injuries and mental stress Amazon warehouse workers are enduring, owing to the company's fixation on pace and continuous observation. It adds to the growing concern over Amazon's workplace safety and how they manage their warehouse staff.
A new study conducted by the University of Illinois Chicago's Center for Urban Economic Development, which surveyed 1,484 current Amazon workers across 42 states and 451 facilities, has revealed severe physical and mental distress as the result of Amazon's emphasis on speed and constant surveillance. It is the most comprehensive nationwide survey of Amazon employees to date. 70% of those surveyed reported taking unpaid leave because of pain or exhaustion in the last month, and 34% of them had done so three or more times. Leg, knee and foot pain, as well as sprains, strains and tears, were among the most common injuries reported, and half of the participants expressed moderate or severe discomfort in those areas in the last three months. Over half of the respondents declared feeling burned out from their work, and this sentiment grew stronger the more time the employee had spent with Amazon.
These results join a long list of allegations against the second largest employer in the U.S. (after Walmart). The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Attorney's Office and the U.S. Department of Justice are all investigating Amazon warehouses, and Senator Bernie Sanders has conducted a Senate inquiry into the company safety policies. Amazon, in turn, has claimed to have improved their injury rates and modified workplace conditions to reduce strain and repetitive movements. They have begun to automate certain duties and are implementing more robotic systems in warehouse facilities, although there is some dispute about this system's efficacy.
Research funded by the Ford Foundation, the National Employment Law Project, and Oxfam America revealed that 64% of survey participants felt that Amazon places a high priority on worker safety. However, among those who reported having experienced a negative impact to their physical health due to work, percentage of individuals who felt safety was a high priority was lower. In response to the findings, Amazon spokesperson Maureen Lynch Vogel released a statement of denial, maintaining that "there's nothing more important" than employee health and safety. Vogel also asserts that the research was not reliable due to its format and participants having an ulterior motive. Despite this, Amazon mentioned that musculoskeletal problems are the most common workplace injury, and they have provided sufficient breaks and mental health resources. The company also made it clear that productivity and/or speed should not take precedence over worker safety.
Safety critics have been focusing more attention on Amazon's rapid work rate and exacting tracking of employee performance as causes contributing to a greater chance of injuries. The survey results demonstrated the validity of this argument, suggesting that those reporting injuries on the job at Amazon are more prone to finding the speed of work difficult than those who have not been hurt. About 44% of the participants in the investigation answered that they cannot take any breaks when necessary, according to the study. "A crucial tactic for workers to keep up a quick pace of work without harm is the ability to pause and restore from intense labor," the researchers stated.
Workers point to "technology-enabled workplace monitoring" as contributing to a fast pace of work, with 53% of those surveyed saying they mostly or always have a feeling of being watched while on the job. Research shows a connection between this type of surveillance and poor health.Amazon uses metrics to keep track of warehouse workers' performance, comprising the rate of tasks they complete in an hour, average time between scans with the barcode reader, and the level of "time off task" which measures the moments when workers are not scanning.Workers claim that the time off task regulation causes extra strain and is utilized as a means to watch them. Amazon revised the policy for 2021 so that the data is accumulated over a longer period.An investigation has been undertaken into the worker safety issues at Amazon.
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