'Dystopian prison' | Amazon TikTok video reveals worker leaderboard pushing high speed working

Reports that Amazon uses a “dystopian” gameboard to incentivise warehouse staff to work hard has been described as the “gamification of underpaid work”.

The Independent has reported on a TikTok video, posted by an Amazon worker, which reveals a screen in one of the retail giant’s US warehouses and lists a range of possible work ‘achievements’.

The list includes ‘punctual’ and ‘picking up speed’. Another digital achievement, labelled ‘make history’, apparently rewards workers who pick up one million products.

According to the Independent, which described the games screen as “dystopian”, the employee who posted the clip said their role at Amazon had been “the worst job I’ve ever had”. She added that she “overworked”, was “underpaid” and was “treated like a machine”, concluding that working for the behemoth firm was “basically a prison”.