‘Like you’re in prison' | Amazon workers file charges claiming surveillance violates labor laws - when will employers learn the long-term cost of excessive monitoring?

Amazon workers at a warehouse in St Louis, Missouri, have filed an unfair labor practice charge against their employer for surveillance which they allege is excessive and intrusive.

The charge, filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), claims that Amazon has “maintained intrusive algorithms and other workplace controls and surveillance which interfere with Section 7 rights of employees to engage in protected concerted activity.”

Speaking to the Guardian, an Amazon spokesperson stated that as of yet, “there’s been no finding of unlawful activity by the NLRB. The fact is this charge, which was just filed, has yet to be investigated or proven.”

However, Wendy Taylor, a packer at Amazon’s STL8 fulfillment center, accuses Amazon of excessive monitoring. “We have an injury crisis and we’re being watched and you feel like you’re in prison,” she told the Guardian. “Every move you make is being tracked, so you feel uncomfortable, and you’re not able to really communicate with your co-workers about the unsafe work environment you’re in, or the inhumane working conditions because of the dangerous rates that are so high that we must meet quotas.”