workplace-monitoring
Latest stories covering workplace-monitoring, with summaries and links to related coverage.
1 articles · page 1 of 1
Amazon uses AI to monitor union risk in UK warehouses
news
6 min read
Internal Amazon documents disclosed in a Canadian labour case describe Atlas, an in-house AI tool that scores warehouses in the US, Canada and UK for the likelihood of unionisation, sit-ins and other “disruptive labour events.” Atlas draws on hundreds of data points, including Reddit posts, employee survey responses, workplace information and previous industrial action, assigning sites scores from 100 to 900. Lower scores indicate higher perceived labour-organising risk, while Amazon’s documents describe higher scores as better. The documents classify sites into five tiers, from Tier 5, with no immediate perceived risk, to Tier 1, where future activity is considered imminent. Sixteen warehouses were listed as Tier 1, including Amazon’s BHX4 facility near Coventry and its EMA4 robotic fulfilment centre in Sutton Coldfield. The documents say the ratings can inform staffing, resource planning and actions intended to mitigate risks to Amazon’s labour structure. Amazon said Atlas is not currently used in the UK and rejected claims that it conducts individual employee surveillance. The company said the framework assesses activity at site or building level, does not track workers’ opinions, affiliations, union membership or personal data, and is intended to identify issues requiring support. GMB, Foxglove and Leigh Day said the disclosures raise concerns about workers’ organising rights and Amazon’s use of workplace surveillance.