“Amazon Fined €32m in France for ‘Excessive’ Surveillance of Workers”

Amazon Fined €32m in France for ‘Excessive’ Surveillance of Workers

Amazon has been hit with a hefty fine of €32m (£27m) by the French data protection agency, CNIL, for what it deems as “excessive” surveillance of its workers. The investigation was launched following complaints by employees and media coverage of working conditions in Amazon warehouses. The CNIL found that Amazon France Logistique, the company responsible for managing the warehouses, recorded data captured by workers’ handheld scanners, leading to a level of monitoring that the agency deemed illegal.

One of the key issues highlighted by the CNIL was Amazon’s precise tracking of employee activity, which resulted in workers having to potentially justify every break they took. This level of scrutiny was deemed illegal by the agency, which also questioned why Amazon needed to retain workers’ data for a period of 31 days. The CNIL ruled that Amazon’s system, which included three alerts to monitor employee activity, was excessively intrusive. These alerts were triggered if an item was scanned too quickly or less than 1.25 seconds after scanning a previous item, if breaks exceeded 10 minutes, or if breaks lasted between one and 10 minutes.

The CNIL emphasized that Amazon already had access to a significant amount of data to ensure quality and safety in its warehouses, and therefore, the additional tracking system was unnecessary and invasive. The agency also raised concerns about the potential consequences of such close monitoring, as it could force workers to justify even the briefest interruptions in their scanning tasks. Furthermore, Amazon used the data collected by the scanners to plan work in its warehouses, evaluate employees on a weekly basis, and provide training. However, the CNIL ruled that Amazon did not require access to the smallest details of the collected data to perform these tasks.

In addition to the excessive surveillance, Amazon was also fined for failing to properly inform workers and external visitors about the surveillance measures in place. The CNIL also found that the company had insufficient security on its video surveillance systems. The GMB union, which represents Amazon’s UK warehouse workers, responded to the ruling by stating that the company’s staff faced “bruising levels of scrutiny and surveillance.”

Amazon has not yet provided a comment on the ruling. However, this fine serves as a reminder that companies must be mindful of their surveillance practices and ensure compliance with data protection regulations. The CNIL’s investigation and subsequent penalty shed light on the importance of striking a balance between monitoring employee activity for quality and safety purposes and respecting their privacy rights. As technology continues to advance, it is crucial for companies to navigate these issues responsibly to maintain a healthy and respectful work environment.