The "smart" bracelet for controlling Amazon employees, which has caused a stir in the country, was one of the main points of the speech of Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni in Rome
"It is easy to advocate for labor issues, but the challenge is to have quality work and not work with the bracelet." With this phrase, the Italian Prime Minister commented, during his pre-election speech to his party volunteers (Pd) in the Region of Lazio (Rome), the decision of the e-commerce giant Amazon, to implement the measure of supervision and guidance of movements of its employees with a 'smart bracelet', which has created a stir in Italy.
"It is easy to advocate for labor issues, but the challenge is to have quality work and not work with the bracelet." With this phrase, the Italian Prime Minister commented, during his pre-election speech to his party volunteers (Pd) in the Region of Lazio (Rome), the decision of the e-commerce giant Amazon, to implement the measure of supervision and guidance of movements of its employees with a 'smart bracelet', which has created a stir in Italy.
Amazon patents (officially approved last Tuesday, but filed in 2016) for the smart electronic bracelet that can track exactly how and where employees place their hands and with small vibrations, if judged not to be Their "correct" movement will guide them in the right direction and position of the products, thus controlling all their movements.
This new technological application has spread great concern as it increases the company's ability to fully control its employees, reports the newspaper La Repubblica.
In the crosshairs of working conditions
According to the Corriere della Sera newspaper, citing GeekWire, "Amazon has already deservedly gained the reputation of turning its low-paid employees into human robots working alongside real robots, movements in the packaging in the shortest possible time ".
The goal of the bracelet is to make it even shorter for employees to search and locate the product stored in Amazon stores. Jeff Bezos's company is constantly investing in automating these processes: recently at Seattle's Amazon Go store, it works without cash and customers can track products through an App on their mobile phone, which guides them through the store.
Algorithm dictates intensive rhythms
Amazon has been at the center of a major war over its pace and working conditions. Intense rhythms are dictated by an algorithm and the unstoppable goals set for employees are times that do not allow them to deviate even for a second to go to the toilet.
At Amazon stores in Castel San Giovanni in Italy, workers went on strike on Black Friday, November 24 last year, protesting against working conditions and low pay. A second strike by its employees took place on December 20, as the company did not enter the arbitration process with the employees and the Ministry of Labor.
The uproar that has been created in Italy by Amazon's practice has led Gentiloni to address the issue of the quality of work during his speech yesterday in Rome at the "City for the Other Economy" (Citta 'dell' altra Economia), presence of the rising protagonist of the center-left and governor of the Lazio Region, Nicolas Gingaretti. "The next step in our reforms must be work and development that includes everyone," he said in a statement to Amazon.
Amazon's answer
However, there was an immediate reaction from Amazon, which in a note distributed to the press emphasizes "in all the countries where we operate, we strictly respect all the regulations in the field of labor". The company emphasizes that "for patents that take many years to be approved and do not necessarily reflect current developments in our products and services" and in the last 20 years the group has introduced "various technological innovations to support our employees in during their working hours and to make their work processes easier and more efficient ".
Source: News247