Amazon Is Making Drivers Sign Biometric Consent Form Or Lose Job
Amazon has long been a leader in the roboticization of the human workforce.
The company claims this new step has reduced accidents, but it is so intrusive it has already drawn Congressional scrutiny. JL
Lauren Gurley reports in Motherboard:
Amazon
delivery drivers nationwide have to sign a "biometric consent" form that grants the (company) permission to use AI-powered
cameras to access drivers' location, movement, and biometric data. If
the drivers refuse to sign these forms, they lose their jobs. The form
requires drivers to agree to facial recognition and other biometric data
collection. "This tracks vehicle location and movement,
including miles driven, speed, acceleration, braking, turns, and
following distance as a condition of delivery for Amazon." The cameras sense when a driver
yawns, appears distracted and monitor drivers' body and facial movements. The policy has already received scrutiny from Congress.
Amazon
delivery drivers nationwide have to sign a "biometric consent" form
this week that grants the tech behemoth permission to use AI-powered
cameras to access drivers' location, movement, and biometric data.
If
the company’s delivery drivers, who number around 75,000 in the United
States, refuse to sign these forms, they lose their jobs. The form
requires drivers to agree to facial recognition and other biometric data
collection within the trucks they drive.
"Amazon
may… use certain Technology that processes Biometric Information,
including on-board safety camera technology which collects your
photograph for the purposes of confirming your identity and connecting
you to your driver account," the form reads. "Using your photograph,
this Technology, may create Biometric Information, and collect, store,
and use Biometric Information from such photographs."
It
adds that "this Technology tracks vehicle location and movement,
including miles driven, speed, acceleration, braking, turns, and
following distance ...as a condition of delivery packages for Amazon,
you consent to the use of Technology."
In February, Amazon announced plans
to install the AI-powered four-lens cameras, made by the tech company
Netradyne, in all of its Amazon-branded delivery vans. The company says
cameras are being used to improve "safety" and the "quality of the
delivery experience." But as Thomson Reuters reported
earlier this month, some drivers are quitting their jobs because of
privacy concerns. The Netradyne cameras are able to sense when a driver
yawns, appears distracted, or isn't wearing a seatbelt, according to a product description, and monitor drivers' body and facial movements.
“Netradyne
cameras are used to help keep drivers and the communities where we
deliver safe,” said Deborah Bass, a spokesperson for Amazon. “We piloted
the technology from April to October 2020 on over two million miles of
delivery routes and the results produced remarkable driver and community
safety improvements—accidents decreased 48 percent, stop sign
violations decreased 20 percent, driving without a seatbelt decreased 60
percent, and distracted driving decreased 45 percent. Don’t believe the
self-interested critics who claim these cameras are intended for
anything other than safety.”
Technically,
these drivers aren't even employed by Amazon, but by roughly 800
companies, known as delivery service partners that operate out of Amazon
delivery stations. Still, Amazon controls many aspects of its drivers
working conditions, from their training to their uniforms to their
delivery quotas.
"I
had one driver who refused to sign," the owner of an Amazon delivery
company in the Pacific Northwest told Motherboard. Motherboard granted
the business owner anonymity because they feared retaliation from
Amazon. "It's a heart-breaking conversation when someone tells you that
you're their favorite person they have ever worked for, but Amazon just
micromanages them too much."
Do you have a tip to share with us about Amazon? Please get in touch with the reporter Lauren at lauren.gurley@vice.com or via Signal 201-8972-2109.
The policy has already received scrutiny from Congress. Last month, five senators raised concerns about drivers privacy in a letter to Amazon.
As a Partner and Co-Founder of Predictiv and PredictivAsia, Jon specializes in management performance and organizational effectiveness for both domestic and international clients. He is an editor and author whose works include Invisible Advantage: How Intangilbles are Driving Business Performance. Learn more...
0 comments:
Post a Comment