California lawmakers pass bill to control warehouse productivity quota

It also prohibits employers from requiring warehouse employees to meet unsafe quotas that prevent them from taking state-mandated meal and rest breaks, or from using the bathroom.

The state senate voted 26-11 last week on the bill. The bill will now go to the state assembly for a final vote and will then be sent to Governor Gavin Newsom for signing or veto.

Amazon uses sophisticated algorithms to track productivity rates among its warehouse workers, logging the number of packages they pick, pack and stow each hour. If workers take a break from scanning packages for too long, Amazon’s internal system will log it as a ‘time off task’ and generate a warning, which can later lead to firings, US media reported.

Amazon’s productivity quotas have been criticised as they lead to on-the-job injuries at warehouses. A study in June by the Strategic Organizing Center (SOC), a coalition of labour unions, found that Amazon warehouse workers are injured at higher rates than those at rival companies. The SOC attributed high injury rates among warehouse and delivery workers to Amazon’s ‘obsession with speed’.

The California legislation would not only increase transparency around productivity quotas, it would also give current and former employees more legal pathways to appeal them.

While labour groups termed the legislation a ‘historic victory’ for warehouse workers at Amazon and other companies, business groups opposed the bill, arguing it would place undue legal burdens and labour restrictions on companies across the entire logistics industry.

“AB 701 impacts distribution centers across industries and will increase the cost of living for all Californians, kill good-paying jobs and damage our fragile supply chain,” said Rachel Michelin, head of the California Retailers Association, which includes Amazon on its board.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)