Head: Chapter 2 (29-46)

How do labor practices at Amazon facilities in the United States, Britain and
Germany drastically differ? Why do management practices differ so drastically
within the same company?

Another very challenging, yet interesting chapter by Head (2014). In reading about the
CBSs utilized by management at Walmart and Amazon, I was alarmed, floored, a left feeling a
little bit like a fool. Both Walmart and Amazon are two companies, I like most utilize for
products and services I need or want. After reading this chapter, I am left feeling as though I am
part of the problem. While I'd love to just move my business to another corporation, I am not
quite sure any are innocent in their practices. Naturally, I feel as though Walmart is a corporation
under the microscope often because it is such a large part of the US economic landscape.
Amazon is one I hadn't heard so much about, so this chapter was quite insightful.
Labor practices at Amazon facilities differ in the United States, the UK, and Germany in a few
ways, nonethless, their practices in general seem like something from a labor horror story.
Largely, Amazon prides itself as a customer-centric company; however, their practices illuminate
a Taylorism mentality, constantly evaluating their practices for more efficiency. While their
customers are are the object of trust and care, their employees receive the exact opposite as
treatment. Initially, I had some hope for German facilities, as Head (2014) alluded to a more
employee friendly political economy in Germany. While the German work councils and high
federal and state government officials are aligned more closely with labor, in the US and UK that
is not so true. In Germany, the most powerful union, Ver.Di, called out Amazon to negotiate
appropriate wages and working conditions, yet Amazon refused siting their employees self
interests as losing sight of the customer. While the union viewed this as a mockery, Head (2014)
said, "the cult of the customer is a serious matter and provides the rationale for the extreme
variant of scientific management..." (p. 39). It's goal being to push productivity, while keeping
costs and wages alarmingly low. Head (2014) claimed, "Amazon's system of employee
monitoring is the most oppressive I have ever come across and combines state-of-the-art
surveillance technology with the system of 'functional foreman'..." (p. 39). Examples of this
surveillance include computers with satellite navigation with programmed routes for duties,
tracked target times for completing tasks, text message warnings, foremen reprimanding staff for
conversing or taking a minute to catch their breath, monitored bathroom use, unattainable
completion time goals, and constant firing. Head (2014) also mentioned ill fitting work shoes,
the reliance on temporary workers paid at lower wages, denial of employee benefits, and even
the intimidation of employees staying in company housing as other examples of Amazon's
extreme practices. The story that probably struck a chord with me most was that of the summer
working conditions in a Pennsylvania Amazon plant, in which temperatures in the plant reached
above 100 degrees for several days. Because of the lack of air flow, ambulances stationed at the
facility in order to accommodate the calls for hospital care for those employees suffering heat
stroke. The number of employees needing hospital care was so high not only did employees
complain to OSHA, but so did the ER doctor at the nearby hospital.
Ruthless is probably the best word to use in describing Amazon's labor practices in the US,
Germany, and Britain. While there are some differences from country to country, my general

consensus is that Amazon does not view their employees as people, but merely laborers. The
slight differences may come as it relates to that particular countries government involvement or
lack thereof in labor relations, the existence of a particularly strong or particularly weak union
dynamic, and possibly cultural differences in the expectations of employees. While it is likely
these differences in the cultures of the countries in which Amazon is located wouldn't have to
pose such differences, it seems as though these are things that Amazon capitalizes on as ways to
push their employees to maximum productivity for minimum costs and wages.
Works Cited
Head, S. (2014). MINDLESS: Why Smarter Machines are Making Dumber Humans. New York,
NY: Basic Books.