Amazon Bans Its Drivers From Moving Their Own Lips Too Much At Work [Update]

No matter how badly Amazon treats its workers, we all keep shopping there. There have been accusations that delivery drivers weren’t allowed to go to the bathroom, the company reportedly left airport workers toiling away in 100 degree heat and now it’s apparently banned delivery drivers from their last remaining joy at work: singing along to the radio.

Updated Wednesday, September 4, 2024 5:10 p.m. EST – Amazon reached out to deny the reports of a crack down on singing along with the radio in trucks and provided this PR video clip as evidence.

The retail giant has reportedly began a crackdown on distracted driving for its delivery workers, which means it’s now monitoring mouth movement while drivers are at the wheel, reports industry watchdog Freight Waves.

According to Reddit users that Freight Waves cited, Amazon has begun monitoring mouth movements on its drivers through a camera in the cab of its delivery fans. Too much talking at the wheel or singing along to the radio can set off the camera, leaving drivers susceptible to a distracted driving warning. As one Reddit user posted:

Yesterday was the last straw. I quit after my route last night. Why? At the morning safety briefing, we go through all the normal “remember to stop at stop signs” stuff, then they tell us “Amazon is trying to really cut down on distracted driving, so we can’t be singing along to the radio because the camera will ding you for distracted driving.” When people understandably started getting upset, we were told that “a lot of mouth movement will set off the camera” and that we “needed to keep mouth movement to a minimum”.

You really think you can tell me what I can do with my body? Fuck right off. I’m done.

The move has, understandably, sparked outrage among delivery drivers working for Amazon with many arguing that this isn’t the kind of thing inward-facing cameras should be used for. Instead, they argue that the cameras should only trigger in the case of an accident and investigators should then just be able to watch back the few minutes leading up to any incident, instead of monitoring drivers 24/7.

That’s an opinion shared by many Freight Waves readers, with the site publishing the results of a survey into the controversial use of in-cab cameras as part of its investigation. As Freight Waves reports:

Does anyone really believe that singing distracts drivers or is this a case of AI and surveillance overstepping its bounds? For me personally, hitting the high notes on a Whitney song energizes me and keeps me between the white lines.

I asked my network that is almost entirely composed of supply chain or supply chain adjacent followers what they thought about the issue. Over 94% of X users and 97% of LinkedIn users believe that drivers should be allowed to croon.

This is just the latest controversy to hit Amazon’s network of delivery drivers, with reports emerging last year that racial bias in Amazon driver reviews could lead to lower pay and layoffs for some workers. Delivery drivers also attempted to sue the retail giant claiming that they weren’t given sufficient time for breaks and were forced to pee in bottles while on shift.