We all see Amazon’s marketing hype during Prime Days, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but everyday consumers don’t typically know how those peak order seasons impact the essential warehouse workers on the line.
A new U.S. Senate report, however, reveals eye-opening insights into Amazon’s workplace injuries as they fulfill billions of dollars in online orders at record speed.
According to Amazon’s own internal data made available in the Senate report, there are almost 45 injuries for every 100 warehouse workers during peak seasons such as Prime Day and holidays.
“Prime Day and the holiday season are characterized by extremely high volume and intense pressure to work long hours and ignore safety guidelines,” the report concludes.
Even outside of those peak seasons, they saw at least 30 injuries for every 100 workers every week for the rest of 2019. That includes “minor” injuries, such as bruises and superficial cuts, but it also includes serious injuries, such as torn rotator cuffs and concussions.
What Does This Mean For Me?
Not every warehouse is Amazon, but all supply chain leaders must have a safety solution.
Selectors in distribution and fulfillment centers work some of the fastest, most repetitive jobs, and often under great pressure from leaders as their companies face growing demand, supply chain disruption, and increased operating costs.
The combination of stress and task repetition can make it easy for workers to risk their personal safety to try to carry one more load or look down at their next assignment instructions while moving quickly.
The Safest Solution
Voice-guided work solutions are Hands-Free, Eyes-Free™.
Instead of order selectors looking down at a tablet or clipboard to read their next assignment, they hear it audibly through comfortable, undistracting headsets reading their instructions from the host system. The voice dialogue allows the worker to keep their head up, looking around them for moving machinery or other employees.
Instead of carrying a bulky clipboard or handgun and fumbling with too many buttons to log their work, selectors simply talk into the voice headset when they reach their destination, complete their task, are ready for the next assignment, or need help. This real-time dialogue keeps both hands available to move carts and handle inventory safely.
“Voice is definitely more accurate than pick-to-light and less cumbersome than RF picking,” said an operations analyst at a Mountain Leverage voice-enabled distribution center.
The Voice of the Warehouse Worker
Mountain Leverage elevates experiences for hard-working warehouse team members and leaders by designing the safest work solutions and providing peace of mind.
Our team has walked through roughly 2,000 warehouses and distribution centers and trained over 6,000 warehouse team members*. We know that each facility has unique challenges and needs, which is why our engineers perform a front-to-end operational analysis before making any recommendations.
To schedule your consultation or to learn more about voice, reach out to us today.
*2024 company data collection; is not exhaustive
