Surveillance bracelets and other controls: Labor Ministry to investigate tech companies' algorithms

BarcelonaThe Second Vice President and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, has announced that a campaign by the Labor and Social Security Inspectorate is underway "right now" to monitor the use of algorithms by large technology companies operating in Spain. "Whether they're called Uber, Cabify, or Amazon, whatever their name may be, we will monitor the use of algorithmic control that these companies have over workers," Díaz stated this Thursday during her appearance before the Labor Committee in the Congress of Deputies. She explained that this measure is part of a "step forward" to improve quality employment in technology companies that establish themselves in the country. Díaz criticized these companies, "very modern, of the 21st century," for sometimes operating "with Dickensian, 19th-century conditions." "We will not tolerate the Amazon model, which allows its employees to work 120 hours a week. We will not tolerate the tech company model that uses monitoring bracelets to track how long employees spend in the bathroom. It's not just Amazon; there are many others," she asserted.

The Minister of Labor declared that this "has ended" in Spain and that the Labor Inspectorate will act "forcefully" against these labor abuses. "We will remind the tech magnates of the world. We will tell them that in Spain, labor rights are respected and upheld," she concluded.

Just last week, Amazon announced a workforce reduction plan (ERE) for 1,200 workers from its corporate offices in Barcelona and Madrid. The cuts should not affect employees at the company's logistics centers and delivery services. This decision coincided with the presentation of the e-commerce giant's results, which showed profits soaring 38% to $21.187 billion (€18.213 billion) in the third quarter. The company employs around 28,000 workers in Spain, meaning this adjustment will affect just over 4% of its workforce.

Siege on Uber Eats

Beyond Amazon, the Labor Inspectorate continues to scrutinize the home delivery app Uber Eats. Despite the approval of the Rider law, The Californian multinational continued to use self-employed drivers on its platform, a model that it combines with the use of subcontracted fleets. Díaz issued a very direct warning to Uber last October. and warned the company that they would face "the full force of the law" if they continued to violate the regulations.

Glovo, which finally caved and Since last July, all the delivery drivers have been on staff., is already involved in a criminal investigation against its co-founder, Oscar Pierre, for crimes against its workers.