While all delivery drivers are at risk for workplace injury, the issue seems to be particularly rife with Amazon. Typical injuries that delivery drivers might experience include repetitive motion injuries, dog bites, and slips, trips and falls.
Since delivering a package for Amazon is no different on its face as compared to delivering for any other carrier, many have questioned why the risk for Amazon drivers is so much higher. According to CNBC, this is largely due to Amazon’s very high quota requirements.
High quotas
The popularity of Amazon has skyrocketed over the past couple of years. As a result, there is immense pressure on Amazon delivery workers to deliver a very high amount of packages in a short amount of time to satisfy customer demand. Because of this, in 2021, nearly 1 in 5 Amazon workers experienced some form of work-related injury. 1 in 7 experienced an injury severe enough to remove them from work.
This marked a nearly 40% increase in injuries from 2020. The quotas that Amazon delivery workers are working under are extremely high. Some delivery workers must deliver between 350-400 packages per day. This works out to 1 package every 2-3 minutes of a shift, assuming that the driver does not take any breaks.
Amazon’s response
Amazon reports that the increase in injuries relates to the extreme increase in hiring the company experienced in 2021. They claim that the data cited in the CNBC article is “cherry-picked” from fewer than 10% of delivery partners.
The risk of injury is high for delivery workers from all companies. Protecting delivery drivers from undue risk is a paramount concern.