Amazon is planning a new internal-messaging app that could censor terms like ‘union,’ ‘slave labor,’ and ‘restrooms,’ report says

• Amazon is launching an internal platform for workers to praise each other, The Intercept reported.
• However, it also planned to block words like “slave,” “plantation,” and “restrooms,” the outlet said.

• Amazon has long been accused of failing to ensure adequate conditions for warehouse workers.

Amazon is planning to launch a new internal messaging app that could, among other things, censor words linked to unions and working conditions, The Intercept reported, citing leaked documents.

Among the banned terms were “slave labor,” “prison,” “plantation,” “pay raise,” “compensation,” “restrooms,” “grievance,” “pay raise,” “compensation,” “ethics,” “unfair,” “slave,” “master,” “freedom,” “diversity,” “injustice,” and “fairness,” as well as phrases like “this is dumb” and “this is concerning,” The Intercept reported.

Slurs and swear words would also be banned from the platform, The Intercept reported.

Representatives for Amazon did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment. An Amazon spokesperson told The Intercept that plans for rolling out the platform had not yet been approved, and that there were “no plans for many of the words you’re calling out to be screened,” without specifying what words they were.

“The only kinds of words that may be screened are ones that are offensive or harassing, which is intended to protect our team,” the spokesperson told The Intercept.

Amazon has long been accused of failing to ensure adequate working conditions for warehouse staff, including denying bathroom breaks and demanding extreme working hours.

The internal social platform was intended to boost staff morale, The Intercept reported.

On the platform, which is not yet live, staff would be able to give “Shout-Outs” to others to praise good work, The Intercept reported. Employees would also be awarded virtual stars and badges for work that “add direct business value,” the outlet said.

But in a November 2021 meeting, senior Amazon executives warned of the “dark side of social media,” which prompted the company to draw up an “auto bad word monitor” to block profanity or other keywords deemed inappropriate by the company, The Intercept reported.

A pilot program for the app is scheduled to start later in April, The Intercept reported.

The report comes days after a group of Amazon workers at a fulfillment center in New York City unionized, becoming the first example of Amazon workers taking the measure.