The shortages result from more than 1500 Woolies workers striking for two long weeks, with some forming a picket line blocking the front of a Melbourne distribution centre.

Woolworths says this move has already cost it $50 million as it prepares to take workers to the Fair Work Commission.

But workers aren’t just striking over low wages; their top concern is a so-called “productivity framework”.

Using headsets to monitor warehouse staff, it measures their performance against a set target rate, as they’re picking products, packing boxes and doing other tasks, even tracking them during their breaks.

Woolies maintains the framework takes into account personal circumstances, and that it’s used to ensure a fair approach towards productivity.

Workplace automation expert Dr Christopher O’Neill spoke to The Project about just how widespread the practice of employers spying on their workers is.

“It's extremely widespread. You know, and it's something that we're seeing becoming more common, not just in warehouses, not even just in blue collar workplaces, white collar workplaces as well and especially with people working from home more and more, that sort of workplace surveillance is moving into the home space as well,” he said.

“We're seeing the entrance of wearable technologies into the workplace, things that can literally monitor the movement of your hands, how many steps you're taking.

“There's technologies that can supposedly, they claim to be able to measure how much you're concentrating, are your eyes wandering from the screen when you're meant to be on Zoom calls… The sky's the limit as far as these tech surveillance developers are concerned.”

Touching on what he believes the biggest dangers are for workers being surveilled in this way, O’Neill said he believes “burnout's an obvious one”.

“Even if you're measuring, ‘OK, how much can be done in a day?’ Is ‘how much can be done in a day’ the same as ‘can you do that everyday for a week’, ‘can you do that every week for a year’, ‘can you do that every year for 10 years, 20 years’, right.

“Employers have a duty of care to their workers. They can't just bring them in and churn them out, with… trying to get them to meet these sort of very difficult rates.”