Amazon CEO Andy Jassy denies 5-day office term ‘backstage break’ as employee frustrations mount

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said at an all-hands meeting Tuesday that the plan to require employees to be in the office five days a week is not meant to force layoffs or appease city leaders, as many have suggested employee.

The controversial plan, which forces workers to come to Amazon’s offices every day starting next year, up from three days now, has sparked concern among workers who say it is stricter than other tech companies and will hinder efficiency due to travel time.

Workers who are persistently non-compliant have been told they will be “voluntarily terminated” and locked out of company computers.

“A number of people that I’ve seen theorized that the reason we were doing this is, it was a layoff in the background, or we did some kind of deal with cities or towns,” Jassy said, according to a transcript of the reviewed meeting. from Reuters.

“I can tell you that both are not true. You know, this was not a cost game for us. This has a lot to do with our culture and strengthening our culture,” he said.

An Amazon spokesman declined to comment.

Last month, Matt Garman, CEO of cloud computing unit Amazon Web Services, suggested that workers unwilling to meet the full demands of the office could leave for another company, and said that nine out of 10 employees with had spoken and supported the change. .

That prompted a letter signed by more than 500 Amazon employees imploring Garman to revise the policy, noting that the company had been operating well entirely remotely and that the new rule would affect employees more than others. with family or medical challenges.

“We were appalled to hear the non-data-based explanation you gave for Amazon imposing a five-day office mandate,” according to the letter.

Amazon said in response at the time that it is offering commuter benefits and subsidized parking fees, among other things, to help with its return-to-office policy.

“It’s an adjustment,” Jassy said Tuesday. “I understand that for a lot of people, and we’re going to work through this fix together.”

Jassy added that an internal system for reporting red tape was working well, and that of about 500 emails received, the company had taken action on about 150 of them, without elaborating.

“I hate bureaucracy,” he said. “One of the reasons I’m still at this company is because it’s not a political, bureaucratic place.”

Amazon last month reported a record third-quarter profit of $15.3 billion and said it expected a strong holiday quarter. The five-day term in office begins in January. 2.