A’zon remote revolt

Staffers protest Jassy’s return-to-office mandate

Furious Amazon workers are reportedly demanding that their embattled boss Andy Jassy rethink a new return-to-office plan that is set to take effect on May 1.

Jassy announced last week that Amazon’s corporate staffers would be required to be at their desks at least three days per week, with limited exceptions. The Amazon CEO argued the mandate would foster better collaboration and help the company “deliver for customers and the business.”

Shortly after Jassy’s announcement, employees started a “Remote Advocacy” channel on Amazon’s internal Slack messaging system to tout the merits of remote work and push back on the office mandate. More than 14,000 employees had joined the group as of Tuesday, according to Insider.

The “Remote Advocacy” channel’s members have also drafted a petition urging Jassy and a group of top executives to drop their plans entirely.

“We, the undersigned, call for Amazon to protect its role and status as a global retail and tech leader by immediately canceling the RTO policy and issuing a new policy that allows employees to work remotely or more flexibly, if they choose to do so, as their team and job role permits,” a draft reportedly says.

The early version of the petition also includes a pledge that employees will make a “data case against

RTO” and cites the benefits of remote work, including for productivity and work-life balance.

The employees said a three-days-a-week mandate would run contrary to Amazon’s stances on issues such as affordable housing, diversity and climate change.

They also accused Jassy of contradicting his past statements on how Amazon would handle remote work — including a quote last year in which he said there was “no one-sizefits-all approach for how every team works best.”

“Many employees trusted these statements and planned for a life where their employer wouldn’t force them to return to the office,” the petition says, according to CNBC. “The RTO mandate shattered their trust in Amazon’s leaders.”

Amazon didn’t respond to a request for comment.

‘trust

The RTO mandate shattered their in Amazon’s leaders.

— Petition signed by Amazon workers Thousands of Amazon workers have joined a Slack channel opposing a plan by CEO Andy Jassy (right) to force a return to the office 3 days a week.