Amazon CEO Andy Jassy is experiencing a backlash to the return-to-office order he issued last month, with hundreds of employees angry about the decision.
According to reports, the retail giant’s workers circulated an anonymous survey last week to determine their positions on Mr. Jassy’s mandate. The results apparently showed that hundreds of employees are against the decision, and the poll’s creators have pledged to share it with Mr. Jassy.
On Sept. 16, Mr. Jassy informed Amazon employees in an internal memo that they must return to the office five days a week starting next year. The decision reverses Amazon’s long-standing hybrid work policy, which the CEO previously chipped away at by requiring employees to be in the office at least three days a week.
In addition to the survey, more employees have expressed dissatisfaction with Mr. Jassy’s order in the past few weeks. According to a Fortune report, the new rule will add several hours to some workers’ commutes, which has led to some applying to other jobs.
Some have suggested that the order is a covert strategy to cut staff without facing the financial consequences of formal layoffs.
The backlash to Mr. Jassy’s order could intensify as the mandate approaches. When Amazon last ordered employees to return to the office three days a week in May 2023, hundreds of corporate workers staged walkouts.
Out-of-office work remains popular among U.S. workers, with more than half of remote-capable employees working a hybrid schedule and 60% preferring a hybrid work model in the future, according to a Gallup poll from May.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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