Amazon, one of the corporate giants navigating the challenge of getting employees back into the office, is making a bold move by allowing supervisors to terminate workers who resist its return-to-office directive.
The retail giant has updated its guidelines for managers, providing them with greater authority to take disciplinary action against employees who do not attend the office in person at least three days a week.
According to information seen by Insider, Amazon has shared these updated guidelines with its managers through an internal system.
The new guidance instructs managers to have a private conversation with employees who fail to meet the minimum in-office requirements. These discussions are to be documented in follow-up emails, as per the guidance.
Managers are further advised that if employees persist in flouting the in-office rules after these initial conversations, they should schedule another meeting with the employee, during which they may take disciplinary action, potentially including termination.
The guidance reportedly states, “If the employee does not demonstrate immediate and sustained attendance after the first conversation, managers should then conduct a follow-up discussion within a reasonable time frame (depending on the employee’s situation, ~1-2 weeks).
This conversation will 1) reinforce that returning to the office 3+ days a week is a requirement of their job, and 2) explain that continued noncompliance without a legitimate reason may lead to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of your employment.”
Amazon has long been clear about its expectation for staff to be present in the office for at least three days a week.
In February, the company informed its workforce that from May onwards, they would be required to be in the office for the majority of the week.
CEO Andy Jassy emphasized the benefits of in-person collaboration and innovation in an internal memo, but the return-to-office policy faced opposition from employees.
The mandate was met with resistance, leading to the formation of an internal Slack channel called “Remote Advocacy,” with more than 28,000 Amazon workers joining.
Thousands of employees also signed a petition and staged a walkout to protest against the return-to-office push.
Despite this pushback, Amazon and its leadership have maintained their stance on the return-to-office policy.
Amazon spokesperson Brad Glasser noted that while they are listening to feedback, they are pleased with the initial month of having more people back in the office.
CEO Andy Jassy suggested that employees who do not comply with the rules may not find a place at Amazon, stating, “If you can’t disagree and commit, it’s probably not going to work out for you at Amazon.”
The move by Amazon reflects the challenges and complexities surrounding the return to office work, as companies seek to balance remote work flexibility with in-person collaboration and productivity.