Amazon Faces Backlash from Employees Over Office Attendance Policy
Amazon has once again found itself in hot water with its corporate employees after sending out a warning email regarding office attendance. The company stated that some workers were “not currently meeting” the expectation of working in an assigned office at least three days per week.
The email, which was sent on Wednesday, targeted employees who allegedly failed to comply with the office attendance mandate that came into effect in May. Screenshots of the message have been circulating on the anonymous corporate message board Blind.
The email warning has reignited tensions within the e-commerce giant, with some employees claiming that they received the message by mistake. In May, Amazon employees staged a walkout to protest the return-to-office push, and this recent incident has only added fuel to the fire.
One employee expressed their skepticism, asking, “Is this supposed to scare people?” Another described the email as “peak absurdity” and argued that it was sent in error to many workers who were actually following the attendance policy.
Speculations have arisen among employees about potential layoffs or even stricter attendance requirements. Some workers have raised concerns about whether the warnings were a result of a system glitch.
In response to these concerns, Amazon clarified that the email was sent to employees who had not met the three-day-a-week requirement for a significant period of time. However, the company acknowledged that some warnings may have been sent out mistakenly.
“While we’ve taken several steps to ensure this email went to the correct recipients, we recognize that there may be instances where we have it wrong,” Amazon stated. The company advised employees who believe they received the email in error to reach out to their managers for clarification.
The attendance warnings are just one aspect of Amazon’s strict return-to-office push. According to reports, some managers have informed employees that they must relocate to a central “hub” or leave the company. Impacted workers have until September 15 to make a decision on this policy.
It is worth noting that Amazon has already laid off approximately 27,000 employees since last fall, including a recent wave of 9,000 cuts announced in March.
As the controversy surrounding Amazon’s office attendance policy continues, employees are left questioning the company’s motives and the future of their work arrangements.
Read: Millions of remote workers are Zooming all wrong
Source: MarketWatch