"Go Work For...": Amazon CEO To Employees Protesting End Of WFH

Over 500 Amazon Web Services (AWS) employees have petitioned the company to reconsider its new five-day in-office mandate, which is set to begin in January. In a letter to AWS CEO Matt Garman, 523 employees voiced opposition to the "return to office" policy and urged management to maintain remote work flexibility.

"AWS is not realizing its full potential with this mandate, and it is setting a discouraging path forward," the letter shared with The Seattle Times stated. "While flexible and remote work does have its challenges, AWS has always been a company that tackles problems in innovative, forward-thinking ways, rather than falling back on outdated solutions that worked in the past. The cloud computing industry might not exist today if we had held onto such restrictive thinking in our early days."

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy previously announced in a memo that the policy would begin on January 2, 2025. Prior to this change, Amazon required employees to be in the office three days a week, a shift that sparked protests as well. About 15 months after that initial mandate, Amazon is now expanding the requirement to restore pre-pandemic work norms.

The recent letter from AWS employees responds to Garman's comments at an AWS town hall, where he suggested employees who don't wish to comply with the new five-day rule could explore other job options. Last week, Garman reiterated this stance in an interview, expressing confidence in the policy and stating that most employees he spoke to are supportive of the change. Garman and Jassy have acknowledged that while there may be flexibility under the new policy, such as managers occasionally working from home for specific tasks, the core requirement remains in place.

AWS employees argued in the letter that Garman's comments do not align with their own experiences, claiming, "You are silencing critical perspectives and harming our culture and future." They also contended that Amazon's decision lacked data-backed analysis, contradicting one of Amazon's key principles, and noted that the policy might hinder Amazon's goal of becoming "Earth's best employer."

The mandate is expected to particularly affect employees who depend on remote work flexibility, such as those with disabilities, caregiving duties, or visa restrictions. The employees also suggested that the mandate may drive senior staff members who often have the credentials and financial flexibility to seek other roles away from Amazon, potentially impacting the collaborative culture the company aims to foster.

The new policy will make Amazon one of the few major tech companies in Seattle with such a stringent in-office requirement. Starbucks recently implemented a similar approach, requiring corporate employees to work from the office three days a week starting in January, with non-compliance leading to potential job changes.

In their letter, AWS employees reiterated their desire for Amazon to reconsider its stance, emphasizing, "Remote and flexible work represents an opportunity for Amazon to lead, not a threat. We want to work for leaders who see this moment as a chance to reinvent how we work."

Meanwhile, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said at an all-hands meeting on Tuesday that the plan to require employees to be in-office five days per week is not meant to force attrition or satisfy city leaders, as many employees have suggested, Reuters reported. 

"A number of people I've seen theorized that the reason we were doing this is, it's a backdoor layoff, or we made some sort of deal with city or cities," said Jassy, according to a transcript of the meeting reviewed by Reuters.

"I can tell you both of those are not true. You know, this was not a cost play for us. This is very much about our culture and strengthening our culture," he said.