Amazon Managers Have Authority to Fire Remote Workers
Amazon has given managers the authority to fire employees that work remotely and cannot/will not work from the office at least three days a week.
Insider gained access to internal documents Amazon is giving managers containing revised policies for firing employees that don’t comply with the company’s return-to-office (RTO) mandate.
“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 situation, ~1-2 weeks). This conversation will 1) reinforce that return to office 3+ days a week is a requirement of their job, and 2) explain that continued non-compliance without a legitimate reason may lead to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of your employment,” the guidelines said.
The new guidelines are a major escalation for the company amid its efforts to force employees back to the office. Amazon executives have been among the most vocal in their RTO push, angering employees who accuse the company of reneging on previous promises. In some cases employees moved to other parts of the country on the assurance their role would remain remote permanently, only to now be asked to move to a location near corporate offices.
Adding to the frustration is the lack of evidence cited for Amazon’s RTO push. Executives, including CEO Andy Jassy, have admitted there is no real data to support the push and credited ‘judgement calls’ instead.
