Skip to main content

Home  »  US business newsUS Employment News   »   Hundreds of Amazon staff want to return to the office

Hundreds of Amazon staff want to return to the office

Amazon

Amazon's new RTO policy receives support from hundreds of employees

Hundreds of Amazon employees are now supporting the company’s new return-to-office policy, which was announced over a week ago.

Staff members have created a new Slack channel to compete with a larger group of staff who flocked to a different Slack channel that’s challenging CEO Andy Jassy's plans.

The new channel's description states that it seeks to "Think Big" about the benefits of the return to office (RTO) plan, which is in "danger" of getting revoked by the "remote advocacy" group. 

Read More: Amazon employees hit back at sudden return-to-work policy

However, it seems staff are divided as many are still fighting the decision.

On Monday, February 27, the RTO supportive channel had just over 750 people compared to the opposing channel's 28,000-plus.

The description says, "Sensing the danger of #remote-advocacy resulting in an overturning of the RTO plan, we seek to Think Big in this channel to elaborate on the hidden benefits of RTO.”

The new RTO policy, which requires Amazon corporate employees to work three days a week from the office from May, is expected to be a controversial topic for months.   

Thousands of Amazonians joined the "remote advocacy" Slack channel shortly after Mr. Jassy disclosed the move on February 17.

They were also organizing a new petition to turn it down formally.

Read More: Amazon asks staff to work in the office at least three days a week

One of the first posts in the RTO-support channel was a link to a 2021 Harvard Business Review article outlining why workers may choose to return to work.

Several employees were thrilled about coming to the workplace.

A message read Amazon would "see a net increase in productivity" from the RTO policy. 

This person also advocated for a four-day workweek to make up for the "more rigorous" work hours.

Another employee observed Amazon's considerable stock price growth in the three years preceding the pandemic when there was no remote work.

Need Career Advice? Get employment skills advice at all levels of your career

The staff member contrasts it with the six percent increase three years after the pandemic when most people worked from home.

Yet, based on the number of participants in each Slack channel, remote work appears to have stronger support among Amazon staffers.

The group fighting returning to the office, which has over 28,000 people, snowballed within hours of Jassy's statement with outrage at the new policy's abruptness and vagueness.

Many workers encouraged others to join an internal petition urging Amazon's leadership to quickly repeal the RTO policy and adopt a new mandate allowing permanent remote work.

Source: Insider

Follow us on YouTubeTwitterLinkedIn, and Facebook.