Amazon announces return to five-day, in-person workweek for employees – Washington Examiner
Amazon has announced that it will require its employees to return to a full five-day, in-person workweek starting January 2, 2024. This decision marks a shift from the hybrid model that the company had implemented 16 months earlier, which mandated employees to work at least three days in the office. CEO Andy Jassy emphasized the importance of in-office work, stating that the benefits of collaboration are significant and have been reinforced during the past months of partial office attendance.
Despite some opposition from employees, including a petition against the return to in-person work and protest walkouts, Jassy reassured that exceptions would be made for employees facing personal challenges, likening the office environment to pre-pandemic norms. The move reflects a broader trend among large employers to prioritize in-office work as they navigate the post-pandemic landscape, with many workers still favoring hybrid work arrangements.
Amazon announces return to five-day, in-person workweek for employees
Amazon employees will return to the office five days a week starting Jan. 2, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced in a note Monday.
The change comes 16 months after Amazon implemented a hybrid working schedule, requiring employees to work at least three days in the office.
Jassy supported the shift in his statements after previously saying he supports office-based work.
“When we look back over the last five years, we continue to believe that the advantages of being together in the office are significant,” Jassy said. “If anything, the last 15 months we’ve been back in the office at least three days a week has strengthened our conviction about the benefits.”
Amazon is the second biggest employer in the world, and this move signifies a shift away from hybrid work in the post-pandemic era.
One-third of Amazon’s employees signed a petition against the move from fully remote work to hybrid work in 2023, according to Axios, and many other employees hosted walkouts in protest.
Yet, in April 2024, the majority of U.S. workers said they preferred hybrid work more than remote work, according to a report by Morning Consult.
Jassy said people with extenuating circumstances, such as a sick child or home emergency, would be “understood” and that the office would operate similarly to the majority of other workplaces prior to COVID-19.
“We understand that some of our teammates may have set up their personal lives in such a way that returning to the office consistently five days per week will require some adjustments,” said Jassy.
Many employees shared their grievances with the new policy over Slack, a popular workspace communication platform.
“So if I go in 5x week, that means I can leave my laptop at work right? There’s no reason to bring it home,” an employee said on Slack, according to messages seen by Business Insider.
“What ever happened to ‘Striving to be Earth’s Best Employer,” another employee wrote on Slack, according to the New York Post.
“Please do note that this is (in a lot of cases) significantly more strict and out of its mind than many teams operated under pre-covid,” another employee reportedly said. “This is not ‘going back’ to how it was before. It’s just going backwards.”
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