At least 1,000 Amazon office workers could stage a walkout next week to take a stand against the company’s divisive return-to-office mandate.
The Washington Post reported that on Monday some Amazon corporate workers announced they were planning to walk off the job on May 31, a week after the company’s annual shareholder meeting.
They declared their intentions to stage a walkout to their colleagues via internal communications channels like Slack and email.
Employee organizers reportedly used the messages to call on their co-workers to join them, citing frustration with Amazon’s return-to-office mandate as well as recent layoffs and anxiety about the tech giant’s climate policies.
The company, like many other tech giants, carried out mass layoffs earlier this year, cutting thousands of jobs.
According to the Washington Post, organizers are hoping at least 1,000 employees at Amazon’s Seattle headquarters will participate in the walkout.
Low morale
One LA-based staffer who is planning to take part told the Post that morale at the company “feels like it’s at an all-time low.”
“In meetings and one-on-ones with colleagues, there’s so much uncertainty and lack of clarity from leadership,” they said. “It’s an unsettling time to work at Amazon.”
A spokesperson for Amazon told Fortune in an emailed statement on Wednesday that the company “respects our employees’ rights to express their opinions.”
In February, CEO Andy Jassy announced that from May, the company’s white-collar staff would be expected to work from the office for the majority of the working week, arguing that people were “more engaged, observant, and attuned to what’s happening” when they attended work in person.
However, many of the firm’s staff appeared to disagree, with the plans being met with resistance as more than 28,000 employees joined a Slack channel called “Remote Advocacy” and a petition was launched to protest the in-office mandate.
A small group of staffers backed Jassy’s return-to-office plans, though, with an opposing pro-office channel also appearing on Amazon’s Slack space shortly after the mandate was announced.
Amazon’s spokesperson told Fortune on Wednesday that the company had had “a great few weeks with more employees in the office.”
“There's been good energy on campus and in urban cores like Seattle where we have a large presence,” they said. “We've heard this from lots of employees and the businesses that surround our offices. As it pertains to the specific topics this group of employees is raising, we've explained our thinking in different forums over the past few months and will continue to do so.”
