- Amazon announced an RTO mandate last month
- Employees have to come to office five days a week
- Amazon has defended the move
When
work from home became the norm during the Covid-19 pandemic, most people thought that this would be the new normal. Employees began realising that they could save up a lot of time as well as money by working from home and discussions about the importance of work-life balance surfaced. However, as soon as things started getting better, companies called employees back to offices. Amazon also made headlines last month for calling its employees back to offices five days a week. After the news went viral, many people began reacting to it. The tech giant also received a baclash for its decisions as people started saying on social media that this is not the solution.
Now, according to a report in The Information,
Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of People Experience and Tech at Amazon, has defended the mandate. Galetti said that younger employees are eager to benefit from in-person mentorship and have been asking to work from office. Speaking at The Information’s Women in Tech, Media, and Finance conference, Galetti explained that many junior staff members expressed a desire for face-to-face interaction with colleagues. She also said that the new policy reflects a return to Amazon’s previous work culture, where there was flexibility for personal matters but office attendance remained the norm.
Amazon CEO
Andy Jassy also supports the decision, highlighting the importance of collaboration and innovation that come from being physically present in the office. In a memo to staff, Jassy acknowledged that pre-pandemic, the company allowed remote work when necessary, and this flexibility would remain. However, he stressed that regular in-office work is key to building stronger teams and a cohesive company culture.
In response to the changing work environment, Amazon is also developing a generative AI-powered “culture coach” to help provide employees with real-time feedback, further supporting staff in their roles as the company adapts to new ways of working.
On the other hand, Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford economist, suggests that this could be a way for Amazon to reduce its workforce without resorting to formal layoffs. He refers to this tactic as a “backdoor layoff” strategy, where some employees might quit due to the new policy, helping the company cut costs without the need to offer severance packages.
Speaking to Business Insider, Bloom said that this approach may work to control costs but could harm departments like AI, where top talent is hard to attract and retain. Other tech companies like
Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI are continuing with hybrid work policies, which may give them a chance to hire skilled workers leaving Amazon due to its stricter office requirements.
