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<ul class="summary-list"><li>A former <keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> employee told Quartz the company wanted to put <keyword id="12243343" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="arbitration" source="Orion">arbitration</keyword> clauses in staff contracts.</li><li>She pushed back on these clauses, which preclude employees from taking companies to court, she said.</li><li>The company's general counsel told her arbitration was important to founder <keyword id="11908741" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jeff-bezos" source="Orion">Jeff Bezos</keyword>, she said.</li></ul>The former Blue Origin employee who cosigned an open letter about the space firm's "toxic" work culture says she lost hope that billionaire founder Jeff Bezos could fix the problems at the company.<keyword id="12243342" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="alexandra-abrams" source="Orion">Alexandra Abrams</keyword> was head of employee communications at Blue Origin, and put her name on an <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">open letter</a> - cosigned by 20 anonymous current and former employees - that said <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">the company sacrificed safety and fostered a sexist work environment</a>. Speaking to <a href="https://qz.com/2068460/whistleblower-blue-origins-toxic-culture-starts-with-jeff-bezos/">Quartz</a>, Abrams recalled that senior management at the company wanted to add binding arbitration agreements to employee contracts. These agreements preclude employees from taking companies to court, instead forcing them to resolve complaints privately.Blue Origin's general counsel told her the arbitration clause was important to Bezos, Abrams said in the interview with Quartz."The fact that I knew Jeff Bezos did this personally broke any hope I had of Jeff being the solution," Abrams said.Abrams told Quartz she pushed back against these clauses, and that she was able to carve out an exception for sexual harassment cases. Other companies including <a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/05/15/611230115/under-pressure-uber-drops-arbitration-requirement-for-sexual-assault-victims">Uber</a>, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-to-end-forced-arbitration-2019-2">Google</a>, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ends-arbitration-policy-sexual-assault-cases-2021-8">Airbnb</a> have dropped some binding arbitration clauses from employee and customer contracts.Abrams also told Quartz she signed off on contract language that included a non-disparagement clause. These clauses are designed to stop employees saying negative things about a company. The clause said that employees would have to pay for Blue Origin's legal fees if it ever chose to enforce it, Abrams said.Blue Origin did not immediately responded when contacted by Insider for comment on Abrams' comments to Quartz. Blue Origin declined to comment on Abrams' specific allegations when contacted by Quartz. In response to Abrams' open letter, which also said that leadership at Blue Origin ignored multiple reports of sexual harassment, Blue Origin said: "Ms. Abrams was dismissed for cause two years ago after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations. Blue Origin has no tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind. We provide numerous avenues for employees, including a 24/7 anonymous hotline, and will promptly investigate any new claims of misconduct."Abrams denied to Quartz that she had received warnings, saying she was fired following a dispute over the use of binding arbitration for cases including sexual harassment.Abrams said the "issues involving federal export control regulations" Blue Origin mentioned could relate to an app the company tried to build that inadvertently left data on foreign servers. Abrams said she helped report and resolve the problem.Blue Origin has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-engineers-nasa-moon-artemis-jeff-bezos-2021-8">lost at least 17 top staffers this year</a>, and multiple sources told <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/01/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-talent-exodus-ceo-pushed-return-to-office.html">CNBC</a> on Friday this was the result of CEO Bob Smith's management style - in particular his <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-ceo-bob-smith-talent-exodus-office-return-20-2021-10">insistence on employees returning to the office</a>.

Blue Origin whistleblower says she lost faith in Jeff Bezos fixing the company's toxic culture

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Two people have sued Blue Origin over age discrimination claims, <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/08/two-separate-lawsuits-allege-ageist-hiring-practices-at-blue-origin/">TechCrunch first reported.</a></li><li>A former engineer said he was told to seek out younger hires, according to a September lawsuit.</li></ul>Two people have sued Blue Origin over the past year claiming the company discriminates against older workers, according to a <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/08/two-separate-lawsuits-allege-ageist-hiring-practices-at-blue-origin/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent report from TechCrunch.</a>Last September, a former aerospace software engineer at Blue Origin, Cristian Bureriu, filed a lawsuit against Jeff Bezos' rocket company that claimed he had been told by his supervisor to seek out younger candidates to hire because "younger guys are more coachable," according to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court that was viewed by Insider.Bureriu said in his complaint that during the over three years he worked at Blue Origin, the company "forced out" about 20 employees who were over the age of 40 and replaced them with individuals who were in their 20s and 30s. The engineer alleged that he faced harassment and retaliation and was wrongfully terminated after he reported the issue to human resources, as well as took a medical leave of absence and requested special accommodations to continue working from home instead of going into Blue Origin's Kent, Washington facility, the complaint said.A spokesperson for Blue Origin did not respond to a request for comment from Insider and the case was moved into private arbitration in December.Bureriu's complaint of age discrimination is echoed in a second lawsuit against the company, TechCrunch reported. In January, a lawsuit filed on behalf of David Rowan said that Bureriu's allegations "present a convincing mosaic of circumstantial evidence which supports a finding of intentional age discrimination" at Blue Origin, according to TechCrunch.In his complaint, Rowan alleges that over the span of two years he applied for 14 different positions at the company and never received a job offer, TechCrunch reported. He claims that Blue Origin asked him questions to determine his age during the interview process, the publication said, citing Rowan's complaint.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-careers-interview-hiring-process-how-to-get-job-2021-9">Insider previously reported</a> that Blue Origin's hiring process includes an essay on human spaceflight and a 5-hour interview panel.It's not the first time that Blue Origin has faced criticism from a former employee. In 2021, Alexandra Abrams, the former head of Blue Origin employee communications, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">published an open letter</a> alongside a group describing itself as 21 former and current Blue Origin employees. In the letter, Abrams and others accused Blue Origin of fostering a sexist work culture and sacrificing safety in order to win the billionaire space race.At the time, a Blue Origin representative told Insider the company doesn't tolerate harassment and would investigate the claims. The company said that Abrams was dismissed after repeated warnings regarding federal export-control regulations, though Abrams told CBS she never received the warnings."We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built," the spokesperson said at the time. Since the company launched its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-launches-to-space-blue-origin-first-human-spaceflight-2021-7" rel="">first human mission in July of 2021</a>, which flew Bezos and three others to the edge of space, the company has faced some setbacks. The company's New Shepherd space tourism capsule has been <a href="https://futurism.com/the-byte/blue-orgin-capsule-grounded">grounded for months</a> after its escape hatch launched in error last September.Do you work for Blue Origin or have insight to share? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work email at gkay@insider.com

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sued over allegations the rocket company discriminates against older workers

<ul class="summary-list"><li>An open letter says former and current <keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> employees believe the company sacrificed safety.</li><li>A former Blue Origin communications head said Jeff Bezos fostered a toxic and sexist work culture.</li><li>Blue Origin said it'd investigate the harassment claims but didn't comment on the safety concerns.</li></ul>An open letter written by a group describing itself as 21 former and current Blue Origin employees on Thursday accused Jeff Bezos and the company of sacrificing safety in an effort to win the space race against other billionaires and of creating a company culture rife with sexism."Competing with other billionaires - and 'making progress for Jeff'' - seemed to take precedence over safety concerns that would have slowed down the schedule," Alexandra Abrams, the former head of Blue Origin employee communications, <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">wrote alongside the anonymous current and former Blue Origin employees</a>.The letter accused Blue Origin and its founder, Bezos, of fostering a culture of toxicity and sexism. It said employee concerns regarding the safety of several of Blue Origin's rockets had been suppressed as the billionaire raced to compete with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Virgin Galactic's founder, Richard Branson. In response to the letter which was sent to the Federal Aviation Administration, an FAA spokesperson told Insider the agency is taking the allegations seriously and is reviewing the information.The letter said many of the current and former employees in the group wouldn't feel safe flying in a Blue Origin vehicle, as they believed the company didn't follow proper safety measures and had tested its employees' limits while racing to compete. Insider did not receive a response from Abrams regarding verification of the multiple signees, but <a href="https://fortune.com/2021/09/30/blue-origin-jeff-bezos-toxic-work-environment-open-letter-ally-abrams-space/">Fortune said</a> it had seen the whole list of signatories and spoken with five of them. The signees cited nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements, as well as fear of retaliation from the company, as reasons for staying anonymous, according to Fortune.Abrams separately <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSMornings/status/1443553601851322372">told CBS</a> in an interview that in 2018 one team had documented more than 1,000 safety concerns with the rockets that power Blue Origin's missions. She said that when she cited employees' concerns about safety to leadership, she was told the person did not have a "high-enough risk tolerance." Abrams' employment was terminated in 2018. She said she was told executives felt they could no longer trust her.Abrams also described numerous reports of sexual harassment that she said leadership ignored.The letter said numerous executives had been accused of demeaning female Blue Origin employees. It said one man, described as being close to Bezos and CEO Bob Smith, was promoted despite facing allegations of sexual harassment. Abrams said the same executive was later removed after facing allegations of groping a colleague.The letter accused another unnamed executive of often referring to women by derogatory words like "baby girl" and "baby doll." It said female employees often warned one another to avoid these executives.A Blue Origin representative did not address the safety concerns but told Insider the company didn't tolerate harassment and would investigate the claims. The company added that Abrams was dismissed after repeated warnings regarding federal export-control regulations, though Abrams told CBS she never received the warnings.Abrams said that while the workers in the group were enthusiastic about Bezos' mission to explore space, they were quickly disillusioned by the company's work culture."Many of us have spent our careers dreaming of helping to launch a crewed rocket into space and seeing it safely touch back down on Earth," the letter said. "But when Jeff Bezos flew to space this July, we did not share his elation. Instead, many of us watched with an overwhelming sense of unease. Some of us couldn't bear to watch at all.""If this company's culture and work environment are a template for the future Jeff Bezos envisions, we are headed in a direction that reflects the worst of the world we live in now, and sorely needs to change," the letter added.Blue Origin launched its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-launches-to-space-blue-origin-first-human-spaceflight-2021-7">first human mission in July</a>, which flew Bezos and three others to the edge of space. The space company plans to launch another mission on October 12.Abrams told CBS she had high hopes for Blue Origin and its mission but felt the company culture ultimately inhibited Bezos' "utopian dream.""You cannot create a culture of safety and a culture of fear at the same time," Abrams said. "They are incompatible."Do you work at Blue Origin? Reach out to the reporter from a nonwork email address at gkay@insider.com

Open letter from former and current Blue Origin employees accuses Jeff Bezos of sacrificing safety in an effort to win the billionaire space race - and creating a toxic, sexist work culture along the way

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/star-trek-william-shatner-little-frightened-jeff-bezos-blue-origin-2021-10">"Star Trek" actor William Shatner</a> is to fly to the edge of space on a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-spacex-lazy-internal-memo-bezos-musk-work-2021-10">Blue Origin</a> rocket.</li><li>The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-bro-work-culture-workers-say-report-2021-10">Jeff-Bezos-founded</a> company is due to launch Shatner and three others at 9 a.m. CDT (10 a.m. ET) Wednesday.</li></ul>Update: <keyword id="12173579" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="william-shatner" source="Orion">William Shatner</keyword> and three other passengers flew to the edge of space aboard the <keyword id="11956217" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="new-shepard" source="Orion">New Shepard</keyword> rocket and landed safely on Wednesday morning.Five decades after debuting as the cosmos-exploring commander Captain James T. Kirk in "<keyword id="12297624" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="star-trek" source="Orion">Star Trek</keyword>," actor <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/star-trek-william-shatner-fly-space-jeff-bezos-blue-origin-2021-10">William Shatner</a> is about to fly to space in real life.<keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword>, the rocket company <keyword id="11908741" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jeff-bezos" source="Orion">Jeff Bezos</keyword> founded in 2000, is <a href="https://www.blueorigin.com/news/new-shepard-ns-18-mission-updates">preparing</a> to rocket Shatner and three others to the edge of space aboard its New Shepard launch system at 9 a.m. CDT (10 a.m. ET) Wednesday morning.The entire flight lasts just 11 minutes, with passengers reaching an altitude of 62 miles. They'll get about three minutes of weightlessness.This is the company's second flight with passengers; <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-launches-to-space-blue-origin-first-human-spaceflight-2021-7">its first carried Bezos and three others</a> above the planet in July."I'm thrilled and anxious and a little nervous and a little frightened about this whole new adventure," Shatner told <a href="https://www.today.com/popculture/william-shatner-talks-upcoming-mission-seeing-vastness-space-himself-t233084">the "Today" show</a> last week.At age 90, Shatner will become the oldest person to reach the boundary of space, breaking the record set by <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/wally-funk-only-endearing-thing-about-jeff-bezos-spaceflight-2021-7">82-year-old aviator Wally Funk</a> on Bezos' July flight.He will share the spaceship with former NASA engineer Chris Boshuizen, healthcare entrepreneur Glen de Vries, and Blue Origin's vice president of mission and flight operations, Audrey Powers. The flight is automated, so no pilot will be on board.<div type="image" title="Chris Boshuizen, William Shatner, Audrey Powers, and Glen de Vries in blue space jumpsuits" height="1500" width="2000" msid="86965682" hostid="261"></div>The launch was originally scheduled for Tuesday, but poor weather caused a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/william-shatner-blue-origin-trip-to-space-delayed-new-shepard-2021-10">delay</a>.Blue Origin hopes this will be the beginning of an ongoing operation flying high-paying customers to the edge of space. Neither the company nor Shatner have disclosed how much the seats cost. A spot on the flight with Bezos sold at auction for $28 million, but regular flights cost much less. Competitor Virgin Galactic sells its own suborbital flights for $450,000 per seat.<h2>Watch live as Blue Origin flies William Shatner to space</h2>Blue Origin says it will broadcast the flight, in the video embedded below, starting 90 minutes before liftoff.As the rocket screams through the skies above Texas, the force of its climb and the pull of Earth's gravity will press the passengers into their seats. Then 2 minutes and 45 seconds after liftoff, the rocket should release the passenger capsule, letting it drift up to the boundary of space - an imaginary border 62 miles above sea level called the Kármán Line.Shatner and his companions will be able to see the curvature of the Earth and its thin atmosphere against the blackness of space.<div type="image" title="jeff bezos and three other passengers in jumpsuits float around spaceship cabin earth in background" height="1508" width="2011" msid="86965684" hostid="261"></div>For about three minutes, they'll be allowed to unbuckle, flip around weightless, and enjoy the views. Then the passengers must strap back into their seats for the high-speed plunge to Earth. They'll plummet through the atmosphere and feel a jolt as the capsule releases three parachutes to slow its fall and land back in Texas.<h2>Blue Origin employees have questioned New Shepard's safety</h2><div type="image" title="The New Shepard crew capsule parachutes to a landing at Blue Origin's Launch Site One in Texas on January 14." height="2159" width="2879" msid="86965685" hostid="261"></div>Shatner's flight comes amid fallout from a recent open letter from current and former Blue Origin employees, which called New Shepard's safety into question."In the opinion of an engineer who has signed on to this essay, 'Blue Origin has been lucky that nothing has happened so far,'" the letter said. "Many of this essay's authors say they would not fly on a Blue Origin vehicle."Alexandra Abrams, who used to head Blue Origin's employee communications, published the <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">letter</a> on the website Lioness in September. Abrams was the only named author, but she said 20 other current and former employees cowrote it. <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blue-origin-alexandra-abrams-safety-workplace-culture/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=1339498959895">CBS News</a> spoke with five of them.<div type="image" title="New Shepard First Human Flight" height="1563" width="2084" msid="86965687" hostid="261"></div>"Competing with other billionaires - and 'making progress for Jeff' - seemed to take precedence over safety concerns that would have slowed down the schedule," the letter said.It continued: "Some of us felt that with the resources and staff available, leadership's race to launch at such a breakneck speed was seriously compromising flight safety."In a statement to Insider, Blue Origin said: "We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built."<div type="image" title="jeff bezos inspects blue origin new shepard rocket booster" height="3000" width="2390" msid="86965688" hostid="261"></div>The company's statement added that Abrams "was dismissed for cause two years ago after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations." Abrams denied receiving such warnings.New Shepard has flown 16 times - a strong record. It also has an emergency-escape system that should jettison the passenger capsule away if the rocket malfunctions. Blue Origin has tested the escape system on the launchpad, in midair, and in space.Still, no federal agency regulates the safety of passengers on private commercial spaceflights. For now, the Federal Aviation Administration just ensures that these rocket launches don't pose a threat to other aircraft or to people on the ground.About 1% of US human spaceflights have resulted in a fatal accident, according to an <a href="https://aerospace.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/Koller-Nield_HumanSpaceflight_20201112.pdf">analysis</a> published earlier this year. That's about 10,000 times higher than the rate on commercial airplanes.

Jeff Bezos' rocket company just flew TV star William Shatner to the edge of space - watch the video

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">Twenty-one Blue Origin employees</a> published a whistle-blowing <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">open letter</a> on Thursday.</li><li>Some employees said they wouldn't ride a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-elon-musk-spacex-just-as-litigious-as-jeff-bezos-2021-9">Blue Origin</a> rocket due to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-risk-blue-origin-rocket-2021-6">safety</a> concerns. One said it's "lucky" nothing has happened.</li><li>No federal agency regulates passenger <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-bezos-space-trip-compares-truck-driving-warehouse-work-2021-7">safety</a> on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-announces-2-passengers-next-spaceflight-october-12-2021-9">private spaceflights</a>. </li></ul>In a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">scalding open letter</a>, a group of current and former <keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> employees said they would not fly aboard the company's rocket because they don't think it's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-rocket-emergency-escape-system-jeff-bezos-2021-7">safe</a> enough.<keyword id="11908741" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jeff-bezos" source="Orion">Jeff Bezos</keyword>, who founded the company in 2000, launched to the edge of space aboard its <keyword id="11956217" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="new-shepard" source="Orion">New Shepard</keyword> rocket in July. Since that flight, Blue Origin has opened ticket sales, and four customers are scheduled to launch on October 12. But <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">the new letter</a> says that Blue Origin's leadership has ignored employees' safety concerns in favor of "making progress for Jeff" and accelerating New Shepard's launch schedule.The only named author on the letter is Alexandra Abrams, who used to head Blue Origin's employee communications. She published the essay on the website Lioness on Thursday, but says that 20 other current and former Blue Origin employees co-wrote it. None of those co-authors were named, but <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blue-origin-alexandra-abrams-safety-workplace-culture/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=1339498959895">CBS News</a> has spoken with five of them. The letter also made claims of a culture of sexism, harassment, and intolerance to dissent at Blue Origin.<div type="image" title="Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos wears a pair of reflective aviation glasses under a cowboy hat" height="1619" width="2158" msid="86668540" hostid="261"></div>New Shepard has flown successfully 15 times without people on board and once with passengers, when Bezos went. The rocket has an emergency system that can jettison the passenger capsule away from a failing rocket if necessary.However, the letter said: "In the opinion of an engineer who has signed on to this essay, 'Blue Origin has been lucky that nothing has happened so far.' Many of this essay's authors say they would not fly on a Blue Origin vehicle."Two former Blue Origin employees confirmed to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blue-origin-alexandra-abrams-safety-workplace-culture/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=1339498959895">CBS News</a> that they would not feel comfortable riding a Blue Origin spacecraft.In a statement emailed to Insider, Blue Origin said that Abrams "was dismissed for cause two years ago after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations." Abrams has denied that she received any such warnings.At least 17 top engineers and leaders have left Blue Origin this summer, many of them in the week after Bezos's spaceflight, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/20/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-losing-top-talent-during-nasa-lander-fight.html">CNBC</a> reported in August. The reasons for their departures aren't clear, though <a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/Overview/Working-at-Blue-Origin-EI_IE782684.11,22.htm">Glassdoor</a> ratings suggest that just 19% of Blue Origin employees approve of its CEO, Bob Smith. That's compared to a 92% approval rating for SpaceX's Elon Musk and 77% for United Launch Alliance's Tory Bruno.Blue Origin's statement also said: "We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built."But the open letter said that safety was "the driving force" behind the decision to publish it for many of its co-authors. It also said that in 2018, when someone new took over one particular team, the manager discovered that the team had documented "more than 1,000 problem reports" related to the company's rocket engines. None of those reports had been addressed, the letter said.What's more, the letter added that Blue Origin has frequently denied requests "for additional engineers, staff, or spending," while adding more responsibilities to teams that are too small to handle them."Employees are often told to 'be careful with Jeff's money,' to 'not ask for more,' and to 'be grateful,'" the letter said.<h2>Commercial rocket passengers fly at their own risk</h2><div type="image" title="The New Shepard crew capsule parachutes to a landing at Blue Origin's Launch Site One in Texas on January 14." height="2159" width="2879" msid="86668541" hostid="261"></div>Spaceflight is always risky. About 1% of US human spaceflights have resulted in a fatal accident, according to an <a href="https://aerospace.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/Koller-Nield_HumanSpaceflight_20201112.pdf">analysis</a> published earlier this year."That's pretty high. It's about 10,000 times more dangerous than flying on a commercial airliner," George Nield, a co-author of that report, previously told Insider. Nield formerly served as the Federal Aviation Administration's associate administrator and led its Office of Commercial Space Transportation."In order to learn how to do this safer, more reliably, and more cost effectively, many people believe we need to keep gaining experience by having more and more of these flights," he added.Currently, no federal agency regulates the safety of passengers on private commercial spaceflights. For now, the Federal Aviation Administration's job is only to ensure that rocket launches are safe for people on the ground and don't pose a threat to other aircraft.But in a statement emailed to Insider, the FAA said that it was "reviewing" the open letter."The FAA takes every safety allegation seriously, and the agency is reviewing the information," the statement said.

Blue Origin employees say they wouldn't feel safe riding the company's rockets, and it's 'lucky' nothing has happened

<ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-spacex-lazy-internal-memo-bezos-musk-work-2021-10">Blue Origin</a> plans to fly <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/star-trek-william-shatner-little-frightened-jeff-bezos-blue-origin-2021-10">"Star Trek" actor William Shatner</a> and others to the edge of space Tuesday.</li><li>In a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employees-letter-new-shepard-rockets-not-safe-2021-9">recent open letter</a>, some <keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-jeff-bezos-toxic-culture-lost-faith-whistleblower-2021-10">employees</a> said they wouldn't ride its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-rocket-resembles-penis-engineering-blue-origin-2021-7">New Shepard rocket</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-rocket-emergency-escape-system-jeff-bezos-2021-7">New Shepard's emergency systems</a> should protect passengers, but the letter raised <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-risk-blue-origin-rocket-2021-6">safety concerns</a>.</li></ul>After launching its own founder, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-spaceflight-afternoon-double-amazon-2021-9">Jeff Bezos</a>, to the edge of space this summer, the rocket company Blue Origin has moved on to its first celebrity customer.<keyword id="12173579" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="william-shatner" source="Orion">William Shatner</keyword>, the actor best known for playing Captain James T. Kirk in "Star Trek," is set to fly 62 miles above sea level aboard the company's <keyword id="11956217" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="new-shepard" source="Orion">New Shepard</keyword> launch system on Tuesday. He'll share the spaceship with the former NASA engineer Chris Boshuizen, the healthcare entrepreneur Glen de Vries, and Blue Origin's vice president of mission and flight operations, Audrey Powers. The flight is automated, so no pilot will be on board.At the peak of their 11-minute flight, the passengers will briefly experience weightlessness. They'll be able to see the curvature of the Earth and its thin atmosphere against the blackness of space.Shatner, who is 90, will be the oldest person to reach the boundary of space, breaking the record set by 82-year-old aviator Wally Funk on Blue Origin's first passenger flight with Bezos.<div type="image" title="william shatner" height="1325" width="1766" msid="86868506" hostid="261"></div>"I'm thrilled and anxious and a little nervous and a little frightened about this whole new adventure," Shatner told <a href="https://www.today.com/popculture/william-shatner-talks-upcoming-mission-seeing-vastness-space-himself-t233084">the "Today" show</a> on Tuesday.But the flight comes amid fallout from a recent open letter from current and former Blue Origin employees. It called New Shepard's safety into question, with some of the anonymous employees who signed it saying they would not fly on the rocket themselves.Spaceflight has always been risky, but the private companies now rocketing people to space face little government oversight. Passengers like Shatner fly at their own risk.<h2>Employees said 'making progress for Jeff' trumps safety</h2><div type="image" title="Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos wears a pair of reflective aviation glasses under a cowboy hat" height="1619" width="2158" msid="86868510" hostid="261"></div>New Shepard has flown 16 times without any apparent errors - a strong record. But some Blue Origin employees said in the letter that things look more concerning from the inside.Alexandra Abrams, who used to head Blue Origin's employee communications, published the <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">letter</a> on the website Lioness last week. Abrams was the only named author, but she said 20 other current and former Blue Origin employees cowrote it. <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/blue-origin-alexandra-abrams-safety-workplace-culture/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&amp;linkId=1339498959895">CBS News</a> spoke with five of them, and two confirmed that they would not feel comfortable riding a Blue Origin spacecraft."Competing with other billionaires - and 'making progress for Jeff' - seemed to take precedence over safety concerns that would have slowed down the schedule," the letter said.It continued: "Some of us felt that with the resources and staff available, leadership's race to launch at such a breakneck speed was seriously compromising flight safety."<div type="image" title="jeff bezos inspects blue origin new shepard rocket booster" height="3000" width="2390" msid="86868514" hostid="261"></div>The letter added that for many of the coauthors, safety was "the driving force" behind the decision to publish it."In the opinion of an engineer who has signed on to this essay, 'Blue Origin has been lucky that nothing has happened so far,'" the letter said. "Many of this essay's authors say they would not fly on a Blue Origin vehicle."In a statement emailed to Insider, Blue Origin said, "We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built."The statement added that Abrams "was dismissed for cause two years ago after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations." Abrams has denied receiving such warnings.<h2>New Shepard has safety features in case of emergency</h2><div type="image" title="blue origin new shepard rocket booster separation" height="1686" width="2249" msid="86868517" hostid="261"></div>The most nail-biting moments of a spaceflight are when the engines burn for liftoff, when the rocket separates from the capsule, and when parachutes deploy on the way down.Blue Origin has not shared much detail about its testing process, but it has highlighted some of New Shepard's safety features.Once the New Shepard rocket lifts off, it screams through the atmosphere for about three minutes before releasing the passenger capsule and falling back to Earth. During that time, if something goes wrong, an emergency-escape system should prompt the capsule to detach and jettison away from impending doom.Blue Origin has tested that escape system three times - on the launchpad, in midair, and in space. Presumably, this means that if the rocket threatens to explode, the capsule should be able to carry its passengers to safety.<div type="image" title="The New Shepard crew capsule parachutes to a landing at Blue Origin's Launch Site One in Texas on January 14." height="2159" width="2879" msid="86868520" hostid="261"></div>Then once the capsule is falling back to Earth, three parachutes should deploy. If one fails, the capsule is designed to give more thrust to its downward-facing engines. If two parachutes fail, a crushable "bumper" section on the bottom of the capsule should absorb the impact of landing."The capsule is the most highly redundant and safe spaceflight system, we think, that has ever been designed or flown," Gary Lai, senior director of New Shepard's design, says in a Blue Origin <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKqpt4g5_yY&amp;t=6st=6s">video</a> about safety. "In most cases, you have a backup to the backup system."The capsule also has oxygen masks, much like on an airplane, in case the cabin becomes depressurized.<h2>Blue Origin passengers fly at their own risk </h2><div type="image" title="jeff bezos and three other passengers in jumpsuits float around spaceship cabin earth in background" height="1508" width="2011" msid="86868523" hostid="261"></div>About 1% of US human spaceflights have resulted in a fatal accident, according to an <a href="https://aerospace.org/sites/default/files/2020-11/Koller-Nield_HumanSpaceflight_20201112.pdf">analysis</a> published earlier this year."That's pretty high. It's about 10,000 times more dangerous than flying on a commercial airliner," George Nield, a coauthor of that report, previously told Insider. Nield formerly served as the Federal Aviation Administration's associate administrator and led its Office of Commercial Space Transportation.No federal agency regulates the safety of passengers on private commercial spaceflights. For now, the FAA just ensures that these rocket launches don't pose a threat to other aircraft or to people on the ground. However, in a statement emailed to Insider last week, the FAA said it was "reviewing" the open letter from Blue Origin employees.

Blue Origin is launching the TV star William Shatner on Tuesday, but employees say they wouldn't fly on that rocket

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> fired a senior <keyword id="12224509" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="executive" source="Orion">executive</keyword> in 2019 over allegations of inappropriate behavior, per The Washington Post.</li><li>One former employee told The Post that the exec embarrassed her in front of others in a meeting.</li><li>It follows former and current Blue Origin staff writing about the company's alleged sexist work culture.</li></ul><keyword id="11908741" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jeff-bezos" source="Orion">Jeff Bezos</keyword>' spaceflight firm, Blue Origin, fired a longtime senior executive over <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">allegations of inappropriate behavior</a> in the workplace, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/09/30/blue-origin-sexist-work-culture/?utm_source=feedly&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=wp_businessbusiness">The Washington Post</a> reported on Thursday.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-goodie-bags-send-space-tourists-spaceflight-baseball-caps-2021-10?r=US&amp;IR=TIR=T">Blue Origin</a> hired a law firm to investigate Walt McCleery, the company's vice president of recruiting, three people familiar with the situations told The Post. The law firm, called Perkins Coie, found that McCleery's behavior was inappropriate in the workplace, according to The Post. Officials in Bezos' company, who requested to remain anonymous, told the publication that Blue Origin hired the law firm and then fired McCleery.McCleery worked at Blue Origin from 2004 to 2019, according to his <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/waltmccleery/">LinkedIn profile</a>. He now works at SpinLaunch as vice president of talent acquisition. SpinLaunch did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The <keyword id="11893589" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="news" source="Orion">news</keyword> comes the same day as a group of 21 former and current Blue Origin <keyword id="6357081" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="employees" source="Orion">employees</keyword> wrote an <a href="https://www.lioness.co/post/bezos-wants-to-create-a-better-future-in-space-his-company-blue-origin-is-stuck-in-a-toxic-past">open letter</a> accusing the company of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9?r=US&amp;IR=TIR=T">sacrificing safety</a> in an effort to win the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/yeti-austin-texas-billboard-elon-musk-jeff-bezos-spacex-blue-origin-2021-9?r=US&amp;IR=TIR=T">billionaire space race</a>, and fostering a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9?r=US&amp;IR=TIR=T">toxic and sexist work culture</a>. Blue Origin and McCleery didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comments on McCleery. When the letter was initially released, the <keyword id="11895441" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="space" source="Orion">space</keyword> company told Insider that Blue Origin does not tolerate harassment in its workplace and was actively investigating the claims.One former Blue Origin employee, who didn't sign the open letter, told The Post that she was in a meeting with McCleery when he said to executives from an outside company: "I apologize for [her] being emotional. It must be her time of the month."The former staff member described the incident to The Post as "tough," adding that she quit her job "because I couldn't take it anymore."McCleery told The Post that he was unaware of the open letter and denied the allegations. "Not true as far as I'm concerned," he told The Post, which is owned by Bezos."It doesn't matter how it came to an end. That's private. That's my information," he told The Post in regards to his exit from Blue Origin.The open letter, written by employees who remained anonymous apart from Alexandra Abrams, the former head of Blue Origin employee communications, didn't disclose any names, but said numerous executives had been accused of demeaning female Blue Origin staff. The letter described an example of one senior executive in CEO Bob Smith's inner circle being promoted despite having multiple sexual harassment reports. Another unnamed executive often called women derogatory words like "baby girl" and "baby doll," the letter said. Abrams <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSMornings/status/1443553601851322372">told CBS</a> that employees' concerns over safety and harassment in the workplace were consistently overlooked. Though, she said the company eventually fired one of the executives cited in the letter after he groped a colleague.The letter also said female workers at Blue Origin often warned each other to stay away from these executives and pointed to a workplace that lacked gender parity."If this company's culture and work environment are a template for the future Jeff Bezos envisions, we are headed in a direction that reflects the worst of the world we live in now, and sorely needs to change," the letter said.On Friday, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/01/blue-origin-ceo-bob-smith-email-response-to-toxic-workplace-essay.html">CNBC reported</a> Blue Origin's CEO sent employees a mass email responding to the allegations. Smith sought to "reassure" staff that the company does not tolerate harassment."It is particularly difficult and painful, for me, to hear claims being levied that attempt to characterize our entire team in a way that doesn't align with the character and capability that I see at Blue Origin every day," Smith wrote.

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin reportedly fired a longtime senior executive over allegations of inappropriate behavior in the workplace

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11908742" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="blue-origin" source="Orion">Blue Origin</keyword> CEO Bob Smith responded to allegations of a toxic workplace in a companywide email.</li><li>Smith called allegations that the company ignored safety concerns "uninformed and simply incorrect."</li><li>The internal email comes after an open letter from "current and former employees" alleged the company dismissed safety concerns and sexism.</li></ul>Blue Origin CEO Bob Smith on Thursday sent an email to staff addressing <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">allegations</a> that <keyword id="11908741" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jeff-bezos" source="Orion">Jeff Bezos</keyword>' space firm fosters a toxic work culture, saying the criticisms require "reflection and humility."An <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/blue-origin-employee-accuse-company-sacrificing-safety-2021-9">open letter </a> that went public earlier that day accused the space company of neglecting safety concerns and creating a sexist environment. The open letter said it had been co-written by 21 current and former Blue Origin employees and pointed out two executives at the company who had been allegedly repeatedly reported for sexual harassment. It also said employees' concerns over the safety of the rockets had been ignored in Bezos' race to compete with SpaceX and Virgin Galactic.In an internal email to staff sent after the letter's release, Smith said he hoped to "reassure" employees that the company was on track when it came to addressing the safety of its rockets - claims which he calls "uninformed and simply incorrect." <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/01/blue-origin-ceo-bob-smith-email-response-to-toxic-workplace-essay.html">CNBC was the first to report</a> on Smith's email, but a Blue Origin spokesperson sent the note to Insider.Smith also said the company does not tolerate harassment or discrimination in its workplace. The CEO encouraged workers to come to him with their concerns, acknowledging one of the company's core values is always striving to improve itself and incorporate constructive criticism."It is particularly difficult and painful, for me, to hear claims being levied that attempt to characterize our entire team in a way that doesn't align with the character and capability that I see at Blue Origin every day." Smith wrote. "I welcome and encourage any member of Team Blue to speak directly with me if they have any concerns on any topic at any time."The only employee from the letter who identified themselves - former head of employee communications, Alexandra Abrams - <a href="https://twitter.com/CBSMornings/status/1443553601851322372">told CBS</a> she often felt that employees' concerns at the company went unheard. She cited non-disclosure policies that she felt took away workers' voice, as well as harassment reports and over 1,000 documented safety issues with the company's rocket that she said were not always addressed."You cannot create a culture of safety and a culture of fear at the same time," Abrams told CBS. "They are incompatible"<h2>Read Smith's full response to the allegations against the company</h2>This message is intended for Team Blue.A reminder that this is an internal communication and, like all internal communications, is not to be shared or transmitted outside of Blue.Team Blue, Today, you may have seen that some claims were made against our team. As with any criticism, whether personal or professional, and whether the criticism is fair or baseless, it is never easy to hear. It requires reflection and humility to sort through what is useful and what is not. It is particularly difficult and painful, for me, to hear claims being levied that attempt to characterize our entire team in a way that doesn't align with the character and capability that I see at Blue Origin every day. Yet, one of our Blue Leadership Principles states that "Leaders are sincerely open-minded, and examine their own strongest convictions with humility. They value diversity, in all of its forms, since different viewpoints result in novel ideas. Their openness enables them to trust those around them - and to earn the trust of others in turn." We wrote and published that principle, and others, and will today, and always, be self-critical and hold ourselves to the highest standard. While we reflect on what we can learn and improve, I do want to reassure the team on a few points. First, the New Shepard team went through a methodical and pain-staking process to certify our vehicle for First Human Flight. Anyone that claims otherwise is uninformed and simply incorrect. That team is appropriately proud of the work they've done and we should be as well. It should also be emphatically stated that we have no tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind. We provide numerous avenues including a 24/7 anonymous hotline for employees, we investigate and act on any findings, and we will promptly investigate any new claims of misconduct. As always, I welcome and encourage any member of Team Blue to speak directly with me if they have any concerns on any topic at any time. Finally, it should never be doubted that we have an amazing team that is doing amazing work. Our team is comprised of the best and brightest professionals in the aerospace industry. People who are dedicated, work hard and are passionate about our mission. We'll continue to rapidly grow that talented team, stay focused on our efforts, and support each other. And, step by step, we will make even greater strides. Gradatim Ferociter, BobDo you work at Blue Origin? Contact the reporter from a non-work email at gkay@insider.com

Read the email Blue Origin's CEO sent to staff addressing allegations of sexism, safety risks and a toxic work culture

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="239394" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ellie-Goulding">Ellie Goulding</keyword> announced in an exclusive interview with Vogue that she's pregnant.</li><li>For the magazine photoshoot, she wore a form-fitting white dress with a floor-length jacket.</li><li>She also donned a nap dress, which have recently become popular amongst pregnant celebrities.</li></ul><a href="https://www.insider.com/category/ellie-goulding">Ellie Goulding</a> has announced that she's <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/pregnant">pregnant</a>.The "Love Me Like You Do" musician revealed that she's 30 weeks along during <a href="https://www.vogue.com/article/ellie-goulding-is-pregnant-life-at-home-motherhood">an exclusive interview with Vogue</a> published on Monday. Goulding said she and her husband, art dealer Caspar Jopling, previously found out they were expecting while celebrating their one-year wedding anniversary.Goulding also shared the news on Instagram with a series of photos taken by photographer <a href="https://www.instagram.com/hunterabrams/">Hunter Abrams</a> for the magazine. She showed her baby bump in a form-fitting white dress with a scoop-style neckline and also wore a floor-length jacket with wide sleeves and a standing collar.In a second photo shared by Goulding, the musician is seen wearing a high-neck, long-sleeved dress with floral detailing across its bodice, neckline, and balloon sleeves.The garment appears to be a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/brands-like-asos-and-target-double-down-on-day-gowns-2020-7">day gown or nap dress</a>, which combines the leisure of pajamas with the elegance of evening wear.Nap dresses have become extremely popular among pregnant celebrities in recent months, with stars like <a href="https://www.insider.com/emma-roberts-wears-white-dress-to-confirm-pregnancy-2020-8">Emma Roberts</a> and <a href="https://www.insider.com/ashley-tisdale-pregnancy-announcement-photos-instagram-2020-9">Ashley Tisdale</a> wearing the <keyword id="7" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="style">style</keyword>.During her interview with Vogue's Alexandra Macon, Goulding said the "thought of getting pregnant didn't seem like it could be a reality.""Becoming pregnant kind of made me feel human," the musician said. "I want a better word than womanly, [but] - I have curves I've never had before. I'm enjoying it. My husband's enjoying it."Goulding also noted that having a gender-reveal party is "not a focus" for her or her husband."We found out by default because we had a scan. [But,] it wasn't a thing," she told Vogue. "We just wanted a healthy baby and there wasn't much more to it. Instinctively, the whole gender reveal is not my thing.""It's nice to think about the nursery and what kind of baby I'll have, but personally I've been able to deal with it by being kind to myself, accepting myself bad or good, and taking it day by day," Goulding said.

Ellie Goulding announced she's pregnant in a form-fitting white dress and floor-length jacket

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="10243424" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="president-elect-joe-biden">President-elect Joe Biden</keyword> has angered both progressive Democrats and Republicans with his announcement that he will nominate Neera Tanden to direct the <keyword id="3966891" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="office-of-management-and-budget">Office of Management and Budget</keyword>. </li><li>Tanden, the head of the influential liberal think tank Center for American Progress, is a longtime advisor to Hillary Clinton and has made numerous enemies among both progressive Democrats and Republicans.</li><li>While some Republicans insisted Tanden wouldn't be confirmed by the Senate, a slew of progressives aligned with Sen. Bernie Sanders slammed Tanden's likely nomination as divisive.</li><li>"There are very few people who have been as aggressively critical — I would say sometimes obsessively critical — of the progressive left, and in particular of Bernie Sanders, than Neera," a former senior Center for American Progress employee told Business Insider.</li><li>But several prominent progressives, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Barbara Lee, endorsed Biden's pick.</li></ul>President-elect <keyword id="99719" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Joe-Biden">Joe Biden</keyword> sparked backlash from some progressive Democrats and Republicans with his announcement that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/joe-biden-senate-confirmation-fight-neera-tanden-economic-pick-2020-11">he'd nominate</a> Neera Tanden, the head of the influential liberal think tank Center for American Progress, to direct his Office of Management and Budget. Tanden is a longtime advisor to Hillary Clinton. She played a key role in her 2008 and 2016 presidential campaigns and helped engineer the Affordable Care Act in the Obama administration. She would be the first woman of color to run OMB, the agency responsible for drawing up and implementing the federal government's annual spending plan — a particularly important position as the country faces a pandemic-provoked recession. <h2>Controversial on the left and right</h2>As a Clinton aide, Tanden was a particularly outspoken critic of Sen. Bernie Sanders during the 2016 presidential primary and has since tangled online with the democratic socialist's supporters. Sanders-aligned progressives have for years been critical of Tanden's centrist <keyword id="6358883" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="politics">politics</keyword>, including her opposition to single-payer healthcare, support for cuts to Social Security, and <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/netanyahu-center-for-american-progress_n_56301482e4b0631799100532?kezpk3xr=">friendliness</a> with Israel's conservative leadership.During the 2020 presidential primary, Sanders <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5839898-Bernie-Sanders-Letter-Accusing-CAP-of.html">accused Tanden</a> and the Center for American Progress of "maligning my staff and supporters and belittling progressive ideas."At the Center for American Progress, Tanden has come under scrutiny from some of her own colleagues over <a href="https://theintercept.com/2015/11/05/leaked-emails-from-pro-clinton-group-reveal-censorship-of-staff-on-israel-aipac-pandering-warped-militarism/">allegations that she censored employees</a> who were critical of Israel while the organization attempted to build a stronger bond between the Democratic Party and the right-wing Israeli government. Under Tanden, the think tank <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/thinkprogress-to-be-archived-after-union-threatens-legal-options-against-cap">shut down</a> its independent journalistic arm, Think Progress, last year following its unionization.A former senior Center for American Progress employee told Business Insider that he and other employees believed Tanden used the influential organization as "an engine for her ambition," sometimes at her colleagues' expense. Some Sanders-aligned progressives consider Biden's decision to tap Tanden for such an influential <keyword id="6356037" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="white-house">White House</keyword> job a slap in the face."There are very few people who have been as aggressively critical — I would say sometimes obsessively critical — of the progressive left, and in particular of Bernie Sanders, than Neera," the former employee said. Briahna Joy Gray, a former press secretary for Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign, <a href="https://twitter.com/briebriejoy/status/1333268563872899073?s=20">tweeted</a>, "Everything toxic about the corporate Democratic Party is embodied in Neera Tanden."Sanders has not made any public statement on Biden's decision. Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-job-biden-administration-white-house-hiring-career-2020-11?r=oo-kush">Joe Biden is hiring about 4,000 political staffers to work in the White House and federal agencies. Here's how you can boost your chances getting a job in the new administration, according to 3 experts.</a>A Biden transition official defended Tanden's "policy chops" and said her lived experience relying on government social programs as a child made her well-suited to a job that helps determine funding for the safety net. "The fact that Neera not only has the policy experience and expertise but also has the background to relate to all of those needs makes her an incredibly compelling choice to lead the office," the official told Business Insider.Tanden wrote about her lived experience in a Monday tweet about her likely nomination. "After my parents were divorced when I was young, my mother relied on public food and housing programs to get by. Now, I'm being nominated to help ensure those programs are secure, and ensure families like mine can live with dignity," she <a href="https://twitter.com/neeratanden/status/1333513295043686400">wrote</a>. "I am beyond honored."Some Republicans condemned Tanden's likely nomination, saying she'd never be confirmed by a GOP-controlled Senate. (If Democrats fail to win both Senate runoff races in Georgia in January, Republicans will maintain their majority in the chamber and have the power to reject Biden's nominees). Drew Brandewie, the communications director for Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, <a href="https://twitter.com/DBrandewie/status/1333205134004858889">tweeted</a> on Sunday that Tanden "stands zero chance of being confirmed" because of critical comments she's made about Republican lawmakers in recent years.Cornyn followed up on that statement Monday, saying Tanden is Biden's "worst nominee so far.""I think, in light of her combative and insulting comments about many members of the Senate, mainly on our side of the aisle, that it creates certainly a problematic path," he <a href="https://twitter.com/seungminkim/status/1333522271751852035">told</a> The Washington Post. <div type="image" title="FILE PHOTO: Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden shakes hands with and hugs Senator Elizabeth Warren after a question about their ages during the fourth U.S. Democratic presidential candidates 2020 election debate at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio U.S., October 15, 2019. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton" height="1689" width="3378" msid="79501349" hostid="261"></div><h2>A boost of support from influential Democrats</h2>A host of prominent Democrats, including House and Senate members and influential party operatives, defended Tanden amid the criticism. Sens. Sherrod Brown and Cory Booker and progressive Rep. Barbara Lee released statements defending Tanden's record. Notably, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a longtime progressive critic of Biden, <a href="https://twitter.com/SenWarren/status/1333480261338738691">endorsed</a> Tanden's selection in a Monday tweet. Stacey Abrams, a former Georgia gubernatorial candidate and a rising star in the Democratic Party, praised Tanden's selection, <a href="https://twitter.com/staceyabrams/status/1333183697948913665">tweeting</a> that she was "very proud." And Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, a moderate Democrat, <a href="https://twitter.com/JakeSherman/status/1333513150512193536">said</a> he "absolutely" supported Tanden's nomination. And some other Sanders-aligned progressives expressed relief that Biden went with Tanden over other candidates, including Biden's former chief of staff Bruce Reed, who championed deficit-reduction efforts during the Obama administration. Notably, Tanden <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/grand-bargain-center-for-american-progress_n_3393895">rejected</a> the Obama White House's attempts to reach a deficit-reduction deal with Republicans in 2013, arguing that the government should be focused on growing the economy."Neera Tanden is not a pick progressives would have chosen, but she's better than Bruce Reed," Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of the progressive group Justice Democrats, told Business Insider. "Tanden's on the record over the past several years pushing back against nonsensical worries about the deficit. Reed has been more of an ideological deficit hawk throughout his career." Justice Democrats celebrated Biden's decision to pick the progressive economists Heather Boushey and Jared Bernstein for his Council of Economic Advisers. Sean McElwee, a Democratic pollster and cofounder of the think tank Data for Progress, told Business Insider that progressives "were able to stop some bad potential nominees and Tanden is someone will listen to progressives on issues like climate, family leave and jobs."But progressives also know Tanden isn't a sure bet for Biden. The former senior Center for American Progress employee said progressive activists likely also believed there was a chance Tanden wouldn't be confirmed and didn't want to spend their political capital opposing a doomed nomination."People definitely understand that progressives might not have to expend a lot of powder on Neera Tanden because Republicans are already out there saying what they're saying," he said.

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Blue Origin whistleblower says she lost faith in Jeff Bezos fixing the company's toxic culture

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Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sued over allegations the rocket company discriminates against older workers

Grace Kay

Open letter from former and current Blue Origin employees accuses Jeff Bezos of sacrificing safety in an effort to win the billionaire space race - and creating a toxic, sexist work culture along the way

Sinéad Baker,Grace Kay

Jeff Bezos' rocket company just flew TV star William Shatner to the edge of space - watch the video

Morgan McFall-Johnsen

Blue Origin employees say they wouldn't feel safe riding the company's rockets, and it's 'lucky' nothing has happened

Morgan McFall-Johnsen

Blue Origin is launching the TV star William Shatner on Tuesday, but employees say they wouldn't fly on that rocket

Morgan McFall-Johnsen

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin reportedly fired a longtime senior executive over allegations of inappropriate behavior in the workplace

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Read the email Blue Origin's CEO sent to staff addressing allegations of sexism, safety risks and a toxic work culture

Grace Kay

Ellie Goulding announced she's pregnant in a form-fitting white dress and floor-length jacket

Amanda Krause

Biden's decision to pick Neera Tanden for a top economic role exposes an ongoing rift with Bernie Sanders-allied progressives

Eliza Relman

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