Report: Amazon allowing managers to fire workers refusing to work in office

Amazon employees who still refuse to return to the office may be fired for failing to comply with the retail giant’s newest guidelines.

The company has given managers permission to fire workers who don’t come into the office at least three times a week.

Business Insider reports the internal document instructed managers that to begin the process they should have a private discussion with employees who are not meeting the requirement to work three days per week in the office and follow up with a second conversation if the individual still refuses to report.

“If the employee does not demonstrate immediate and sustained attendance after the first conversation, managers should then conduct a follow-up discussion within a reasonable time frame (depending on the employee situation, ~ 1-2 weeks),” the guidance read, according to Business Insider. “This conversation will 1) reinforce that return to office 3+ days a week is a requirement of their job, and 2) explain that continued non-compliance without a legitimate reason may lead to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of your employment.”

Last month, Amazon also notified employees Thursday it can now produce employee-level “badge reports” in an attempt to crack down on its “get back to the office” policy, according to screenshots of an internal memo obtained by The Puget Sound Business Journal. This is a change in policy for Amazon as, until September, reports were generated from an aggregated perspective and didn’t break down to individual employees.

Amazon’s return to office rules took effect in May. The company employs more than 1.46 million people worldwide and has a network of offices, including its home base in Seattle and in Arlington, Virginia, where its second headquarters are located.

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