Amazon to Terminate In-Office Attendance Avoiders

Amazon has updated its return-to-office policy, making it clear that those who do not adhere to the guidelines might face terminations.

The new directive mandates employees to be present in the office for at least three days a week, and those failing to comply with this measure might be terminated.

As reported by Business Insider, Amazon circulated new guidance among managers this week, indicating they now have the authorization to fire workers who fail to report to the office at least three days a week. This guidance also details the procedure to carry out such terminations.

Amazon may terminate those avoiding the office three days a week

The internal guide suggests that to initiate the process, managers should have a “private discussion” with employees who are not meeting the three-day-a-week requirement and proceed with a second conversation if the individual continues to defy the instructions.

If after that, the employee still does not comply with the required attendance, they might receive a pink slip.

The document details:

“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)”. Additionally, it emphasizes that returning to the office 3+ days a week is a requirement of their job, and that “continued non-compliance without a legitimate reason may lead to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of your employment”.

Amazon had informed workers in February that most would need to start working in person from an Amazon office again at least three times per week from May onwards. Under this rule, some employees needed to move to meet the in-person requirement.

Rob Munoz, an Amazon spokesperson, mentioned:

“Now that we have several months under our belts with the vast majority of employees in the office more frequently, there’s more energy, connection and collaboration, and we’re hearing that from employees and the businesses that surround our offices”.

He also mentioned that employee relocations affect a relatively small number of workers, and the company offers relocation benefits to anyone asked to move.

Amazon Enforces Strict Return-to-Office Measures for Employees

At the end of August, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy warned about a potential crackdown on those still resisting the return-to-office policy.

Jassy emphasized in a meeting that if employees are not willing to adhere to this policy, it probably “not going to work out for you at Amazon”.

Amazon’s decision to enforce the return to the office comes after several updates to its guidance on attendance during the pandemic, putting the decision in the hands of director-level leaders in late 2021.

Amazon, which employs over 1.46 million people worldwide, has a network of offices, including its home base in Seattle and its second headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

With information from Fox News