Amazon workers send letter to CEO urging return-to-office policy reversal

SEATTLE - More than 500 Amazon employees sent a letter on Oct. 30 to the chief executive officer of its Amazon Web Services (AWS) unit urging the reversal of a full return-to-office policy and rejecting his assertion that the rule had broad support and opponents should leave the company.

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"We were appalled to hear the non-data-driven explanation you gave for Amazon imposing a five-day in-office mandate," the letter begins.

AWS CEO Matt Garman, at an Oct. 17 all-hands meeting of the cloud computing unit, said nine out of 10 workers he had spoken with supported the return-to-office policy, set to take effect in early 2025.

Those comments are "inconsistent with the experiences of many employees" and are "misrepresenting the realities of working at Amazon," according to the letter, which Reuters reviewed.

An Amazon spokesperson said the company offers commuter benefits, eldercare and subsidized parking rates, among other things, to help with in-office work.