Amazon’s decision to toughen its return-to-office (RTO) policy has sparked widespread backlash among employees, with many expressing frustration and even planning to leave the company.
The new directive, announced by CEO Andy Jassy, requires workers to return to the office five days a week starting in January. The policy marks a sharp shift from the company’s previous three-day in-office requirement, and it has left many employees upset, both internally and on public forums.
Some employees have taken to social media to voice their discontent, with many stating that the policy is overly rigid compared to what was in place before the pandemic. On Amazon’s internal Slack channel, one worker commented, “Please do note that this is (in a lot of cases) significantly more strict and out of its mind than many teams operated under pre-COVID.” The employee went on to describe the move as “not going back to how it was before. It’s just going backwards.”
For some workers, the frustration is intense enough that they are exploring exit options. One employee openly considered a different approach to resisting the mandate: “Can I negotiate my manager to PIP me… Take my money and leave?” The PIP, or Performance Improvement Plan, is a tool often used by companies to address underperformance but can also serve as a means of leaving the company with compensation. Another employee changed their status on LinkedIn to #opentowork, signaling their active search for remote job opportunities.
The pushback is also gaining traction on other platforms. One Amazon Web Services (AWS) engineer made their stance clear on LinkedIn, stating, “Amazon has announced 5 day RTO, which is unfortunate because I’m interested in working for a living, not live-action role playing and virtue signaling.” The engineer also expressed their willingness to explore all job offers, noting, “I’d rather go back to school than work in an office again.”
The sentiment on Reddit is equally strong, where an Amazon employee vented frustration, saying they are mentally “checking out” of their job while searching for another. This user described Jassy’s directive as a “swift kick to the nuts” and indicated they are likely to “soft quit,” a term used when employees disengage from their work while looking for other opportunities.
The backlash comes in response to Jassy’s memo, which reiterated that the company expects workers to return to a pre-pandemic office routine. According to the memo, the expectation is that employees will be back in the office five days a week, barring exceptional circumstances. Jassy, who has been with Amazon since 1997 and became CEO after Jeff Bezos stepped down in 2021, emphasized that flexibility in work arrangements had never been guaranteed pre-COVID and would not be the norm moving forward.
The policy has drawn criticism not only for its impact on work-life balance but also for the logistical challenges it presents. Many employees moved to the suburbs during the pandemic and adapted their childcare and personal lives around the more flexible, three-day in-office schedule. Jassy acknowledged these concerns, stating that the new mandate would not go into effect until January to allow for a smoother transition.
However, the stricter RTO mandate has led some to speculate about the company’s underlying motives. On Reddit, some workers have suggested that the policy is a disguised effort to reduce Amazon’s massive headcount, which currently exceeds 1.5 million employees. “This is a layoff in disguise,” one user claimed. Another echoed the sentiment, writing, “Return to the office or you’re fired, and we don’t have to pay any severance or unemployment.”
These suspicions are not entirely unfounded. Earlier this year, Amazon gave its managers the authority to fire employees who failed to adhere to the three-day in-office requirement. In July, the company also introduced a “return-to-hub” mandate, which forced remote workers to relocate to the office nearest to them or resign. These measures have reinforced fears that the new five-day RTO policy may be another way to pressure employees into quitting, thus reducing Amazon’s workforce without the need for layoffs or severance packages.
Despite the widespread discontent, Jassy has maintained that the RTO policy is designed to enhance collaboration, foster a stronger company culture, and improve innovation. He argued that being in the office helps teams brainstorm and connect more effectively, making it easier to teach and learn from one another.
While Amazon has not officially responded to these concerns, the internal and public backlash makes it clear that the company’s latest RTO mandate has stirred significant unrest. As the implementation date approaches, it remains to be seen whether Amazon will make any concessions or adjustments to the policy, but for now, many employees are preparing for a future that may no longer include the tech giant.
