How will new Amazon return-to-office mandate impact Seattle employees, economy?

"You need to be joined at the hip with your teammates when inventing and solving hard problems," Amazon's CEO Andy Jassy wrote on Monday.
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[@bubsbubs1892]

This is what a “silent layoff” looks like

[@yanasosnovskaya864]

100%

[@jaradc2198]

hunda percnt

[@andis9076]

Traffic jam is back to Seattle.

[@LPandMD]

Rural communities will suffer. The loss of remote workers is going to impact the small towns and small cities of Western Washington

[@BreadBox42]

Oh no, small towns!

[@Zach-ls1if]

You mean our rent won’t be inflated by all the people with city level incomes living in our towns? I live an hour and a half from downtown, we’d love for the Amazon employees to leave our area and go back to the city where they belong

[@robertmarmaduke186]

It takes 1:25 minutes from Evertt to Seattle that will go to 1:45 and stretch all the way to the Skagit County line. EVERY worker for EVERY company all across SnoCo will be affected EVERY WORK DAY.

[@criticalmoment3859]

It should be up to the managers. Traffic is going to be hellish again soon

[@cpcattin]

@@criticalmoment3859 It is. You just don’t understand who is managing the company.

[@Piano_Castle]

Hellish is what WA is about.

[@godcomplex5821]

Traffic is already hellish not gonna change

[@ElementalDivinity]

Theives will have newly filled parking lots to raid and employees to Rob on their way in to their office. Let the hunger games begin.

[@2muchalredy]

@@cpcattin It isn't. Currently department ownership on the WFH issue is up to the S-Managers (think VP, Super Regional Manager, etc), who are out of touch with their workers and have no incentive to go against Jassy's directives. Jassy has made it extremely clear that you're either with him or against him (like the Sith), and that includes the S-Managers. I am not a spokesperson for Amazon, nor do my views represent the company.

[@peterk6797]

I spent 6 yrs working for them in a corporate role, doesn't shock me. A lot of people were hired during covid and promised they didn't have to move and now they have to or leave

[@cpcattin]

@@peterk6797 Yup, things change.

[@robertmarmaduke186]

They'll be replaced with offshore ln'dia contract workers. The only showups left will be for package pickers and Prime driver giggers.

[@JSRTales]

corportes = lyes

[@dreamingof777]

The only reason RTO is a thing is to save corporate real estate and the number of pension plans etc, which have invested in it. Otherwise, WFH makes more sense from a financial pov of a company as they aren't spending money on office space.

[@cpcattin]

The rent will be paid the same on a building that employees attend 3 days a week as it would be for 5 days a week. Don’t want to go to work ? Easy … quit.

[@criticalmoment3859]

@@cpcattin it’s about flexibility for commuting, not working. Don’t be obtuse.

[@cpcattin]

@@criticalmoment3859 Go ahead, keep trying to convince yourself.

[@cpcattin]

@@dreamingof777 Those idiots that run large companies should learn from you ! Think of how much they would save if they stopped doing business.

[@cmdrls212]

those fancy spheres were not cheap

[@RoseStorm336]

This is definitely an extrovert world. Some people are introverts and do work more effectively and are more productive without having to waste two hours a day on the road commuting to and from an office.

[@wsidechris]

Have you been to Seattle? I’d bet 80% of the populace are introverts. I know my limited social skills took a nosedive the 2 years I lived there.

[@TyThompson]

It is for cheap layoffs 100%

[@TheGoldenV-bl9pj]

Is it a "cheap layoff" if you have to pay unemployment costs for those that will be fired? BTW: I'd take fired over resigned at this stage. No longer matters much and will benefit me more.

[@andrewh2u]

Everyone looking forward to the gridlock and highway traffic madness again.

[@jaradc2198]

Right? Like it's not already bad enough. WSDOT can't solve it. They're incompetent. Too many people in this area now.

[@CatWhiskering]

​@@jaradc2198true, WSDOT's only "solution" for awful traffic is "let's slap a $5 toll on it".

[@MichaelMcDonald-my2np]

Don't work for a company that wants you to pay for their building mistake

[@johnchen0213]

with this job market, people have no choice :(

[@MichaelMcDonald-my2np]

@@johnchen0213 sounds like communism

[@ericnail1]

Idk why people are always so upset. Employment is at will in the states, you do not have to work for any company you don’t want to. You can even make your own company or be a 1099. It’s both strang and entitled that people think they should have a say in companies they do not run.

[@MichaelMcDonald-my2np]

@@johnchen0213 reminds me of communism

[@johnchen0213]

@@MichaelMcDonald-my2np it's not communism tho

[@ivtec4fun55]

When will corporate start to understand.... the people don't want to waste their lives driving around a dirty city and walking into thier dirty building to look at dirty people. Yall are getting this move incorrect.

[@yanasosnovskaya864]

what choice workers have? less and less jobs are allowed to have hybrid setting. And job market right now is hellish.

[@kaspar_1982]

all the dirty people, where do they all come from...leave meeeeeeee alone MF's

[@ivtec4fun55]

@@yanasosnovskaya864 IDK, possibly move away from cities, try a town, where things are cheaper but your wage will be lower too. You are correct, it's due to fast technology, slow goverments unable to pivot with tech., and thier inability to have fiscal accountability (but thats at the cost of human life so the mis management of fiat money will never end, the math is rigged)

[@hamburglar83]

I go into office 5 days to focus. My teammates let me down daily “working from home”. One works well the others are always behind. I got a pay bump and two losers actually said it was because i was kissing butt going in. No, it’s because im done ahead of schedule. My boss knows i leave early every Friday and doesnt care. One of the losers actually was caught at golf course midday Wednesday and wasn’t fired.

[@ivtec4fun55]

@@hamburglar83 You got a raise while they are keeping their time. Time is more valuable.

[@Ic37r011]

It’s a way to make people leave and control people plain and simple.

[@banditonehundred]

Great job Amazon, hopefully it frees up some talent for us smaller folks to poach.

[@2muchalredy]

100% is a perfect opportunity for other companies to pull in some Prime talent (pardon the pun). There will be plenty who are forced out by this, so other companies just need to make a half-decent offer.

[@ihmpall]

@@2muchalredylol

[@jaradc2198]

It wouldn't be bad to return to the Amazon office if Amazon had several offices SPREAD OUT in less populated cities around the Seattle area. Employees would thank them! Drivers would thank them! It would reduce expenses drastically!

[@2muchalredy]

Amazon already has several campuses in and near Seattle. The issue isn't to spread out workers, it is to keep them in an environment that benefits everyone - namely keeping them at home in a personalized space.

[@jaradc2198]

@@2muchalredy I would hardly call Bellevue and Redmond offices "spread out". What I'm saying is, go far North, East, and South so everyone isn't trekking into the hearts of heavily congested cities. The majority of Amazon buildings are in Seattle. Staying home is not an option to Amazon workers so suggesting it is not up for discussion unfortunately.

[@gr8myndmuzic]

They need workers in those cubicles like schools need kids in those desks. Jobs that require you to sit down and work from a computer, but you gotta be there 5 days a week? LOL. It’s about Tax breaks, incentives, bonuses for them from their investors and shareholders, but not much for you!! They’ll always tell you it’s about collaboration, innovation blah blah it’s not for your benefit, it’s for theirs!!

[@wsidechris]

LOL what cubicles? Workers are pressed together in open spaces. Some of the nicer buildings might still have cubicles, but when I left Amazon in 2019 most space was “open” yet packed.

[@gr8myndmuzic]

@@wsidechris yikes, that sounds even worse!

[@gr8myndmuzic]

@@wsidechris point still stands. They need workers in the buildings and they get more funding. More funding for them, not for us. Business 101.

[@robertmarmaduke186]

My best contract ever was onsite to bridge the Lockdown until the end of WFH because the WFHs weren't accomplishing anything but filling the Teams calendars. When they got called back they still kept their WFH habits sitting around jabbering on Teams, telling jokes and complaining about the work conditions. The alternate is offshoring those WFH jobs to ln'dia but that's even worse with little to no productivity and when there are errors, they propagate instead of being resolved. _Bíden-Hárris Lóckdown really scréwed the poóch!_

[@amjadpervaiz4453]

Recession is nearby after watching this video.

[@RobWastman]

I can’t believe that people are actually expected to show up for work. That’s just not fair.

[@wsidechris]

Does proudly frugal Amazon even have the office space in Seattle? I worked for Amazon in Seattle from 2017-2019, and the offices were already stuffed with people. My team of a dozen Software Development Engineers were crammed into an open 12x12 partition which I’m certain violated occupancy laws. This clearly sounds like forced attrition. If everyone opts to work in Seattle, I am certain that Amazon will not be able to house them all. Pre-COVID I know some teams were moved to WeWork space in downtown Seattle. If enough don’t resign then there will be more layoffs for sure.

[@CatWhiskering]

You're right, they don't. I know people who've been waiting for a desk assignment for a year.

[@2muchalredy]

I don't speak for Amazon and I'm not an Amazon spokesperson. No, they don't have enough space. No, they don't have the worker's benefit in mind. Yes, they are doing this just to force attrition.

[@GothamsFinest]

This happened to me but it played in my favor. My previous employer mandated RTO and 4 out of 7 on the team quit, including myself. I found another fully remote job and was hired in 10 days with a pay bump. The ones that stayed were the bottom feeding do nothings who didn't have the skillset to find another job. They still can't find employees after a year because they're limited to 30 miles in the rust belt. They call me all the time for help but now I'm on a 1099 at $175/hr with a 4 hour minimum. Que sera, sera!

[@biprofessional3835]

I beat out competitors to win a remote tech job. I wonder if this policy will cause a brain-drain. The best candidates can find remote work at other firms.

[@cpcattin]

@@biprofessional3835 Not for long !

[@robertmarmaduke186]

The impact on surface transportation in Snohomish County is staggering the past 5 years. Before, I-5's red light parking lot stopped south of Lynnwood. With massive Amazon warehouses built everywhere you look, all the way to Arlington, the surface cross-traffic is horrific and red light parking lot I-5 is north of Marysville now. 100s of podium apartment 'villas' beside I-5 will be reverberating diesel thunder starting 4:30AM until 8:30PM We need more gummy bears!🐼🙋

[@deplorablechump8758]

You helped create a monster, Amazon.

[@tysonjmiller]

Participation > Performance

[@adlar2005]

been working for 60 years, I spit my coffee out this morning while working on the oil rig!

[@2muchalredy]

I'm not an Amazon spokesperson and do not speak for the company. Can't they just WFH instead though? The Amazon population in Seattle is vast, but a good amount of team members don't need to meet in person to innovate in their roles. Engineers don't need to look over each other's shoulders to look at a screen when there's a screen share functionality in almost every comms app. Many workers have bosses and coworkers in other states/countries, so they'll have to go to work only to "collaborate" with their team via video call anyway! This whole thing has a cloak-and-dagger feel and it's sickening. Very "Strive to be Earth’s Best Employer" of Amazon to destroy work-life balance for folks essentially just for the hell of it. Not to mention this action will make an already crowded area more crowded and punish loyal workers by making them spend hours in traffic and make them pay for parking. Ridiculous.

[@Pam-y7y]

They enjoy working from home

[@ayoitsyayo]

I’ve worked there and it’s hilarious they think that their talent is “exclusive” if the top brass could kick them out without retaliation they would because they’re all replaceable, they don’t care about retention as much as they used to

[@joshyoung5160]

They wouldn't be going back to Seattle anyway, they relocated. Wonder who they're renting to.

[@Joleen-sg2db]

Nobody guaranteed these employees that they can work remotely forever.

[@CatWhiskering]

Not true. During COVID Amazon hired tens of thousands of employees telling them that they could be permanently virtual.

[@2muchalredy]

Actually it's in many employee's offer letters what their schedule and office policies are. While you're correct that policies can change, many employees base their schedules and lives off what a company hires them for in the offer letter.

[@MS-ty8eq]

All these people with kids able to sit at home raising their kids while making full-time pay without having to use daycare or a babysitter. It must have been nice.

[@2muchalredy]

In this economy, it certainly was. If only companies saw their laborers as people instead of tissues to sneeze in and throw away.

[@classicwhitebread]

But theres a new virus 🦠 in the works right now

[@littlebrit]

What happened to the workers' buses ? At least in Canada they are bussing foreign IT workers to their looms.

[@cpcattin]

@@littlebrit They exist.

[@2muchalredy]

Amazon often tries (and fails) to incentivize RideShare options like busses and vans. Unfortunately many options require so many stops or drop you off so far away that you're better off just driving in anyway. A perfect example is my town (which will remain undisclosed for privacy), where driving to the office regularly takes at least an hour, and taking the bus takes 2 hours one-way AND drops you off several city blocks away adding additional time. It's truly unfortunate that there's no better options, else folks would take them.

[@edwardvakhovsky891]

Amazon is the name of a jungle river

[@HelloKit-nc9gj]

here's the thing... remote work was only to be temporary due to the pandemic. If current workers dont feel it's right and decide to leave ... it's their loss because there are probably a dozen of people who are in line eager to work for amazon or any other company requiring workers to return 5 days a week.

[@GothamsFinest]

Dozens of people would line up to be a CEO too, it doesn't mean they have the advanced skills needed to be successful in a job like DevOps. And someone with those skills can demand top dollar, set their own terms and have their pick of any company to work for, especially with being a former AWS employee on their resume.

[@2muchalredy]

So firstly, yes the WFH was only supposed to be temporary... until it showed the word that you don't need an office to do quality work and churn out results. Now it'd be silly to go back, and CEOs everywhere are embracing the silliness. I can assure you, there aren't lines of folks wanting to work at Amazon. The company has gone through entire towns worth of people to churn out orders, and many are wise to the company's antics now.

[@gz6x]

Amazon stock upped 1% today, out-performed the Nasdaq.

[@cmdrls212]

yuck. I feel sorry for them. having to go to a city for work is terrible.

[@Joleen-sg2db]

Employees "Forced" to leave Amazon because they don't want to work in the office 😂

[@2muchalredy]

Many workers are not in a position to RTO due to extenuating circumstances or medical conditions. By targeting QoL of those in the minority, the majority also benefit.

[@philipfleming3008]

what a bunch of winers...

[@chrisfr977]

If you want to claim a paycheck and work for Amazon glad to see that they're requiring their employees 5 days a week anybody whining about that and go find a job somewhere else

[@2muchalredy]

Try it. Seriously, try to find a competitive job that allows WFH in this job market lol. It's shocking to see people like you wishing worse conditions on others. This is not a "I can do it, so can you, anyone who can't just likes to whine" story. We should enable MORE worker benefits, not less, across all sectors.

[@Zach-ls1if]

Oh poor babies!!!!!

[@lillygirl7238]

Right? Cry babies. Two kids and I made it work. Took effort but I didn’t cry about it💕

[@2muchalredy]

If you could work from home, would you? Would you like to sit in traffic, pay more daily expenses, etc? No, of course not. Stay in your lane. This is not about whining, it's about CEOs enforcing policies that make absolutely no sense.

[@2muchalredy]

@@lillygirl7238 That's funny, because if you could have spent more time with your kids I bet you would have. I bet you'd love to not idle in traffic for hours. I bet you'd enjoy being able to make tea or lunch from home. This is not about you. This is not about whining, it's about CEOs enforcing policies that make absolutely no sense. Instead of forcing other parents to go through the same struggles as you did, how about making it easier for future generations to excel instead?

[@daveb2778]

get back to work

[@teresabravo564]

Oh we will feel that they’re in the office because the golf courses will be available. The pickle ball courses will be available. Tennis biking and the ferry lines will be shorter. That’s where the Amazon employees has spent the last four years.

[@CatWhiskering]

Thanks for letting us know you have no idea what tech work involves. Time to get back to your job as an Instacart shopper.

[@2muchalredy]

You obviously have no idea what you're talking about. Plus I'm not sure what you're even trying to say... that Amazon employees can't enjoy golf, pickleball, etc? Lmao come on.

[@donkramer8848]

Top quality people don’t work at home

[@katzgar]

stupid comment

[@criticalmoment3859]

@@donkramer8848 said the single childless sigma or the out of touch boomer?

[@cmdrls212]

tell me you're mid management without telling me you're mid management 😂

[@donkramer8848]

@@criticalmoment3859 I have kids, I’m 43 and run a business, and work at Amazon, I have good perspective on this issue. Oh and married, my business is a family event venue/petting zoo learning farm.

[@CatWhiskering]

And you'd know this from your extensive experience at the Safeway deli counter?

[@Hes008]

People are crying because they have to go out of their house and work 5 days a week? Really? Seems pretty normal to me. People need to get out more and stop being so lazy.

[@tlor8922]

It's the traffic that people hate.

[@jdspencer60]

You're an idiot. Working from home was working just fine for them. You aren't special, everyone isn't lazy, you're just a judgemental douchebag. Grow up.

[@jodylancaster8706]

​@@tlor8922use the so called miracle: light rail.

[@2muchalredy]

Challenge your perception of "normal," especially when it doesn't make sense for the role. This is not about laziness, it's about efficiency and making the future better for everyone.

[@tyzell55]

Sucks McDonald’s is making all its cooks return to the restaurant..

[@larisa7547]

Nurses too

[@Tony-so1zl]

Dumb comment, tech jobs can be done remotely

[@tyzell55]

@@Tony-so1zl lots of companies are requiring employees to return. One could get on the news and cry about it or find a new job like an adult.

[@jdspencer60]

What a stupid false equivalency

[@tyzell55]

@@jdspencer60 oh okay. Then it sucks that k-12 teachers are required to teach from school. The kids really excelled during remote learning.

[@cpcattin]

Cry me a river. For Christ’s sake - employees are required go to work ? They should quit and go to work for an employer that doesn’t require attendance.

[@criticalmoment3859]

@@cpcattin it’s about commuting, not working. Don’t be obtuse. These are 10+ hour a day jobs already, Amazon is brutal with accountability and work tracking. You have zero idea what you’re saying.

[@final378]

And that is exactly what top talent is going to do

[@gr8myndmuzic]

To sit back down and do what they can do from home? Yeah that is a problem and it is pretty ridiculous.

[@2muchalredy]

@@gr8myndmuzic lol "sit back?" Nah fam, stay in your lane. The accusation that people who WFH are lazy is baseless nonsense. Anecdotally, every org I've seen with WFH has outperformed in-office teams doing similar work.

[@gr8myndmuzic]

@@2muchalredy I think you misread my comment. I was saying it’s ridiculous for people who have computer-based jobs to have to go through all that stuff just get to the office to sit back down and work on the computer when they can do it remotely. These companies will try and spin it as it if it’s for your benefit, but really it’s about control and more incentives and funding, for them and not you. That’s what I meant.

[@robzymedia]

I have always worked five days a week and been paid for five days. If I don't come to work, I don't get paid. This rule should apply to everyone. Utilize the family leave benefit, sick leave, or personal time off if you are unable to attend work.

[@leojboby]

Im sure there is data to back up this claim, we just have to see it. As a tech company, most positions can in theory be done remotely.

[@jdspencer60]

They aren't getting paid for not working, they work from home. But, I see that you are one of those people who wants everyone else to suffer, because you did. Instead of trying to make things better, you want it to be shitty. got it.

[@supersupersomething]

So work can only happen when you're in an office building? What?

[@Jay151]

But Rob, you work at Starbucks

[@cmdrls212]

working and commuting are two different things 😂

[@axelriet]

High-performing teams understand the value of the in-person presence of most members most of the time and have already returned to the office.

[@jdspencer60]

Spoken like a true boot licker

[@TheGoldenV-bl9pj]

Found the mid level manager

[@intothefrayyo]

@@TheGoldenV-bl9pj😂

[@this_epic_name]

High-performing teams recognize that people of all sorts of personalities have different environments in which they thrive. Those teams recognize the best can be drawn out of people by allowing them to work in the ways best suited to them.

[@CatWhiskering]

Really? 😂 Because I manage a high-performing tech team that's scattered all over the U.S., and I find that you get awesome performance out of people who aren't afraid they'll be fired for leaving for 20 minutes to go pick up their kids from school, or pick up a prescription when their meetings are done, or go to yoga class in the morning in their own neighborhoods. You get top-quality work out of people who didn't have to wake up at 5:30-6 a.m. to commute 2-4 hours round-trip.

[@leandudelifestyle1159]

I'm sure there's plenty of people who dont mind going to work that will take those jobs.

[@2muchalredy]

I can assure you, there aren't. Amazon has gone through entire towns worth of people in their worker-mill, and when there are now greener pastures elsewhere there is now no longer an incentive to work there.

[@youtubeaccount1716]

Entitled employees should do it or be unemployed in a recession lol

[@CatWhiskering]

It's almost 1 p.m., time to get back to your job putting flyers in junk mail circulars.

[@2muchalredy]

Entitled employers should lose all their workers in a recession. lol

[@supersx2]

Boo Hoo I don't want to work in a fancy building where I get free matcha and bananas. These Amazonians are spoiled. They can sit anywhere and they have open space. Make em work 6 days a week.

[@2muchalredy]

Spite is your superpower. How about enabling this Amazon work culture you claim they have at other companies? How dare those Amazon employees have a better QoL than you... everyone should suffer like a miser such as yourself! lmao

[@DontCare1990]

Oh no they can’t work remotely no more so sad how are these workers supposed to enjoy there days now 😂

[@kenny6055]

5 days pay but only have to show up 3 days? What a deal! I wish I had this option

[@jdspencer60]

they work remote. Don't be stupid.

[@Daffytheduck7514]

@@jdspencer60Kenny can’t help it, born that way.

[@cmdrls212]

Amazon work is measured in hours, not days. that's 60 hours per week minimum. how many days that is to you is not their problem 😂

[@kenny6055]

@@jdspencer60 You the stupid one, If you dont like the work requirements go work at McD's. Stop whining

[@kenny6055]

@@jdspencer60 The stupid ones should quit crying since no one is listening.

[@Piano_Castle]

On a bright note: I hear 'they' have another pandemic planned -- and it IS an Election year, so there's still hope for staying home. Be of good cheer...

[@yanasosnovskaya864]

haha good luck with job search lol

[@ryanmaneo]

stop complaining and go to work, formally, - every service worker who gives you food and coffee that you doordash 💕🥰

[@2muchalredy]

Lol jealous much? Almost like the profession you chose as a Dasher is only possible due to WFH. Tells folks to stop WFH and suffers from fewer orders as a result. lmao. Smort