Amazon CEO, Andy Jassy wrote in a memo on Monday instructing the company’s employees to spend five days a week working in the office.
The change marks a shift from the previous return-to-work policy, where employees were required to work at least three days at the office, while the company has given employees until January 2 to comply with the new policy.
Corporate employees will be expected to work a full five days at the company’s office, except in extenuating circumstances or unless granted an approval by their organization’s S-team leader, who are executives that report directly to the CEO.
Meanwhile, Amazon is also aiming to simplify its corporate structure by lowering the number of managers to simplify operations and flatten organizational structures.
By the end of 1Q25, each S-team organization is anticipated to increase the ratio of individual contributors, employees who usually do not manage other workers, to managers by at least 15%.
The process will have each team review their structure and identify roles that are no longer required, with the company also noting that any modifications or adaptations will be communicated at the team level.
During the pandemic, Amazon rapidly grew its workforce before Jassy took over and issued cost cuts across the company, including the largest layoff in the company’s history.
Though the company’s workforce grew by 14% to 1.52 million employees in 2Q22, it employed a total of 1.53 million workers in the second quarter, indicating a modest 5% increase from the previous year.
