Amazon is now monitoring the hours corporate employees spend in the office. The move is aimed at cracking down on people trying to circumvent the company’s back-to-office policy, Business Insider has learned.
Several teams across Amazon, including retail and cloud computing units, have been told in recent months that a minimum of two hours per visit is required to count as office attendance, according to multiple views of internal messages Slacks received from BI and people familiar with the Issue. Some teams have been told to stay at least six hours per visit.
Amazon’s goal is to increase scrutiny of “coffee etiquette,” some of the Slack messages said. The coffee sign refers to employees who sign in, get coffee, and leave the office soon to meet their return-to-office mandate. Amazon began requiring office attendance for most corporate employees three times a week last year, but there was no minimum hours requirement for each visit.
The move is the latest flashpoint in Amazon’s long-running fight to get workers back into the office. Since announcing the back-to-office plans early last year, Amazon has faced a backlash from employees, with around 30,000 people signing an internal petition opposing the policy. Amazon later doubled down by forcing some employees to move closer to their teams and blocking promotions of people who didn’t comply. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy even warned employees who disagreed to leave the company.
In an email to BI, Margaret Callahan, an Amazon spokeswoman, said the company has begun “talking directly” to employees who haven’t spent enough time in the office.
“Over a year ago we asked employees to start coming into the office three or more days a week because we believed it would yield the best long-term results for our customers, business and culture. And it has. The vast majority of employees are in the office more often, there’s more energy, connection and collaboration, and we’re hearing that from the employees and businesses that surround our offices,” Callahan said.
“Now that more than a year has passed, we’re starting to speak directly to employees who haven’t regularly spent significant amounts of time in the office to make sure they understand the importance of spending quality time with their colleagues. “
“Like High School Students”
Many Amazon employees shared their frustration with the new tenure, Slack messages showed. They complained that it is an unreasonably strict policy that has raised more confusion.
One person asked if clocking in to eat lunch for two hours would count as a day’s work. Some wondered how exactly the hours could be tracked or if it is legal to do so. Another person said Amazon’s motivation for doing so was unclear, as the company never officially announced it or explained why it was doing it.
“It’s all non-transparent, it’s crazy,” this person wrote on Slack.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. Mike Blake/Reuters
Others were harsher, pointing out that employees will eventually find a way around the rule. Some people warned that Amazon has fired people who did not respect the office’s work policy. One person wrote that people will act like high school students “if you treat employees like high school students.”
“Remember when we were measured by metrics that actually mattered?” one of the people wrote on Slack.
More companies are implementing RTO policies
Amazon isn’t the only one dealing with coffee labels.
A recent survey by LinkedIn News showed that 19% of workers are still coffee badged. Another survey last year by video conferencing company Owl Labs showed that 58% of hybrid workers have the coffee badge.
More companies now seem to be taking action. A July study by WFH Research found that managers are getting tougher on enforcing back-to-office policies. In February 2024, 23% of respondents said non-compliant employees faced termination, up from 11% in 2022. About 17% of respondents said their employer did not discipline violators, a sharp drop from 34 % in 2022.
However, at least one Amazon employee seems to have already found a way around the new attendance policy.
This person wrote in the Slack channel that they were able to access one of the back rooms located at their local Whole Foods store (Whole Foods is a subsidiary of Amazon). The door did not open, this person added, but the badge was registered as an attendee in Amazon’s internal report.
“Can I walk in this door 3 days a week and save myself from having to commute to the office?” the person wrote on Slack.
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