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On the 23rd of May 2023, the WHO declared "with great hope" an end to COVID-19 as a public health emergency. Sixteen months later, many workers are still working from home. Retail giant Amazon has decided it is time to end its hybrid work policy. The company has told its employees they must return to a five-day week from the 2nd of January 2025. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy told staff in a memo that: "We've decided that we're going to return to being in the office the way we were before Covid." He said being with other staff would help workers collaborate, brainstorm, and invent. He added that teaching and learning from one another is "more seamless" in the office.
Some employees at Amazon are unhappy with the return-to-office rule. Staff have a history of telling Amazon about their concerns. In February 2023, Amazon required its employees to be in the office for three days a week. This caused many workers at the company's Seattle headquarters to protest. They walked out of their offices. The workers also complained about job cuts. Amazon cut 27,000 jobs globally in early 2023. Another complaint was about Amazon's contribution to climate change. The workers believe that asking people to commute to work will "accelerate the climate crisis". Mr Jassy has created a "bureaucracy mailbox" for staff to make complaints about company rules.
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