Amazon plans to move some Seattle employees out of town



[ad_1]

Amazon is taking action to allow employees at its Seattle-based headquarters to work out of town, weeks after a new local tax was passed for employers and the coronavirus pandemic is impacting employee plans corporate offices.

The company sent a message to employees in Seattle on Thursday, asking them which communities near the city they would prefer.

Ideas launched for new, smaller office workspaces include Redmond, home of Microsoft headquarters, Tacoma, Renton and Bothell / Woodinville.

AMAZONES PLANS A $ 400M DETROIT DISTRIBUTION CENTER AT THE SITE ABANDONED FOR A DECADE

“GREF (Global Real Estate and Facilities) is always exploring real estate options to support our diverse and growing population, and is considering new locations in the Puget Sound area (in addition to Seattle and Bellevue),” the post said, according to a copy obtained by USA Today.

Amazon is taking steps to allow employees at its Seattle-based headquarters to work out of the city. (Toby Scott / Echoes Wire / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

The poll was also obtained by Jason Rantz of KTTH radio.

Amazon, which employs around 50,000 people in Seattle, in February announced plans to create more than 15,000 jobs in the Seattle suburb of Bellevue, where it opened its first office tower in 2017.

Bloomberg first reported Thursday that Amazon had considered building more satellite offices outside the city limits of Seattle before the pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic and the shift to working from home have caused many businesses to re-evaluate their office space.

Amazon’s headquarters are virtually empty on March 10, 2020 in downtown Seattle, Washington. In response to the coronavirus epidemic, (Photo by John Moore / Getty Images)

Amazon recommended that all employees at its Seattle headquarters work from home when the pandemic struck in March, leaving much of the downtown area nearly empty of people.

ROLLS-ROYCE CLOSING JET VIRGINIA O WH 280 PARTS FACTORY IS WORKING

Another Puget Sound company, outdoor retailer REI, announced last week that it was moving away from its new corporate campus in Bellevue with the intention of switching to a “less centralized approach” to its presence. in the Seattle area.

Amazon approximately 50,000 people in Seattle, where its global headquarters are based. (Getty Images)

But KTTH-Radio reported that Amazon was fed up with Seattle City Council’s attitudes towards the company, including another tax passed earlier this summer.

AMAZON CUT JOBS FROM THE DELIVERY CONTRACT WITH 7 COMPANIES

Seattle City Council passed a tax measure in July whereby companies with at least $ 7 million in annual payroll expenses will be taxed 0.7% to 2.4% on the amount they pay to employees based in Seattle, with levels based on individual salary amounts over $ 150,000.

Teleprinter security Latest Change Change%
AMZN AMAZON.COM INC. 3,148.02 -13.00 -0.41%

The “JumpStart” tax aimed to allocate $ 500 million per year to “help up to 100,000 working-class households” affected by COVID-19.

The tax would also “finance social housing and the Green New Deal to address the critical housing emergency in the city and the climate crisis,” Council member Kshama Sawant wrote in a press release. ‘April. It would also raise funds for construction and renovation projects that could “create and sustain thousands of well-paying union jobs in the years to come.”

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE ROAD BY CLICKING HERE

An Amazon employee speaking on condition of anonymity told KTTH on Friday after the violent protests this summer, the continued political attacks on the company, and the new tax has created conditions that “would certainly” make them seek elsewhere than Seattle.

Graffiti reads “Death to Bezos” on the barricaded window of the Amazon Go grocery store in reference to Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos, Sunday July 19, 2020 in Seattle. Protesters smashed store windows earlier in the afternoon. (AP Photo / Ted S. Warren)

“Amazon appears to be weighing its options to leave Seattle if necessary,” the employee told the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “I think it’s clear to anyone living in Seattle that our local officials only know how to blame others for the problems created by our city’s public policy. Amazon’s success despite the failures of the Seattle city government makes Amazon an easy target when looking for someone to blame.

The Seattle Times reported that an Amazon source played down reports of the move out of Seattle, saying Amazon workers were only interviewed at other workplaces as part of a routine investigation. .

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request from FOX Business.

Audrey Conklin of FOX Business contributed to this report.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT FOX BUSINESS

[ad_2]

Source link