Amazon has announced plans to return employees to working in person five days a week.
The company, whose Arlington employees currently work from HQ2 at least three days a week, is “going to return to being in the office the way we were before the onset of COVID.”
Exceptions will still be available for occasional circumstances like travel, family emergencies or “a day or two to finish coding in a more isolated environment,” CEO Andy Jassy said in a memo to employees today (Monday).
“Before the pandemic, it was not a given that folks could work remotely two days a week, and that will also be true moving forward — our expectation is that people will be in the office outside of extenuating circumstances (like the ones mentioned above) or if you already have a Remote Work Exception approved through your s-team leader,” Jassy wrote.
Arlington employees will also return to assigned desk arrangements. The changes are scheduled to go into effect Jan. 2, 2025.
Amazon completed the first phase of HQ2 at 1770 Crystal Drive in spring 2023, but plans for a phase 2 expansion at S. Eads Street and 12th Street S. in Pentagon City have faced extended delays.
Utility work in anticipation of phase 2 began in March. However, Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey told ARLnow at the time that she has heard no substantive updates since the Board was told in May 2023 that the delay would only last about a year.
Amazon was still keeping mum about a construction timeline as of June.
