HR News: Amazon Threatens to Fire Those Who Reject RTO, Liberty Mutual Layoffs, UAW-Ford Deal, Rise of the Creator Economy, and More
HREN News Roundup for the Week of 10/23
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This is a weekly roundup of the latest in HR News.
Recently, return to office mandates, layoffs, and labor union strikes have dominated Human Resources headlines, and this week is the same. Amazon gave managers permission to fire those who are refusing to return to the office for work. One HR leader at another company is taking a different approach with flexibility. In the meantime, Liberty Mutual, the insurance company, laid off hundreds of people. And HR professionals are now competing with the creator economy even though most are not taking it seriously. Finally, HR Exchange Network had an amazing week engaging with its community, and on-demand videos allow others to catch a glimpse of it.
Check out the specifics:
Amazon's Strict RTO Policy Gets Stricter
Amazon informed employees that they would need to come into the office 60% of the time, which amounts to three days per week. This is similar to other big tech companies. Employees have pushed back. But Forbes reported that Amazon told managers to have one-on-one meetings with those who are not coming to the office and termination could be part of the conversation.
The RTO mandates continue to make headlines because employees had just won a bit of leverage in the post-pandemic world of work and they feel like it's slipping away. One employee griped that the RTO mandate did not include an explanation of why or any data supporting the claim that the company would have better results with people in the office.
"Amazon employees have not shared management’s enthusiasm for the return to office initiatives. Over 28,000 Amazon workers joined an internal Slack channel called “Remote Advocacy.” Thousands signed the petitions, and a walkout occurred in Seattle, near the company’s headquarters, with participants joining in from London, Brussels, Chicago and Miami (among other cities)," according to Forbes.
At the same time, leadership at Amazon and many other companies believe that working side-by-side and in person will result in more innovation and achievements. What do you think? Let us know on LinkedIn.
A Unique Approach to RTO
Rebecca Pearce, Chief People Officer at Autodesk, has not given into the peer pressure when it comes to forcing people back into the office, according to CNN. Instead, she has given managers the power to decide if and when workers have to meet in person. The idea is to treat employees as grown ups and give them a say in the policy. It's also a grand compromise, says Pearce, who realizes productivity can happen at home or in the office but some work requires people to meet in person. Anyone else doing something similar? Let HREN know.
Liberty Mutual Layoffs
Four months after Yahoo! published an article about how Liberty Mutual was "using job security as a selling point" to attract early career job applicants, the company is slashing more than 850 jobs, according to Insurance Business. This amounts to about 2% of its U.S. workforce, and it makes a statement about how quickly things change.
"In a statement issued to Insurance Business, a Liberty Mutual spokesperson confirmed that the move was made 'as part of a company transformation initiative.' 'We have made the difficult decision to eliminate approximately 850 positions, nearly all in the U.S., across several functions this month, many of which are effective by the end of the year,' the spokesperson said."
The news of these layoffs comes on the heels of the insurance company GEICO announcing job cuts, too. Other insurance companies have done the same recently. It seems to be a disappointing industry trend.
READ: HR Guide to Layoffs
UAW and Ford Reach an Agreement
The summer of strikes turned into the fall of strikes, but labor unions are making progress in negotiating deals with employers. After a week of intense bargaining, the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced that it had reached a tentative deal with the auto maker Ford. The deal includes a 25% increase in pay over the terms of the agreement, according to CNBC. It ends nearly six weeks of strikes at Ford.
"The tentative deal, which was first reported earlier by CNBC, includes 25% pay increases over the terms of the agreement and will cumulatively raise the top wage to more than $40 an hour, including an increase of 68% for starting wages to over $28 an hour. It also includes reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments, a three-year path to top wages and right to strike over plant closures. among other significantly enhanced benefits."
General Motors (GM) and Stellantis remain locked in negotiations with UAW. Now, the pressure will be on to offer some of the same in their new contracts.
Competing with the Creators Industry
With labor shortages and demographic shifts impacting some industries, many HR professionals must consider all the competition for talent. Too many people are still dismissing the creator industry. LinkedIn points out that it is now worth $250 billion. It cites the Washington Post, which points out that YouTubers alone account for 390,000 full-time jobs. Clearly, many people can go out on their own, rather than seek employment. This also means many are pursuing this as a side hustle, too. It's something for HR to keep in mind.
HR Exchange Network Has Great Conversations
In the last week, HR Exchange Network hosted All Access: Generative AI in HR and Navigating Menopause at Work Part 1, both of which garnered tremendous engagement with the live audience. The comments, questions, and stories took these thoughtful conversations the next level. So, thank you! Join HREN for Navigating Menopause at Work Part 2 and the next HR Exchange Talks on change management for successful digital transformation.
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