Amazon has issued a relocation directive to many of its US employees, giving them a 30-day window to decide whether to move to designated corporate hubs or begin the process of resigning—without severance—within 60 days, the Economic Times reports.
The move comes amid broader changes at the company as it adopts artificial intelligence tools expected to reshape its workforce structure.
According to a Bloomberg report, Amazon is asking employees to relocate to key cities such as Seattle, Arlington (Virginia), and Washington, DC, to be closer to managers and teammates. This policy applies across various teams and locations and is being communicated primarily through one-on-one meetings and internal town halls rather than a company-wide announcement.
The directive has raised concerns among employees, particularly mid-career professionals with families and dual-income households, many of whom were hired into remote roles during the pandemic. Amazon operates offices in several major cities—including New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Dallas, and Austin—but not all employees have the option to transfer to those locations.
“For more than a year now, some teams have been working to bring their teammates closer together to help them be as effective as possible,” an Amazon spokesperson told Bloomberg. “There hasn’t been a change in our approach as a company, and we offer support based on individual circumstances.”
Internal documents suggest that affected employees have 30 days to decide whether they will relocate. If they choose not to, they are given an additional 60 days to resign or initiate the relocation process. Those who resign in lieu of moving will not be offered severance.
The relocation mandate coincides with remarks from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy about the company’s shift toward artificial intelligence. In a recent message to staff, Jassy described generative AI as a transformative technology and acknowledged that it may result in a smaller corporate workforce in the future.
“We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today,” Jassy said, adding that while new roles will emerge, the overall headcount is expected to decline as AI tools improve productivity.
Amazon has already cut about 27,000 corporate positions since 2022 in multiple rounds of layoffs. Analysts suggest the relocation policy may serve as a cost-efficient way for Amazon to reduce its workforce further, potentially leading to voluntary resignations rather than formal layoffs.
