INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightGetty ImagesImage caption
Amazon Employees for Climate Justice lead a walkout at the company's
headquarters in Seattle in September
A group of Amazon employees has said the company has threatened to fire some of them
for speaking out on environmental issues.Amazon Employees for Climate Justice said the workers were told they were in violation of company
policies.It comes after employees joined calls for the e-commerce giant to do more to tackle climate change.The company said its policy on
employees making public comments is not new and covers all of its workers.In a Twitter post, the group said some employees had been
contacted by Amazon's legal and human resources teams and questioned about public comments they had made.The statement went on to say: "Some
workers then received follow-up emails threatening termination if they continue to speak about Amazon's business."Amazon told the
TheIndianSubcontinent the rules were not new, adding: "We recently updated the policy and related approval process to make it easier for
employees to participate in external activities such as speeches, media interviews, and use of the company's logo."It continued: "As with
any company policy, employees may receive a notification from our HR team if we learn of an instance where a policy is not being
followed."Amazon Employees for Climate Justice is a group of the company's workers "who believe it's our responsibility to ensure our
business models don't contribute to the climate crisis".The group has called on Amazon to achieve zero emissions by 2030, limit its work
with fossil fuel companies, and stop funding for politicians and lobbyists who deny the existence of climate change.Amazon, like many other
big companies, has faced increasing pressure from both the public and its own workers to take bolder steps to address its impact on the
environment.In May thousands of Amazon employees used the company's annual shareholders meeting to call on chief executive Jeff Bezos to
formulate a broad climate change initiative for the business
That proposal was rejected by shareholders
But the following September, Mr Bezos announced plans for the company to be completely powered by renewable energy by 2030 and have net zero
carbon emissions by 2040.The day after that announcement, more than 1,000 workers left their desks to join the Global Climate Strike, as
well as protesting against Amazon's environmental policies.
