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Amazon VP Tim Bray quits, calls company ‘chickens–t’ for firing protesters
Tim Bray
Bravo :applaud
A rare occasion to find spine in a VP. It's a shame how the corporate wealthy treat the American worker. Like chattel to use and abuse and then toss away.
Related: Amazon engineer quits after he ‘snapped’ when the company fired workers who called for coronavirus protections

Tim Bray
5/4/20
A high-ranking engineer at Amazon has resigned in protest of the company’s treatment of warehouse workers. Tim Bray, a VP and distinguished engineer at AWS, said in a public blog post titled “Bye, Amazon” that he could no longer stand to work at a “chickens–t” company that fires dissenters in an effort “designed to create a climate of fear.” “I quit in dismay at Amazon firing whistle-blowers who were making noise about warehouse employees frightened of Covid-19,” Bray wrote. He said that listening to worker accounts of what life is like in Amazon’s warehouses during the coronavirus pandemic was difficult to stomach, and that he “snapped” when they fired the activists. After escalating his concerns through internal channels, citing his belief that “VPs shouldn’t go publicly rogue,” Bray decided to leave.
“Remaining an Amazon VP would have meant, in effect, signing off on actions I despised,” he said. “So I resigned.” Leaving now, Bray said, means abandoning nearly $1 million in salary and vesting shares. The company’s warehouses in areas hit hardest by the coronavirus — including New York, Detroit and Chicago — have seen protests amid reports that dozens of warehouse workers have fallen ill. The e-commerce giant has fired multiple employees in recent months for involvement in protests, including Staten Island warehouse worker Chris Smalls, who organized a small walkout. Amazon has also defended its firing of other employees who have criticized the company, including experience designers Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa for “repeatedly violating internal policies.”
Bravo :applaud
A rare occasion to find spine in a VP. It's a shame how the corporate wealthy treat the American worker. Like chattel to use and abuse and then toss away.
Related: Amazon engineer quits after he ‘snapped’ when the company fired workers who called for coronavirus protections