Current, Former Employees Of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Publish Blistering Essay About ‘Toxic’ Organization

Current Former Employees Rip Jeff Bezos Blue Origin Company In Essay

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  • 21 current and former employees including Blue Origin’s former head of employee communications accuse Jeff Bezos’ company of having a “toxic” workplace.
  • Blue Origin’s sister company Amazon has already been under fire for years with accusations of worker exploitation, discrimination and intimidation.
  • More Jeff Bezos-related news here.

Astronaut* Jeff Bezos is once again in the cross-hairs of current and former employees of one of his companies. This time, it’s Blue Origin.

In a change of pace from the usual complaints about Amazon being a soul-devouring place to work, 21 current and former employees of Bezos’ Blue Origin describe the workplace at the space company as “toxic.”

Related: Amazon’s New ‘ZenBooths’ For Employees’ Mental Well Being Compared To ‘Futurama Suicide Booths’

Among those current and former Blue Origin employees is the company’s former head of employee communications Alexandra Abrams, who told CBS News in an interview that aired on Thursday, “I’ve gotten far enough away from it that I’m not afraid enough to let them silence me anymore.”

The essay, published on the web site Lioness, includes the following claims and accusations…

“All of us joined Blue Origin eager to innovate and to open access to space for the benefit of humanity. We believe exploring the possibilities for human civilization beyond Earth is a necessity. But if this company’s culture and work environment are a template for the future Jeff Bezos envisions, we are headed in a direction that reflects the worst of the world we live in now, and sorely needs to change.”

The essay also accuses Blue Origin of workforce gender gaps, sexism, and inappropriate behavior with women including sexual harassment.

“Workforce gender gaps are common in the space industry, but at Blue Origin they also manifest in a particular brand of sexism,” it reads.

That culture has also taken a toll on the mental health of many of the people who make Blue Origin’s operations possible. Memos from senior leadership reveal a desire to push employees to their limits, stating that the company needs to “get more out of our employees” and that the employees should consider it a “privilege to be a part of history.” One directive held out SpaceX as a model, in that “burnout was part of their labor strategy.” Former and current employees have had experiences they could only describe as dehumanizing, and are terrified of the potential consequences for speaking out against the wealthiest man on the planet. Others have experienced periods of suicidal thoughts after having their passion for space manipulated in such a toxic environment. One senior program leader with decades in the aerospace and defense industry said working at Blue Origin was the worst experience of her life.

Professional dissent at Blue Origin is actively stifled. Smith personally told one of us to not make it easy for employees to ask questions at company town halls—one of the only available forums for live, open discussion. Smith also asked his COO for a list of employees who were troublemakers or agitators. The list was then distributed to senior leaders so they could “have a talk” with the agitators in their groups. Critics inside the company have been forced out for speaking up and offered payment in exchange for signing even more restrictive nondisclosure agreements—including some of the engineers who ensure the very safety of the rockets. Smith’s inner circle of loyalists makes unilateral decisions, often without the buy-in of engineers, other experts, or senior leaders across various departments.

This suppression of dissent brings us to the matter of safety, which for many of us is the driving force for coming forward with this essay. At Blue Origin, a common question during high-level meetings was, “When will Elon or Branson fly?” Competing with other billionaires — and “making progress for Jeff” — seemed to take precedence over safety concerns that would have slowed down the schedule.

Related: Richard Branson Looking To Move Up Date Of His Space Flight So He Can Beat Jeff Bezos

“Today, Blue Origin is selling seats on rockets, stating “safety is their top mission” despite the fact that very few regulations are in place to ensure that is truly the case,” the essay continues. “Internally, many of us did not see leadership invest in prioritizing sound systems engineering practices. Systems engineering products were created for New Shepard after it was built and flying, rather than in the design phase; this impacted verification efforts.”

The artistic renderings of Bezos’s orbiting colonies have a utopian flair. But what will these colonies actually be like, given the disturbing systemic problems within his own company here on Earth? In our experience, Blue Origin’s culture sits on a foundation that ignores the plight of our planet, turns a blind eye to sexism, is not sufficiently attuned to safety concerns, and silences those who seek to correct wrongs. That’s not the world we should be creating here on Earth, and certainly not as our springboard to a better one.

The essay closes by asking, “Should we as a society allow ego-driven individuals with endless caches of money and very little accountability to be the ones to shape that future?”

For what it’s worth, Blue Origin did respond to the accusations, writing, “Ms. Abrams was dismissed for cause two years ago after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations. Blue Origin has no tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind. We provide numerous avenues for employees, including a 24/7 anonymous hotline, and will promptly investigate any new claims of misconduct. We stand by our safety record and believe that New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built.”

Abrams, on the other hand, responded to Blue Origin’s response by telling CNBC in a statement that she “never received any warnings, verbal or written, from management regarding issues involving federal export control regulations.”

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Before settling down at BroBible, Douglas Charles, a graduate of the University of Iowa (Go Hawks), owned and operated a wide assortment of websites. He is also one of the few White Sox fans out there and thinks Michael Jordan is, hands down, the GOAT.